Running head: American Government Research Part 1 1

Frazier L. Gaines

4/17/2018

POS2041

American Government Research Paper

Asian-American Foreign Policy Relations Under Obama

Frazier L. Gaines

St. Petersburg College

AMERICAN GOVERNMENT RESEARCH PART 1 2

Frazier L. Gaines

4/17/2018

POS2041

American Government Research Paper

Asian-American Foreign Policy Relations Under Obama

In 2008, Barrack Obama, the first ever African American President, was elected. What

proceeded was a weakening in nearly all positions of American international foreign

relationships. It would not be hyperbolic to state that, as an international political agent, Barrack

Obama was responsible for more disasters in human rights external to our own country than any

President in recent memory. From the destabilization in Libya (Waggaman, 2016) to the Asian

Pivot, which simultaneously saw a worsening of U.S-Phllipine relations (Bernal & Yan, 2016)

and one of the most blatant acts of Chinese Pacific territorial aggression in modern history

(Rogin, 2016), Obama, as CEO, was responsible for sweeping pulls to global destabilization.

Obama himself carries the sole blame for this, being perceived as weak by Asian states

and allowing his administration to conduct destabilization tactics in the Middle East. As a key

focus, Obama’s relationship with the Chinese during the latter years of his administration

demonstrated just how weak he was, with China expanding military facilities in the South China

Sea, contested waters between China and Japan, a NATO ally (Rogin, 2016.) This culminated in

the ultimate show of disrespect by the Chinese in a diplomatic visit where the US President was

kept waiting on Air Force One without even stairs being made available to disembark. Asian-
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American relations suffered more under President Barrack Obama than any other president in

recent memory, and exploring this topic will yield valuable information on his mistakes with the

Phillipines and China, resulting in a temporary destabilization of Asian-American relations

during the latter term of his Presidency.

It was less than two years later when, close to the anniversary of his election, President

Donald Trump flew to China and received one of the most incredible shows of diplomatic honor,

in what was described by NPR contributor Anthony Kuhn as the “Imperial Treatment.” (Kuhn,

2017) In contrast, Obama was perceived as a failure by the world, obvious by example of the

loss of clout experienced during his second term. During his successor’s term, we see a complete

reversal by non-Western powers of the perceived necessity of treating the most powerful World

Leader on the planet as though he were actually the wielder of such power, instead of as a token

of the power of the state behind him.

Obama’s election was an empty revolution, carrying all the symbols of change with none

of the material nature of the change the population wanted, instead sprouting and maturing as a

continuation of the current path and therefor a usurpation of the power of the people whom

elected him. Perhaps this was not by choice, but by guided enterprise among the oligarchical

power structure found in any large medium of governance, but the result was the same: a

mediocre manager of political power whom was perceived as an unimportant puppet of a state

which had an agenda separate from that of the people. If this is how a president is perceived, not

as a leader of a political direction all his/her own, but as an agent of the state agenda which has
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already been set upon by previous wielders of the power of such a government, then it would

become easy to understand and even predict a loss of respect by other world powers; if they do

not perceive power as wielded, but instead as conducted, respect given to such an author would

therefore be symbolic.

Even worse, it would lessen their standing, as instead of being seen as giving respect to a

man, these non-western leaders where the loss of power in precedent was most broadly

perceived, they would be seen by their own people to be giving respect and personal dignity to a

man who himself was not capable of wielding the dignity of a leader. When Duterte made

statements regarding Obama, and his disrespect was made material, it was a manifestation of his

understanding of how Obama wields power. His power, to Duterte, came from the state itself and

not the people, meaning disrespect to Obama was not a dangerous precedent for his own

administration to set—in fact, it could only increase his own power—as perceived.

"Respect is important.” This is what Duterte said immediately following criticism by the

U.S. of the Philippine’s repression of the rampant drug trade in his country. (Bernal & Yan,

2016) "If this is what happens now, I will be reconfiguring my foreign policy. Eventually I

might, in my time, I will break up with America. I'd rather go to Russia and to China." (Bernal &

Yan, 2016) This is not the language used by a man who feels any use in attempting to assuage the

feelings of or compel mutual respect by enacting subservience to the figurehead of a nation

whose predecessors would have almost certainly made such language an actual platform, but

whose contemporary leader would be unable to affect strong enough policy to negatively affect

his ability to lead his (Duterte’s) nation.

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“White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said Duterte's recent comments, such as

telling Obama to "go to hell," contradicted the "warm relationship" between the two countries.”

(Bernal & Yan, 2016) Imagine this as the maximum penalty which Duterte felt during this

period. As the leader of a non-Western nation in South Asia, in a dangerous country fraught with

criminality, understanding how this would not be language capable of changing his stance or

convincing him to remediate the situation is easy for any person or persons who understand the

reality of non-Euro sphere political engagements. Talk of “raising concerns” and how the US

“won’t be silent” must have shaken his understanding of US power and given Duterte great

concern about the power the United States was willing to effect in his region. How can a nation’s

leader, whose officials engage in such anemic, feeble, and ultimately powerless language, be any

threat to his ability to conduct his own domestic affairs?

Furthermore, how could he (Obama) help defend his nation in a way which would not

simply be an automatic, almost reflexive response which would almost certainly be a given give

the United States’ already present policies towards extra-national aggression? Nothing would

change no matter how much disrespect he watered Obama with. "Mr. Obama, you can go to

hell. ... The EU better choose purgatory." (Bernal & Yan, 2016) Breaking down the politics

behind this statement requires two references, one to the former points already made, i.e.

Obama’s inability to affect meaningful changes in foreign relations with the Philippines despite

Duterte, and second, disrespect to a tertiary power structure which he perceived to be just as

meaningless, even more secondary to the initial.

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The EU, from the position of Duterte, as a secondary power to the US, heavily allied and

therefore subservient to the US, should not even deign to place its opinion on the table. There

was no government in any Western power to which he was beholden, because despite his

alliances therewith, they were incapable of restraining him in regards to his current domestic

policy. Obama created a disaster in the Philippines simply by being who he was—a soft spoken,

European style leader with no more power than a whipped diplomat, sitting behind a desk, on the

throne to a power which he could never wield.

Xi Xin Ping, then, being a more powerful leader, had even less to fear from disrespecting

the US President, but as the Chinese are want to do, did so symbolically and through the exercise

of force. Duterte was right to understand that a strong relationship with Obama was unnecessary,

and could be used to initiate a power pivot to another nation with little consequence. In point of

fact, Duterte likely made the best move for his country at the time. America could neither stop

him nor address openly what was occurring, and as Xi began enacting his power in the South

China Sea, the precedent was set. (Rogin, 2016)

Power politics are indeed represented via respect in both action and words, and by

creating the image of a strained US relationship, Duterte created a power center through which

he was able to navigate the Chinese embarkations upon the SCS (South China Sea) with little

trouble. The US did little in the way to stop China, but with China perceiving the Philippines as a

potential ally, he placed himself outside of the area of Chinese territorial aggression.

Commenting on Russia as a potential ally too was a strong move, though one that precipitated
AMERICAN GOVERNMENT RESEARCH PART 1 7

less immediate results.

The SCS power play made by China was never strongly reacted to, with the result being

that the area had been symbolically ceded to China. Philippine-American relations only

improved upon the arrival of the election of a new President whom Duterte perceived as more

powerful and therefore a more reliable ally, with Trump praising Duterte’s domestic actions

against the illicit drug trade in his country as well as his handling of a summit meeting of other

South Eastern Asian Countries. (Nakamura & Rauhala, 2017) Obama’s legacy in world affairs

outside of the Eurozone is one of impotence, war, and perceived weakness. His wars were not his

own, but those created by the state that preceded him. His policies were not his own, but dictated

by the policies of a state government which he only towed the line with—there is no other

explanation for his lack of action in the South China Sea or in the Duterte entanglement. He very

nearly cost the US an ally in the Philippines, and as a leader, was incapable of the strong

language and actions which create respect and comradery among non-Western nations, which are

the only nations in the world which the US is ever at threat of losing as allies in the first place.

The CEO of a nation is the one who, even despite the reality of his/her office, is

perceived as being in charge of the nation’s affairs. If the leader is perceived as weak, despite the

infinite increments of power bestowed upon that leader by his station, other nations will tread

lightly in spheres of political presence outside of that nation, while conducting themselves as a

disrespectful neighbor within the confines of that nation’s space. Power politics require two

things: bravado, and threat of action, of which, Barrack H. Obama, had neither.
AMERICAN GOVERNMENT RESEARCH PART 1 8

References

Bernal, B., & Yan, H. (2016, October 04). Philippines' President says he'll 'break up' with

US, tells Obama 'go to hell'. Retrieved March 12, 2018, from

https://www.cnn.com/2016/10/04/asia/philippines-duterte-us-breakup/index.html

Kuhn, A. (2017, November 08). China Lavishes Red-Carpet Treatment On Trump As He

Arrives For Talks With Xi Jinping. Retrieved April 18, 2018, from

https://www.npr.org/sections/parallels/2017/11/08/562819640/china-lavishes-red-carpet-

treatment-on-trump-as-he-arrives-for-talks-with-xi-jin

Nakamura, D., & Rauhala, E. (2017, November 13). Trump boasts of 'great relationship'

with Philippines' Duterte at first formal meeting. Retrieved April 18, 2018, from

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trump-boasts-of-great-relationship-with-philippines-

duterte-at-first-formal-meeting/2017/11/13/e6612f14-c813-11e7-b0cf-

7689a9f2d84e_story.html?noredirect=on&utm_term=.615ac0c6b24a

Rogin, J. (2016, June 24). The Obama administration is failing to stop China's Pacific

aggression. Retrieved March 12, 2018, from https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/global-

opinions/the-obama-administration-is-failing-to-stop-chinas-pacific-

aggression/2016/06/23/fce65f98-396c-11e6-8f7c-

d4c723a2becb_story.html?utm_term=.9d6d45a44718
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Waggaman, R. (2016, March 30). Hillary Clinton Turned a Stable, Developed Nation

Into an ISIS Safe Haven. Thats the Real Benghazi Scandal. Retrieved March 12, 2018, from

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/riley-waggaman/hillary-clinton-turned-nation-into-isis-safe-

haven_b_9571956.html

Wan, W. (2016, September 03). Obama's China visit gets off to rocky start, reflecting

current relations. Retrieved March 12, 2018, from

https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/obamas-china-visit-gets-off-to-rocky-

start/2016/09/03/a188b2c6-71df-11e6-b786-

19d0cb1ed06c_story.html?utm_term=.251a56e1301b
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