Obama's Handshake With Chavez

How is this not the exact picture we would want to have of Obama's first meeting with Chavez? I first saw this picture on Saturday morning and was elated to see how Obama is changing the US' relations with Latin America. Instead of a bully who refuses to listen, we have a President who knows that he will only be able to make progress with oppressive nations by being a friend, not an enemy. These countries obviously won't be pressured into granting basic freedoms, so it's time to try a different approach.

Only by shaking hands will Obama get any leverage to convince these countries, like Venezuela and Cuba, to show a real commitment to human rights. If that doesn't work, then we're back where we started (make the lifting of all trade restrictions conditional on certain benchmarks), but at least the US maintains the moral high ground. It's more of a start than anything Bush ever did.

Then this morning I have to hear Newt "the Dewche" Gingrich bitching about how Obama should not have shown the common courtesy of at least shaking the man's hand, and how we should continue the ridiculously stupid policy of demanding complete compliance with all US demands before giving any ground. Newt believes that we should stick to the policy that has proven to be an abysmal failure. He focuses on how the world will perceive Obama but ignores how now, Chavez will no longer be able to call the US the devil. The pressure is now on Chavez to change, not on Obama to do anything. Newt ignores all this and advocates a failed policy just for the sake of coming up with some kind of opposition.

Bottom line, Newt heard all the chatter from last week about how he should run for President in 2012 and has decided to make a go for it starting this morning. By all accounts, he seems off to a great start for Obama.