Harris' Vietnam Trip Is About More Than the White House Is Letting On
By Becca Lower | Aug 19, 2021 3:15 PM ET
In a little-noted story published in late July, the White House announced that Vice President Kamala Harris planned to take a trip to the Pacific region, with diplomatic stops in both Vietnam and Singapore — a trip which we now know starts this Friday.
CNBC:
Vice President Kamala Harris will travel to Singapore and Vietnam next month to strengthen the U.S.’s relationship and economic ties with the Indo-Pacific region, the White House said in a statement on Friday.
[….]
The visit comes as the administration works to fortify regional ties with Southeast Asian nations, while pushing back on China’s influence in the region and globally.
Late Wednesday night, my colleague Jennifer Oliver O’Connell wrote about Harris — who was very vocal about being a historic role model for women and girls (and John Kerry-level haughty) on her trip to Mexico and Guatemala in June — suddenly going stone-cold silent in the face of brutality against women and girls by the Taliban. It was the talk of the conservative airwaves, as well it should be. But that isn’t the direction I’m going with on this.
There’s more to this than talk show fodder about “Hanoi redux,” as in the past 24 hours, the White House has pushed back, or as Fox News put it, doubled down on Harris’ Pacific escapade, while the Middle East and American credibility burns to the ground.
more
https://redstate.com/beccalower/2021/08/19/harris-vietnam-trip-is-about-more-than-the-white-house-is-letting-on-n429613
