How Obama Can Apologize for Snubbing Asia

President Barack Obama’s decision to cancel his already truncated trip to Asia next week has elicited shrugs in Washington and politely clenched jaws from Bali to Tokyo. What else could he do, say those focused on the high-stakes U.S. budget stalemate. What else is new, say those hoping that the administration will deliver on its promise of a “pivot” or a “rebalancing” toward Asia.

Much of the criticism of the cancellation comes from those worried about China’s growing economic and strategic heft. The Chinese are playing a long game in the region, it’s said: President Xi Jinping has been crisscrossing Southeast Asia, glad-handing counterparts and talking up business deals. Questioning the U.S. commitment to Asia is a default setting for pundits -- one reinforced by Obama’s previous two cancellations of Asia trips in 2010 -- and the Chinese want their neighbors to know they aren’t going anywhere.