A Big `Get' for China

Make no mistake: George W. Bush acceptance of Hu Jintao's invitation to attend next summer's Olympics in Beijing is a huge `get' for China. Forget the chatter about Darfur and boycotts, of tainted toys, disputes over Iran, etc., et al. There will be no boycotts. And however Bush and the White House want to spin it (he's going as a “sports fan,” not as a political gesture, one White House spokesman told reporters traveling with Bush in Australia) this IS a political gesture: the President of the President of the United States will journey to Beijing to attend the games—China's 21st century coming out party. That's a big win for China, and, frankly, a smart move by Bush, who—whatever else you may think of him-- hasn't screwed up the most important bilateral relationship on earth, and whose presence in Beijing will win the US serious points in the world's most populous country.