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Obama's Tour May Pay Off In International Goodwill

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The Washington Post

Published: July 19, 2008

WASHINGTON - Sen. Barack Obama will make his international debut as a Democratic presidential candidate in the coming days with a weeklong tour of the Middle East and Europe designed to deepen his foreign policy credentials, confront questions at home about his readiness to be commander in chief and signal the possibility of new era in U.S. relations with the rest of the world.

Obama's visit is among the most unusual ever undertaken by a presumptive White House nominee, planned with the attention to detail of a trip by a president and as heavily hyped abroad as at home. The senator from Illinois will meet with a succession of foreign leaders, make symbolically important visits and hold at least one large public event - all with an eye to how the trip is playing in the United States.

But the tour is fraught with risks. The large media contingent that will follow Obama guarantees that any misstep or misstatement will be magnified and potentially read as evidence of his inexperience, adding to doubts about him. If he successfully navigates his itinerary, however, the political payoffs could be significant enough to affect the outcome of his race against Republican Sen. John McCain this fall.

"The reward is potentially very big: that he substantially closes the very large and only large gap he has with John McCain and establishes a foreign policy credential," said Republican strategist Vin Weber.

But Weber said the trip could easily backfire if Obama does not carefully calibrate his message or if he creates the impression that he is running a premature victory lap. "He has thrown caution to the winds on this and gambled that the American people will like essentially what's going to look like a presidential trip to Europe," Weber added. He added: "America would like the president to be more popular in the world, but they don't want to elect the president of Europe."

Obama officials were at pains in a conference call Friday to play down the political ramifications of the tour. "The trip is not a campaign trip," senior adviser Robert Gibbs said.

He and other advisers described the travel as a way for Obama to strengthen relationships and to exchange views on a variety of international issues.

McCain advisers scoff at the notion that this is not campaign-related, as do others. For security reasons, Obama's campaign has been reluctant to share details about his exact itinerary, but it breaks down into three segments: the broader Middle East; Europe; and Iraq and Afghanistan. The trip is expected to begin Tuesday.

In Jordan and Israel, Obama will have to confront the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the threat that Israel feels from Iran.

The Middle East visit will be followed with meeting the leaders of Britain, France and Germany. Obama's largest public event of the trip will be held in Berlin, and it has already been a source of controversy. German Chancellor Angela Merkel earlier criticized the senator for considering holding the event at the Brandenburg Gate, calling it inappropriate for a U.S. presidential candidate to use the historic site for the equivalent of a political rally. Campaign officials said that Obama had earlier ruled out speaking there and that other sites remain under discussion.

GRAMM QUITS OVER 'WHINERS' REMARK

NEW YORK - Former Texas Sen. Phil Gramm resigned Friday from his role as GOP presidential candidate John McCain's campaign co-chairman, hoping to quiet the uproar that followed his comments that the United States had become a "nation of whiners" whose constant complaints about the U.S. economy show they are in a "mental recession."

Gramm, a past presidential candidate, made the remarks more than a week ago. McCain immediately distanced himself from the comments, but they brought a steady stream of criticism just as McCain is trying to show he can help steer the country past its current financial troubles.

Gramm said in a statement late Friday that he is stepping down to "end this distraction."

The Associated Press

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