No Meeting This Week for Obama & the Dalai Lama, Yet a Future Meeting Is Certain, White House Says
EmailABC News' Sunlen Miller reports: The Dalai Lama arrives in Washington, DC today, but one meeting that won’t be on the exiled spiritual leader’s agenda during his five-day trip will be a meeting with President Obama. But, White House officials say that a meeting is still a priority for the president. “The President has been a long and strong consistent supporter for greater rights and autonomy for the Tibetan people and is working to encourage a resumption of the dialogue,” a NSC official says. “The president absolutely intends to meet with the Dalai Lama.” This marks the first time the Dalai Lama will be in Washington since 1991, and will not meet with the sitting US president. An administration official says that the opportunity and a window for a meeting between the president and the Dalai Lama was discussed – but ultimately postponed – as both sides agreed that a meeting would be best after Obama returns from his trip to China in mid-November. “From the outset, there has been no question of President Obama not at the appropriate time meeting His Holiness, whom he holds in great esteem, “Lodi Gyaltsen Gyari, the Dalai Lama's Special Envoy said in a statement today. “Taking a broader and long-term perspective, His Holiness agreed to meet the President after the November US-China Summit.” While a representative for the Dalai Lama said that they anticipate a meeting this year, White House officials say no date has yet been set. The president will sit down with President Hu Jintao while he visits China next month. The White House says that a good US-China relationship is one that can be beneficial to Tibet as well. “We, the Dalai Lama and the his representatives all attach great importance to a positive US/China relationship,” a NSC official says adding that President Obama is a strong supporter of greater rights – culturally, linguistically, and relationship for the Tibetan people, and that the administration is actively encouraging to open up the dialogue between China and Dalai Lama representatives. In September White House Senior Advisor Valerie Jarrett traveled to India to meet with the Dalai Lama to convey the president’s support for Tibetan rights, an administration official says. The pPresident has previously met with the Dalai lama before – when he was a senator from Illinois. While in Washington, DC this week, the Dalai Lama will meet with Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and other congressional leaders. -Sunlen Miller
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Obama is putting the interests of the country above that of a left-wing photo-op? Wonder how the Right will spin this one for their 2-minute hate.
Posted by: jhw539 | October 5, 2009, 5:04 pm 5:04 pm
The “ONE” sent Valerie Jarrett. Oh…I feel better now.
Posted by: Ralph | October 5, 2009, 5:17 pm 5:17 pm
-The White House says that a good US-China relationship is one that can be beneficial to Tibet as well.-
Yeah, they won’t be massacred. With friends like that…
Posted by: Norinco | October 5, 2009, 5:35 pm 5:35 pm
When reporters asked whether she intended to raise human rights questions during her first visit to Beijing as a Cabinet secretary, Ms. Clinton affected a world-weary air. “We know what they are going to say because I’ve had those kinds of conversations for more than a decade with Chinese leaders,” she said. “We have to continue to press them. But our pressing on those issues can’t interfere with the global economic crisis, the global climate change crisis and the security crisis.”
As our Sec. of State said, let’s not get all caught up with this human rights thing…
Posted by: Laogai | October 5, 2009, 5:39 pm 5:39 pm
“While a representative for the Dalai Lama said that they anticipate a meeting this year, White House officials say no date has yet been set.”
Maybe Obama can meet with the present Dalai Lama’s reincarnation!
(Explanation: He is approaching 75. He cannot retire, because succession presumes reincarnation. But illness or disability might preclude travel soon.)
Posted by: robertb | October 5, 2009, 5:48 pm 5:48 pm
Is this to make up for the tariff Obama put on Chinese tires–or because Obama thinks China will go along with sanctions on Iran?
Or it could be because China owns us.
Posted by: larry | October 5, 2009, 7:51 pm 7:51 pm
What will Obama’s Hollywood peeps think of this snub of the Dalai Lama?
They’ve made a pledge to serve Obama but he’s snubbing the Dalai Lama!
Is Obama capable of taking a stand on anything and sticking with it?
Posted by: kyle | October 5, 2009, 7:56 pm 7:56 pm
I hope the Dali Lama snubs Obama after he has pandered to China.
Obama will need that photo-op with Dalai
One day.
Posted by: millie | October 5, 2009, 7:59 pm 7:59 pm
Buddhism is the true Religion of Peace so of course, Obama snubs them. He much prefers the Religion of Hate, Violence, & Intolerance, no limit to the vile spineless pandering in that regard.
What intellectual dishonesty, the man is a moral midget.
Posted by: Terry | October 6, 2009, 1:04 am 1:04 am
What say you ?? Perhaps the only one getting the benefit will be Obama himself. He needs some serious counseling. He is running out of speeches and the blaming game is not working anymore.In the other hand the Dalai Lama does not stand a chance since we are in debt up to the necks with China and Obama cannot afford to upset the one he is borrowing from.
This proves that a community organizer IS NOT the right choice for President.
Posted by: Not a sheep | October 6, 2009, 2:27 am 2:27 am
Another issue obama doesn’t understand is that when a country’s constitution is VIOLATED by the leader, the leader should be thrown out. The Honduras people are a free people with a legitimate constitution. They should not have to defend themselves against obama, clinton, or hugo chavez. What an ignorant bunch we have ‘leading’ our country.
Posted by: Jenny | October 6, 2009, 8:36 am 8:36 am
First Obama’s press secretary declares the Holocaust-denier-in-Chief, Ahmadinejad the legitimately elected leader or Iran, after he stole an election and brutally repressed the protests over it.
Then they betrayed Aung San Suu Kyi by having Senator Webb meet with agents the murderous Burmese junta—and NOBODY from the pro-democracy opposition.
Now Obama tosses the Dalai Lama under the bus by snubbing him while Libs celebrate 60 years of Commie rule in China.
Why does Obama hate Democracy??
Posted by: Appeasement Czar | October 6, 2009, 9:15 am 9:15 am
I doubt there’ll be a meeting – our socialist Chinese overlords will instruct Chariman Zero to shun the Dalai Lama, or they won’t buy any more of his massive debt.
Posted by: PatF | October 6, 2009, 9:42 am 9:42 am
I always trust Obama to do what’s right in the future – because he never manages to do what’s right in the moment. Tomorrow, tomorrow, there’s always tomorrow… it’s only a spin away.
Posted by: LightenUp | October 6, 2009, 2:45 pm 2:45 pm
I hope the Dalai guy can help us monetize our mounting debt service.. or maybe we should stick with the PRC guys…and maybe just hang the poor guy out to dry.. like we would normally do..
Posted by: DontGet818OnMeNow | October 6, 2009, 5:12 pm 5:12 pm
Why would we want to associate with a backwards, feudal monarch who pines for a time when his society was organized for the sole purpose of supporting a religious heirarchy on the backs of the people?
Posted by: Flash Override | October 7, 2009, 11:09 pm 11:09 pm
We can rest assured that the Dalia Lama wasn’t part of the voting for the Nobel peace Price.
You would think with the DL’s credentials on the “peace” front that he might be connected in Stockholm but – it looks like the Chinese are even more connected.
Posted by: Lone Star Rules | October 9, 2009, 6:41 am 6:41 am
Even though he is the President, it looks like Obama is not capable of being a leader. He is a great follower, though. So far, he is following Wall Street by going easy on regulation, corporate health insurance corps by selling out the public option, U.S. Generals who failed to capture Osama after 8 years, and Chinese dictators who oppress their own people, as well as the people of Tibet. I hope I’m wrong, or this will be another 4 wasted years, possibly worse. The more the U.S. sells out to the dictators of China the harder it will be to regain any American independence.
Posted by: Paul | October 10, 2009, 12:10 am 12:10 am