Obama administration hits back on notion that it abandoned Chen

[cal04]

http://thehill.com/homenews/administration/225397-obama-administration-hits-back-on-notion-that-it-abandoned-chen

The Obama administration pushed back Thursday evening on the notion that U.S. diplomats abandoned Chinese dissident Chen Guangcheng when they let him leave the Beijing embassy on Wednesday.

A senior administration official provided The Hill with a detailed account of the past two days that shows U.S. officials were either at Chen's side or in touch with the activist the whole time.

"The bottom line is that there's a narrative out there that is misconstrued," said the senior administration official, who wouldn't go on the record because of the sensitivity of the situation. "That's just not true and it's something that even Chen appears to be rectifying."

(snip)
"We stayed with him in the hospital," Locke told reporters in Beijing Thursday morning. "Of many, many people, I was there for probably an hour and a half after he entered the hospital, met with the family, met with the children."

[Cali_Democrat]

1. I swear...conservatives latch on the the stupidest issues

Some how they think discussing Chen Guangcheng is going to propel them to the White House.

Riiiiiight.

[Andy823]

2. It proves one thing

The Rmoney camp has nothing to go with so they simply pick up stupid things like this to try and bash the president, and hope it works for them, but in reality it's just a feeble attempt at attacking president Obama, and I think the people in this country, the ones that aren't brainwashed by fox tv or Rush, will show Romeny what they really think come November when they put president Obama back in office and keep Mitt just another "unemployed" multi millionaire!

[Drunken Irishman]

3. Remember when, in '08, Russia invading Georgia was such good news for John McCain?

[alp227]

8. I slightly disagree, as the Republicans may turn this into Obama's Iran hostage moment.

The Iran hostage crisis toppled Carter in 1980, so why can't this Chinese dissident abandoned by the US government be used as a weapon to topple Obama this year?

[Cali_Democrat]

9. Ummm....those were US hostages

A lot different than a Chinese dissident.

[EC]

4. I'm getting a bad feeling that this will be like the

Iran hostage/Jimmy Carter thing....the repubs (pro-life Evangelicals) will interfere and do something to try and make Obama look weak ....I don't like that this guy called our Congress (our repub run congress) I really hope Hillary and Obama take hold of this and restrict the congress from interfering.

[bluestate10]

5. I want Romney to open his mouth, hours before the Obama team gets Chen and

his family out of China. Of course, Mitt will just double back and say they did what he told them to do. What a clown Romney is. But a leader Romney is not.

[Romulox]

6. The State Department turned this guy over after delivering threats about his wife. Hard to sugarcoat

this--it was a policy "triumph" turned major embarrassment.

Seems to me that ALL SIDES (including Chen) may be guilty of cynically using one another. But the window for patting ourselves on the back is long closed on this one. I mean, really:

"We stayed with him in the hospital," Locke told reporters in Beijing Thursday morning. "Of many, many people, I was there for probably an hour and a half after he entered the hospital, met with the family, met with the children."

And then we turn him over to the torturers...

[ProgressiveEconomist]

7. A Republican Congressional hearing's phone call with Chen yesterday is a frightening precedent

IMO. Republicans will get Chen, his family, or some future dissident or family members killed, if they keep intervening in ongoing sensitive diplomatic matters just to demagogue against a Democratic administration.

See http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/obama-administration-mishandled-chen-guangcheng-deal-house-republicans-say/2012/05/03/gIQAXJqjzT_story.html for some amazing details of partisandhip run wild.