The Deference Debate

摘要

Let it be known without apology:Barack Obama is not above the bow. He dipped his head all through Asia-greeting Japan's Emperor with a deep bend at the waist, nodding to Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping on a Beijing tarmac, even bobbing forward in gratitude before his tour guide at the Courtyard of Loyal Obedience in the Forbidden City.Back in the U.S., the President's many political foes leaped on the gesture as a symbol of submission. "It's not appropriate," chided conservative pundit William Kristol on Fox News. "A spineless blunder," blared the online firebrand Michelle Malkin. But neither the President nor his aides paid much mind. "He doesn't spend a lot of time reading right-wing blogs," explained Robert Gibbs, White House press secretary.