Hey Joe

In case you missed this, Joe Biden made a stop in Costa Rica Sunday and Monday, meeting with Costa Rican President Oscar Arias and various other Central American leaders. Since the paper's political reporter left a couple weeks ago, and the replacement just started this week, I, the lowly intern, got to join one of the staff reporters and cover the event.

I'd actually covered a Biden event before when I was at The Hill two summers ago. Biden was chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committe and I covered one of his hearings on Iraq. He was just as charamatic now as he was then, although it looked like the campaign and responsibilities of the new office had aged him a bit more.

While Biden's often criticized for longwindedness, I'm somewhat fond of his speaking style. He may say a lot, but he'll eventually get back to answering your question by the end. He says what he thinks, sometimes getting himself into trouble, and his candor is refreshing for a politician. For example, on Monday he told the Central American leaders that his primary concern was getting the U.S. economy back on track (which in itself would be a big help to the small countries of the region which do depend on the economic fortunes of the big brother up north) and said concerns such as immigration reform would have to wait. I may not agree with him 100 percent, but that he was willing to be frank and honest was impressive, and hopefully bodes well for U.S.-Latin American relations.

Speaking of answering questions, no, I didn't get to ask one. Only five questions were permitted by the Costa Rican government press officers, and the themes and questioners were decided beforehand. Two went to local press (taken by the daily paper La Nacion and business daily La Republica), two went to wires (AP and AFP) and one to an international paper (we thought we might have a shot at this, but it went to a reporter from Guatemala instead--and yes, there were other countries there than Costa Rica and the U.S., although all the questions were addressed to Biden).

All in all, it was still a very exciting day. Since Leland, the staff reporter, was also covering the event for The Miami Herald, I got to write the story for the daily page (read it here). We also collaborated later this week for the print edition story, and editorial, which I'll post tomorrow when they are published.

Keeping up on the news: Political musings of the week

Living abroad means I cant be the news junkie I am when back home. I only glance at The New York Times Web site a couple times per day, depending on how busy I am at work and how tired I am when I get home. A sad state for any would-be journalist and blogger, I really only get to skim the headlines on Google News. For those lamenting the demise of the news industry, I am part of the problem.

That said, I do get to check out The Sacramento Bee as well (mostly for updates on the sad state of affairs regarding your Sacramento Kings) and was happy to see that the budget finally was passed. I was less happy to see that the state Republicans ousted their leader for his willingness to compromise and openly mocked their own members who were willing to strike a deal (speaking of "being of part of the problem and not the solution"...). This mirrors some of the news I saw this weekend, regarding Republican governors and their political grandstanding on the stimulus package. Thankfully, Arnold was not one of them.

While I voted for his opponent both times, I’m happy to see Arnold assume the mantle of moderation within the Republican Party. It’s somewhat of a shame that he can’t seek the presidency (thanks to the constitution) because I’d much rather see him setting the national Republican agenda than conservatives like Palin or Jindal, both clearly pandering to the conservative base with their eyes on 2012. Of course, political grandstanding is nothing new, but playing politics with the economy in a time of crisis is something I can’t really stand for. I applaud Arnold’s pragmatism, recognizing that tax cuts aren’t the solution all the time. (And really, if you think tax cuts are the solution when the economy is good, and you think tax cuts are the solution when the economy is bad, isn’t that just a sign of the kind ideological indoctrination and blockheaded stubbornness that got us into this mess in the first place? Show some common sense and willingness to adapt to the situation, why don’t you?)

It’s not like the Democrats are blameless either. I just read in today’s Times that Obama’s first forays into Social Security reform are being met with opposition from liberal Democrats and Congressional Leaders. I’ve long said Obama may have more trouble with Democrats than Republicans in Congress. Hopefully, he’ll be able to continue his pledge of bipartisanship and putting national interest above party or ideology. The article notes, I must point out, that analysts agree that both taxes and cuts in spending are needed to solve the problem. Sounds a lot like the California budget crisis doesn’t it? Hopefully, Obama will fare better than Arnold in convincing legislators to do the right thing. What’s clear, however, is that we need more Obamas, and dare I say more Arnolds, to continue to press for a consensus of cooperation, moderation and practicality. A little compromise could go a long way right now.

Now, back to Costa Rica…