From being a critic to becoming a fan of the Clintons

August 5, 2009 — drsubrotoroy

I got to Washington in the summer of 1992, just before the Clintons arrived, and lived there through all of 1993 and a bit of 1994.   It is fair to say I have been continually critical — right until Mrs Clinton’s brilliant speech at the Democratic convention last year.  Now I may have become a bit of a fan.  Could the successful North Korea visit be Bill Clinton’s most dignified and single most poignant political deed? And Hillary appears to have finally found her calling as Secretary of State.  She was an excellent diplomatist on her recent India-visit — and certainly put our rather dull political class into the shade.  President Obama gets some credit here for good managerial decisions behind the scenes.

Subroto Roy

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Posted in Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, Communists, Diplomacy, Diplomatic protocols, Diplomatic recognition, Hillary Clinton, India's Diplomacy, International diplomacy, Korea, Obama Administration, US Foreign Policy, Diplomacy, Espionage. Leave a Comment »

Dr Rice finally gets it right (and maybe Mrs Clinton will too)

December 7, 2008 — drsubrotoroy

When, or perhaps if,  the full story of the George W Bush Presidency comes to be written, it may be found that Dr Condoleeza Rice’s political connections at Stanford contributed more to the chances of the Texas Governor winning the Republican nomination than has been widely known.   Dr Rice was without a doubt a Republican star at the time  but when she became National Security Adviser, she had the wrong expertise!  She was a USSR expert by training from Cold War days and knew next to nothing about the Middle East.  Now finally, as America’s foreign minister in the dying weeks of the Bush Presidency, she has come into her own as a world diplomat: her intervention following the Mumbai massacres may have yet staved off an Indian military retaliation against Pakistani targets and also induced Pakistan to move slightly towards governance and away from terrorist anarchy.   Learning-on-the-job has been productive for Dr Rice — she and Robert Gates also appear to have staved off a Bush-Cheney attack on Iran.

Would it not be interesting to see her on the top of the 2012 Republican ticket against Barack Obama?

Her successor, Hillary Clinton, may too become a competent American diplomat and have finally found her calling after all — assuming she is able to transcend domestic interest groups and ignore all politically correct nonsense like  “climate change”.

Posted in American academia, American politics, anarchy and governance, Barack Obama, Diplomacy, Hillary Clinton, India's Diplomacy, India's Military Defence, India-Pakistan peace process, Mumbai massacres, Pakistan's nuclear weapons, Pakistan's politics, Pakistan's terrorist masterminds, Pakistan, Balochistan, Afghanistan, Iran, US Foreign Policy, Diplomacy, Espionage, US Pakistan policy, US Republicans and Democrats, War. Leave a Comment »

Thanks to Hillary for Harriet Tubman quote: “keep going”

August 28, 2008 — drsubrotoroy

I got to Washington from my Hawaii experience in the summer of 1992, and I remained there through 1993, the first year the Clinton couple came.  I am afraid I have never liked the Clinton couple much, for a mixture of objective and subjective reasons. I also think Mrs Clinton’s bid for the Presidency may have been constitutionally barred by the 22nd Amendment as she has been married to a two-term President and may have been considered the same legal person by the authors of the 22nd Amendment.   (Suppose Barack Obama becomes a two-term President; can his wife then run on her own and have him campaign for her?  Before his term ends or even after?)

But I did hear Mrs Clinton’s speech at the Denver convention the other day, and I was grateful to hear her quote the fine words of Harriet Tubman about slaves running to freedom:

“If you hear the dogs, keep going.
If you see the torches in the woods, keep going.
If they’re shouting after you, keep going.
Don’t ever stop. Keep going.
If you want a taste of freedom, keep going.”

Harriet Tubman (c. 1820-1913)

That is indeed what the individual must do in face of all tyrannies: keep going.

Subroto Roy

Postscript:  February 10 2009.  I think Mrs Clinton has been very sporting  since her loss to Barack Obama , and that she may become as good a foreign minister for the United States as there has been.  Hence the cancellation of the sentence above.

Posted in American democracy, Barack Obama, Freedom, Good and Evil, Harriet Tubman, Hillary Clinton, US Constitution 22nd Amendment, USA, United States. 3 Comments »