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UPDATED: The New York Times just reported that President Obama has decided to push back his Indonesia trip for the second time. (The rest of my post remains accurate, with the strikethroughs added.)
President Obama has had already postponed his visit to Indonesia, home to the world’s largest Muslim population and where he lived as a child, by a few days while he rallies support for Congress’ upcoming health care reform vote. But The Washington Post reports that some Democrats want him to stay put until all the votes are cast and counted, fearing his absence could hurt the bill’s chances.
The trip is a priority for the Obama administration’s foreign policy efforts, however, especially in terms of building bridges with the Muslim world. Perhaps Obama fearsed that postponing it again would be considered an insult, one that could have unpleasant repercussions in a country trying to balance its young democracy with the freedom this system gives “jihadist” groups to express their views.
What do you think?
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posted March 18, 2010 at 3:32 pm
The health care bill, IMO, is priority. Indonesia isn’t going anywhere. He is, after all, the President of this country. We come first.
posted March 19, 2010 at 10:56 am
What do I think? President Obama doesn’t fear anything. His good sense leads him, and right now it’s with his 39 million people he can help receive health insurance.