Fence-mending awaits POTUS
President Biden has some fence-mending ahead as he ventures to Europe to meet with our European allies.
I am going to express some confidence in the president’s years as a Senate Foreign Relations Committee chairman and that they will hold him in good stead as he seeks to recover from a couple of serious missteps.
One of them involved a nuclear submarine deal with Australia that forced the cancellation of a huge sub contract that the Aussies had with France, this nation’s oldest ally. French President Emanuel Macron pulled his nation’s U.S. ambassador because he was caught by surprise over the deal; the enjoy is back on the job in Washington.
Then there was the withdrawal of our fighting forces from Afghanistan, which didn’t go too well. President Biden said he had received zero blowback from our allies on the pullout. Hmm. Actually, he did.
So, he’s going to Europe to talk to our allies about climate change and the state of U.S. standing in the world.
I’ve already declared my intention to stand with the president. Given the stumble-bum approach employed by his immediate predecessor, Biden’s experience as a senator and then as vice president in the Obama administration should enable him to repair at least some — maybe most — of the damage that has been inflicted since he took office as president.
Here’s hoping he knows how to soothe bruised egos and feelings.