Thread: President Joe Biden

Nasty humour

(3289) This Video Will Never Get Old �� - YouTube

Biden administration cancels $72 million in student loans for borrowers who attended for-profit Ashford University

The Biden administration announced Wednesday that it would be cancelling $72 million in student loans for borrowers who attended Ashford University, a former for-profit institution that the University of Arizona purchased in 2020.

“As the California Department of Justice proved in court, Ashford relied extensively on high-pressure and deceptive recruiting tactics to lure students,” U.S. Under Secretary of Education James Kvaal said in a statement. “Today we are protecting the students who were cheated by Ashford, and we will also hold the perpetrators accountable, protect taxpayers, and deter future wrongdoing.”

The Education Department announced that 2,300 borrowers who said they were misled by Ashford University will have their loans forgiven. The department said that it planned to recoup the money from the University of Arizona.

The basis of this cancellation comes from a lawsuit brought by the state of California against Ashford and its parent company Zovio. Evidence from that lawsuit showed that Ashford and Zovio “made numerous substantial misrepresentations during that period that borrowers relied upon to their detriment.”

The period was from March 1, 2009 through April 30, 2020, the department said.

The California Department of Justice won the lawsuit last year with the court concluding that the university had made more than 1.2 million “misleading representations nationwide to prospective students and assessing a civil penalty of $22.3 million.”

The Education Department added that only 25 percent of students graduated from the university within eight years of enrollment. The announcement said department officials will investigate whether Ashford’s management team “took actions” in violation of federal law or regulations, adding that the department may pursue “appropriate remedies” if they find evidence of such actions.

California Attorney General Rob Bonta said what the university “did to its students was unconscionable and illegal,” which is why the state took the school to court.

• Biden renews effort to woo India’s Modi in talks before G20 summit

Joe Biden took fresh steps on Friday to lure India’s prime minister, Narendra Modi, into an alliance designed to contain China, at a bilateral meeting in Delhi where the pair struck a series of commercial and defence deals covering remote-controlled aircraft, semiconductors and quantum computing.

However, the question of press freedom also dominated the agenda on the eve of the full G20 summit as journalists were blocked from covering the event. Before the bilateral at the prime minister’s residence, the US press corps, used to being given privileged access to the president, were told to remain outside in a van, out of eyesight of the two leaders.

Biden received a Bollywood-style greeting after landing onboard Air Force One, with dancers in flowing purple outfits performing to American pop music.

The meeting was given an added symbolic importance as Biden was able to seize upon the Chinese president Xi Jinping’s decision not to attend Modi’s much-vaunted summit. The US is trying gradually to make the traditionally neutral India a more explicit partner and part of a wider political and defence alliance in the Indo-Pacific.

The White House said in a statement after the meeting that Biden welcomed the joint commitment to democratic values, and specifically that he welcomed an Indian defence department request to buy US-built remotely controlled aircraft.

India has a number of disputes with China but it has been wary of joining an implicitly anti-Beijing alliance. Kurt Campbell, the White House Indo-Pacific envoy, said relations with India continued to be a work in progress.

The two leaders agreed to progress agreements reached in June, when Modi visited Washington, including a deal to allow General Electric to produce jet engines in India to power Indian military aircraft.

The US does not expect to make immediate progress in shifting India from its largely neutral stance on the Russian invasion of Ukraine but believes that if it can start to replace Russia as a leading arms supplier to Delhi, India will have greater latitude to criticise Moscow.

The episode with the journalists accompanying Biden underlined the state of press freedom in India despite the two leaders’ stated shared commitment to democracy. The prime minister’s office released a handful of official photographs of the meeting, showing the two leaders seated side by side and chatting amiably.

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• Biden, Modi and EU to announce rail and shipping project linking India to Middle East and Europe

President Joe Biden and his allies on Saturday were to outline plans for a rail and shipping corridor that would connect India with the Middle East and ultimately Europe — a possible game changer for global trade to be announced at the Group of 20 summit.

The project would include the United States, India, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, the European Union and other countries in the G20, said Jon Finer, Biden’s deputy national security adviser.

Biden and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi plan to announce the project as part of the Partnership for Global Infrastructure Investment. The rail and shipping corridor would enable greater trade among the countries, including energy products. It could also be one of the more ambitious counters to China’s massive infrastructure program, through which it has sought to connect more of the world to that country’s economy.

Finer laid out three big rationales for the project in a telephone call Saturday with reporters. He said first that the corridor would increase prosperity among the countries involved by increasing the flow of energy and digital communications. Second, the project would help address the lack of infrastructure needed for growth in lower- and middle-income nations. And third, Finer said it could help “turn the temperature down” on “turbulence and insecurity” coming out of the Middle East.

Biden participated in the summit’s first session, which focused on the theme of “One Earth.” The U.S. president plans to draw on the theme to push for more investments to address climate change, such as his own domestic incentives to encourage the use of renewable energy, Finer said. Biden also wants to make the case that Russia’s war in Ukraine is hurting many other nations, which have had to cope with greater food and energy costs as well as higher interest rate costs on their debt.

Exclusive: Top US chipmakers, tech firms to attend Vietnam meeting as Biden visits

Top U.S. semiconductors and digital companies including Intel, GlobalFoundries and Google are expected to attend a business meeting on Monday in Hanoi as President Joe Biden visits Vietnam to boost ties, two people familiar with the plan said.

The meeting, which is still being arranged, would confirm U.S. plans to boost Vietnam's global role in different segments of chipmaking, as part of Washington's broader strategy to reduce the sector's exposure to China-linked risks, including trade restrictions and tensions over Taiwan.

Senior executives from Google (GOOGL.O), Intel (INTC.O), Amkor (AMKR.O), Marvell (MRVL.O), GlobalFoundries (GFS.O) and Boeing (BA.N) are among expected attendees, according to a partial list that a person familiar with the plans discussed with Reuters.

The companies did not immediately respond to requests for comment outside business hours.

The second person familiar with the plans confirmed the presence of several large U.S. chips companies, including Amkor, their Vietnamese partners, such as tech company FPT (FPT.HM), and Vietnamese and U.S. top officials, including Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

Semiconductors are expected to be a focal point during Biden's visit to Hanoi on Sunday and Monday, U.S. administration officials said, as the White House seeks to formally elevate relations with the former foe.

The roundtable has not been announced, and it is unclear whether announcements will be made by any of the companies attending the meeting, which one of the sources said would involve about 30 top executives and officials.

Some of those on the list have already invested or announced investments in Vietnam.

Intel has a $1.5 billion factory in southern Vietnam for assembling, packaging and testing chips, the biggest in its global network, and has had plans to expand it.

Amkor is building near Hanoi "a state-of-the-art mega factory for semiconductor assembly and testing," Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said on a visit to Hanoi in July. The company has dozens of open positions on its Vietnam web page.

Chip designing firm Marvell has said it plans to build a "world-class" centre in Vietnam.

U.S. officials have repeatedly said that assembling and designing were the segments of the chipmaking industry where Vietnam was likely to grow faster, although a shortage of engineers could slow the industry take-off.

Vietnam has also ambitions to build its own chipmaking factories, or fabs. GlobalFoundries is specialised in making integrated circuits on wafers for smartphones, cars and other applications.

Vietnam is a major exporter of smartphones and electronics.

An executive at a major U.S. chips firm said the Vietnamese government had been holding meetings with most major chips companies in the country, including Intel, Samsung (005930.KS) and Qualcomm (QCOM.O), to ask for advice on setting up the country's first fab.

U.S. officials have also said an upgrade of formal ties with Vietnam could help collaboration on artificial intelligence (AI), a sector in which Google is a major global player.

Vingroup (VIC.HM), Vietnam's largest conglomerate and the parent of Nasdaq-listed electric car maker VinFast , has a unit focussed on AI.

Boeing may announce a deal involving the sale of 50 of its 737 MAX jets, people familiar with the matter told Reuters. Boeing declined to comment.

Originally Posted by helge

And he lies and lies

Hasn't this man got some aides who can ask him to shut up ?

He forgets when they tell him.

• Biden unveils infrastructure project to connect India, Middle East and Europe

President Biden and other G20 leaders announced on Saturday a major international infrastructure project to connect India, the Middle East and Europe with railways, shipping lines, high-speed data cables and energy pipelines.

Why it matters: The project, announced during the G20 Summit in New Delhi, is one of the key initiatives the White House has been pushing internationally to counter Beijing's growing influence and create an alternative to China's Belt and Road vision of which the Middle East is a key part.

• Biden said Saudi Arabia, Israel, the United Arab Emirates and Jordan will be part of the initiative, which was first reported by Axios.
• The agreement comes as the Biden administration seeks to complete its diplomatic push for a mega-deal with Saudi Arabia that could include a normalization agreement between the kingdom and Israel.

What they are saying: "It's a big deal. It's a really big deal. This project will contribute to making the Middle East a more prosperous, stable and integrated region," Biden said.

Driving the news: Biden announced the project together with leaders of India, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the European Commission.

• Biden said the project would create an economic corridor between India, the Middle East and the EU.
• "We will invest in railways and shipping lines from India to Europe that will be connected through Saudi Arabia, UAE, Jordan and Israel," Biden said.
• The U.S. president added that the project will make it easier to trade and export, transfer clean energy and provide fast and stable internet service to the countries in the Middle East.
• Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman said that the kingdom will take part in the project with an investment of $20 billion and urged leaders to start the planning and implementation of the project immediately.

FACT SHEET: World Leaders Launch a Landmark India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor | The White House

China looms large over Biden’s trip to Vietnam

President Joe Biden’s visit to Vietnam this weekend may be short, but it has major implications for American efforts to push back against China.

Vietnam, a one-party communist state that borders China, has emerged as one of the United States’ most important partners in Southeast Asia, a region on the front line of the competition between the world’s two largest economies.

Washington and Hanoi normalized relations in 1995, 22 years after the end of U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War, and have been “comprehensive partners” since 2013. During Biden’s visit, the relationship is expected to be bumped up two notches to “comprehensive strategic partner,” Vietnam’s highest level of diplomatic ties, putting the U.S. at the same level as China, Russia, India and South Korea.

The upgrade is a big diplomatic victory for the U.S., said Alexander Vuving, a professor at the Daniel K. Inouye Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies in Honolulu.

“It sends the message that the U.S. is able to attract many important countries in the region, even Vietnam, which is ruled by the Communist Party and which is thought to be close to China,” he said.

In recent years China has been gaining influence across Southeast Asia, Vuving said, particularly in countries such as Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar. The upgrade in the U.S.-Vietnam relationship, he said, “to some extent redresses the regional balance of power.”

Kurt Campbell, the National Security Council’s coordinator for Indo-Pacific affairs, has described Vietnam, a country of about 100 million people, as a regional “swing state.”

That is partly because the U.S. and Vietnam “share a common commitment” to preventing Chinese hegemony in Asia, Vuving said.

Vietnam wants to “benefit from the Chinese market, from trade with China, but at the same time they want to reduce their vulnerability to China,” he said.

Vietnam is important to the U.S. both economically and strategically.

Last year, it overtook Britain as the United States’ seventh-largest partner in the trade of goods, according to the Census Bureau. Meanwhile, the U.S. is Vietnam’s largest export market.

The U.S. was also Vietnam’s second-biggest source of tourists last year after South Korea, the national tourism agency reported.

Vietnam, Asia’s fastest-growing economy last year, seeks to become the next global semiconductor hub, and it has a growing electric vehicle industry. Vietnamese EV maker VinFast is now one of the world’s most valuable car companies after a U.S. trading debut last month that saw its valuation soar past those of companies such as Ford and General Motors.

Much more in the article

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President Biden - Congrats to U.S. Open Champion @CocoGauff.

You electrified Arthur Ashe stadium and the entire nation – the first of more to come and proof that anything is possible if you never give up and always believe.

You’ve made America so proud. https://twitter.com/POTUS/status/1700659673156780164

I think the Dems are going to be very worried about this....

WASHINGTON (AP) — Americans actually agree on something in this time of raw discord: Joe Biden is too old to be an effective president in a second term. Only a few years his junior, Donald Trump raises strikingly less concern about his age.

But they have plenty of other problems with Trump, who at least for now far outdistances his rivals for the Republican nomination despite his multiple criminal indictments. Never mind his advanced years — if anything, some say, the 77-year-old ought to grow up.

A new poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research finds much of the public oddly united in sizing up the one trait Biden cannot change.

The president has taken to raising the age issue himself, with wisecracks, as if trying to relax his audiences about his 80 trips around the sun.

Age discrimination may be banned in the workplace but the president’s employers — the people — aren’t shy about their bias.

In the poll, fully 77% said Biden is too old to be effective for four more years. Not only do 89% of Republicans say that, so do 69% of Democrats. That view is held across age groups, not just by young people, though older Democrats specifically are more supportive of his 2024 bid.

Biden is widely seen as too old for office, an AP-NORC poll finds. Trump has problems of his own | AP News

And I'm sure the Republicans will be looking at this, too.

Former U.N. ambassador and South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley emerged as the only Republican presidential candidate who can decisively beat Joe Biden in 2024, a new poll shows.

Results: Haley, 51, struck a commanding 49% against Biden’s 43%, according to the CNN/SSRS poll released today. This is the only result to exceed the margin of error.

Originally Posted by harrybarracuda

I think the Dems are going to be very worried about this....

Nope

But then again you thought this

Originally Posted by harrybarracuda

Desantis is a crafty politician.

Biden finds a new friend in Vietnam as American CEOs look for alternatives to Chinese factories

President Joe Biden on Sunday opened a visit to a Vietnam that wants to dramatically ramp up trade with the United States, a sign of how competition with China is reshaping relationships across Asia.

The president has made it a point of pride that Vietnam is elevating the United States to the status of being a comprehensive strategic partner. Other countries that Vietnam has extended this designation to include China and Russia. Giving the U.S. the same status suggests that Vietnam wants to hedge its friendships as U.S. and European companies look for alternatives to Chinese factories.

Biden, who arrived in Hanoi on Sunday afternoon, said last month at a fundraiser in Salt Lake City that Vietnam doesn’t want a defense alliance with the U.S., “but they want relationships because they want China to know that they’re not alone” and can choose its own partners. The president decided to tack a visit to Vietnam on to his trip to India for the Group of 20 summit that wrapped up Sunday.

“We find ourselves in a situation where all of these changes around the world are taking place,” Biden explained last month about Vietnam. “We have an opportunity, if we’re smart, to change the dynamic.”

Biden was welcomed to Vietnam with a pomp-filled outdoor ceremony at the mustard-colored Presidential Palace. Scores of children lined the steps waving small U.S. and Vietnam flags and Biden watched from an elevated review stand as high-stepping members of the military marched past. The president waved to the children before he got into his limousine for the quick trip to Communist Party headquarters and a meeting with General Secretary Nguyễn Phú Trọng,

Jon Finer, Biden’s chief deputy national security adviser, said the elevated status represents Vietnam’s highest tier of international partnership.

“It’s important to make clear that this is more than words,” Finer told reporters Sunday aboard Biden’s flight to Hanoi. “In a system like Vietnam, it’s a signal to their entire government, their entire bureaucracy about the depth and cooperation and alignment with another country that is possible.”

So apparently sleepy joe raised the issue of "human rights" with Modi.

You have to admire his sense of humour given the other grubby hand he was shaking.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi with US President Joe Biden and other G20 leaders arrive Rajghat to pay homage to Mahatma Gandhi in New Delhi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi along with other G20 leaders on Sunday morning visited Rajghat and paid homage to Mahatma Gandhi.

PM Modi recieved the Heads of states and heads of international organisations at the rain-washed Rajghat memorial dedicated to Mahatma Gandhi. PM Modi welcomed the dignitaries with a stole and posed for pictures with them against the backdrop of an image of the Bapu ashram in Maharashtra.

Mahatma Gandhi stayed here from 1936 till his death in 1948.”At the iconic Rajghat, the G20 family paid homage to Mahatma Gandhi – the beacon of peace, service, compassion and non-violence. As diverse nations converge, Gandhi Ji’s timeless ideals guide our collective vision for a harmonious, inclusive and prosperous global future,” wrote PM Modi on X. He also posted pictures of the morning’s event.

US President Joe Biden, UK PM Rishi Sunak, Australian PM Anthony Albanese, Canadian PM Justin Trudeau, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and other Heads of state and government and Heads of international organisations were among the leaders who offered their respects.

The leaders then proceeded to participate in the third session ‘One Future‘ of the G20 summit being held at the Bharat Mandapam venue at Pragati Maidan.

Visuals from Rajghat showed the venue decorated with colourful flowers as the leaders reached there.

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In other news

Trudeau is stuck in India thanks to broken airplane

Biden announces U.S. support for African Union joining G20

• G20 adds the African Union as a member, issues call rejecting use of force in reference to Ukraine

The Group of 20 top world economies welcomed the African Union as a member as their annual summit got underway Saturday, but their wording on the contentious issue of Russia's war in Ukraine was limited to a call to avoid seizing territory by force or the use of nuclear weapons.

There had been serious doubt that an agreement could be adopted because of disagreements among members, most centrally on differences about the war.

The G20 final statement, released a day before the summit formally closes, was less sharply worded over the war than one issued during last year's meeting in Bali.

It said members reiterated their national positions resolutions adopted at the United Nations, and called on "all states must act in a manner consistent with the Purposes and Principles of the U.N. Charter in its entirety."

"In line with the U.N. Charter, all states must refrain from the threat or use of force to seek territorial acquisition against the territorial integrity and sovereignty or political independence of any state. The use or threat of use of nuclear weapons is inadmissible," it said.

There was widespread support for adding the AU to the G20, making it the second regional bloc to become a permanent member after the European Union and adding momentum to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's drive to give a greater voice to the Global South.

• US announces increased partnership with Vietnam during Biden visit to Hanoi

The U.S. and Vietnam on Sunday announced that the two nations would advance their diplomatic relations to a comprehensive strategic partnership, leading to increased engagement between the two countries.

The announcement came as President Biden visited Hanoi, where he met with General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong and was set to meet other Vietnamese leaders and business officials.

As part of the increased diplomatic ties, the two sides outlined increasead efforts to expand the capacity of the semiconductor industry in Vietnam, which would be used to support U.S. industrial needs.

The two countries also announced plans to expand bilateral joint research to identify potential areas of collaboration in artificial intelligence, health and medical science, climate science and biotechnology.

The two sides also outlined plans to expand agricultural trade, and for an “enhanced commitment to meaningful dialogue” on human rights and labor issues.

“This is Vietnam’s highest tier of international partnership. It’s important to make this more than words,” deputy national security adviser Jon Finer told reporters on Air Force One en route to Vietnam. “In a system like Vietnam, it’s a signal to the entire government, to their entire bureaucracy, about the depth of cooperation and alignment with another country.”

The move comes as the U.S. seeks to deepen its alliances in the Indo-Pacific to counter Chinese influence in the region. Vietnam has been a particular focus, as the Biden administration has looked to expand cooperation with the nation of roughly 100 million people.

Vice President Harris traveled to the country in 2021 prior to Biden’s visit this week.

The decision to elevate the U.S.-Vietnam partnership is likely to draw criticism from human rights groups and some lawmakers.

The State Department’s 2022 report on human rights in Vietnam noted that national elections were “neither free nor fair,” it cited credible reports of abuse by the government security agency, and it highlighted concerns about violations of privacy.

“The government occasionally took corrective action, including prosecutions against officials who abused human rights or engaged in corruption, but police officers and state officials frequently acted with impunity,” the report read.

US, Vietnam ink historic partnership in Biden visit

No way that he can run again

If he lasts until newyear, he should be happy

Biden on press conference : I don't know about you, but I'm going to bed "

Biden will nominate a top Harris and Emhoff aide to represent U.S. at UNESCO

A top aide to both Vice President Kamala Harris and her husband, second gentleman Doug Emhoff, is President Joe Biden’s choice to represent the United States at the United Nations agency devoted to education, science and culture worldwide.

The U.S. recently rejoined the U.N. Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization after a five-year hiatus initiated by Biden’s immediate predecessor in the White House, Donald Trump.

The Democratic president’s choice to become the U.S. permanent representative to the Paris-based UNESCO, with the rank of ambassador, is Courtney O’Donnell, according to a White House official, who spoke Monday on the condition of anonymity to discuss the nomination before a formal announcement.

O’Donnell currently wears two hats: She’s a senior adviser to Harris and acting chief of staff for Emhoff, and she lends her expertise to a range of national and global issues, including gender equity and countering prejudice against Jews, a top issue for Emhoff, who is Jewish.

O’Donnell also was communications director for Jill Biden, when she was second lady during Joe Biden’s vice presidency when Barack Obama was president. O’Donnell helped Jill Biden raise awareness and support for U.S. military families and promote community colleges.

She has extensive experience in developing global partnerships, public affairs and strategic communications, having held senior roles in two presidential administrations, nonprofit and philanthropic organizations, national political campaigns and the private sector, according to her official bio.

O’Donnell most recently oversaw global partnerships at Airbnb.

Former White House chief of staff Ron Klain said O’Donnell is trusted by colleagues worldwide.

“This is a fantastic pick and she will do a fantastic job at UNESCO,” he said in a statement.

Cathy Russell worked with O’Donnell in the second lady’s office and said she is skilled at developing global partnerships, creating social impact campaigns and providing strategic counsel on a range of issues.

“Everyone who knows Courtney knows she is committed to the value of global engagement and strengthening American leadership around the world,” Russell said.

The Senate will vote on whether to confirm O’Donnell’s nomination.

The first lady attended a ceremony in late July at UNESCO headquarters in Paris, where the U.S. flag was raised to mark Washington’s official reentry into the U.N. agency after the absence initiated by Trump, a Republican. She spoke about the importance of American leadership in preserving cultural heritage and empowering education and science across the globe.

The United States announced its intention to rejoin UNESCO in June, and the organization’s 193 member states voted in July to approve the U.S. reentry. The ceremony formally signified the U.S. becoming the 194th member — and flag proprietor — at the agency.

The U.S. decision to return was based mainly on concerns that China has filled a leadership gap since Washington withdrew, underscoring the broader geopolitical dynamics at play, particularly the growing influence of China in international institutions.

The U.S. exit from UNESCO in 2017 cited an alleged anti-Israel bias within the organization. The decision followed a 2011 move by UNESCO to include Palestine as a member state, which led the U.S. and Israel to cease financing the agency. The U.S. withdrawal became official in 2018.

Originally Posted by helge

No way that he can run again

If he lasts until newyear, he should be happy

Biden on press conference : I don't know about you, but I'm going to bed "

He's going to look very silly come debate time.

They must be shitting themselves at the DNC.

Biden will do just fine

‘I don’t want to contain China,’ Biden says from Vietnam, in Beijing’s backyard

Three days into high-profile visits to the capitals of India and Vietnam, President Joe Biden said that his presence and moves to strengthen ties with China’s neighbors weren’t designed to “contain” Beijing.

And he repeated that phrase — again and again.

“I don’t want to contain China,” he said during a news conference in Hanoi shortly after elevating the U.S.-Vietnam relationship and palling around with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. “We’re not trying to hurt China.” Under his watch, Biden said America’s goal is “getting the relationship right” between the world’s two foremost powers.

Biden’s team has said previously it doesn’t aim to curb China’s rise, even when it imposes strict export controls on technologies crucial for its military development and takes steps to move closer to other countries in Asia. But the remarks, and the setting of the message, is the strongest signal the administration has sent to Beijing that it doesn’t want to foment a new Cold War.

Biden arrived in India on Friday for a summit of the G20 before traveling Sunday morning to Vietnam for an official upgrade in the bilateral relationship. While U.S. officials openly stressed the Asia sojourn was about rallying allies to work together on climate change, development and a shifting global economy, they privately hinted that better ties with New Delhi and Hanoi would boost America’s regional position.

But Biden denied that his presence halfway around the world from Washington was intended to boost America’s regional standing at China’s expense. “It’s not about containing China,” he repeated. “It’s about having a stable base, a stable base in the Indo-Pacific.”

“We think too much in Cold War terms,” Biden told reporters who peppered him with questions about the state of U.S.-China ties. “I am sincere about getting the relationship right.”

The way the U.S. can do that, the president insisted, is by ensuring China plays by “the rules of the game” — that is, the tenets of the rules-based international order the United States helped create from the embers of World War II.

“I just want to make sure we have a relationship with China that is on the up and up, squared away. Everybody knows what it’s all about,” Biden said.

It’s not clear Beijing knows. Last week, China’s top security agency said that any future meeting between Biden and Chinese paramount leader Xi Jinping would hinge on U.S. “sincerity” for meaningful dialogue. The president hopes to meet his Chinese counterpart face-to-face at a gathering of Pacific nations later this year in San Francisco, especially since Xi didn’t attend the G20.

Biden suggested that he hasn’t met with Xi in 10 months because the Chinese leader “has his hands full” with a sputtering economy.

“He has overwhelming unemployment with his youth. One of the major economic tenets of his plan isn’t working at all right now,” he said, adding that Beijing’s woes are “less likely to cause that kind of conflict” between the U.S. and China. “It’s not like there’s a crisis if I don’t personally speak to him.”

Snip

“I think we have an enormous opportunity,” Biden said earlier Sunday inside Hanoi’s presidential palace as cameras whirred and flashed. “Vietnam and the United States are critical partners at what I would argue is a very critical time. I’m not saying that to be polite.”

Biden has one more day in Vietnam. Though he will meet other senior Vietnamese officials, the highlight will be the president’s visit to a memorial of a former Senate colleague, the late John McCain. The Arizona Republican was notoriously held as a prisoner of war in Hanoi, and Biden will pay his respects with Vietnam War veteran John Kerry alongside him.

Biden will then board Air Force One en route to Alaska where he’ll mark the Sept. 11 anniversary during a stop to an Air Force base in Anchorage.

• President Joe Biden addresses House GOP impeachment inquiry for first time

President Joe Biden made his first remarks Wednesday about the Republican-led impeachment inquiry House Speaker Kevin McCarthy announced this week.

“I don’t know quite why, but they just knew they wanted to impeach me. And now, the best I can tell, they want to impeach me because they want to shut down the government," Biden said at a campaign reception in McLean, Virginia.

“So look, look, I got a job to do. Everybody always asked about impeachment. I get up every day, not a joke, not focused on impeachment. I’ve got a job to do. I’ve got to deal with the issues that affect the American people every single solitary day,” he said.

McCarthy, R-Calif., announced Tuesday that he was directing three House committees to launch an impeachment inquiry after he indicated this month that he would not open such an inquiry without first holding a floor vote.

Congress also faces a Sept. 30 deadline to fund the government to avert a shutdown. Hard-line GOP House members are pushing for spending cuts in funding legislation that Biden will have to sign to keep the government open.

Goldman says there’s ‘no evidence to link to Joe Biden’ on impeachment inquiry

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Extra

Biden marks 9/11 anniversary in Alaska, Harris visits ground zero

President Joe Biden marked the 22nd anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks in Alaska on Monday afternoon.

"I join you on this solemn day to renew our sacred vow: never forget," Biden said as he spoke to service members, first responders and their families at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage. "Each of those precious lives stolen too soon when evil attacked ground zero in New York."

Biden said the terrorist attacks, the deadliest ever carried out on U.S. soil, "tested our strength, our resolve and our courage."

"But we’ll never forget that when faced with evil and an enemy who sought to tear us apart, we endured," the president said. "We endured."

Biden had been overseas to attend the G20 summit in India and to visit Vietnam in an effort to further shore up U.S. relations with key partners in Asia amid China's rising influence.

He departed Vietnam early Monday morning for Anchorage. Vietnam's Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh expressed his condolences for the "tremendous losses incurred" during the Sept. 11 attacks, and Biden thanked him for expressing "sentiment and concern."

Biden has faced some criticism for not participating in traditional ceremonies at the White House, at the Pentagon or in New York.

Biden addressed his visit abroad in his remarks, calling such trips "an essential part of how we’re going to ensure the United States is flanked by the broadest of allies and partners who will stand with us and assure our security, to build a world that is safer for all of our children."

"Today of all days, what I am reminded of is that it is not a given," he said.

Vice President Kamala Harris represented the administration at the commemoration ceremony at ground zero in lower Manhattan on Monday morning. She was surrounded by local leaders, including Democrats Gov. Kathy Hochul, Mayor Eric Adams, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and others.

The process of identifying the lives lost continues decades after two planes hit the World Trade Center. Just last week, two new victims were identified as the 1,648th and 1,649th victim of the 2,753 people killed at the Twin Towers.

The New York City Fire Department this week also added 43 names to a memorial wall remembering firefighters, paramedics and civilian support staff members who died from illnesses related to rescue and recovery efforts after the attack.

The first year of his presidency, Biden visited all three attack sites. Last year, he delivered remarks at the National 9/11 Pentagon Memorial in Arlington, Virginia.

"While every year we mark this holiday, it is never easy," Biden said. "Anyone here or across the country mourning a lost loved one, all of those who still bear the wounds from that searing September morning, I know how hard it is.

"How can we reopen up that wound?" Biden said. "It's like opening a black hole in your chest, sucking you into it again, bringing you back to that moment when you saw the news, the moment you got that phone call. The moment you realized you’d never say again, 'See you later mom' or 'talk to you soon, son.'"

Biden commemorated the first responders who rushed to ground zero that day, civilians and service members who responded at the Pentagon and the "patriot" passengers on Flight 93 as well as those who later served in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Last week, Biden rejected proposed conditions for a plea deal for five Guantanamo Bay detainees for their alleged roles aiding in the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

On Monday's anniversary, first lady Jill Biden laid a wreath at the National 9/11 Pentagon Memorial in Arlington and second gentleman Doug Emhoff traveled to Shanksville, Pennsylvania, for a memorial observance for Flight 93.

Nearly 3,000 people were killed that in a string of coordinated attacks by the terrorist group al-Qaida. Forty individuals died on Flight 93 and 184 lives were lost at the Pentagon.

A thoughtful Washington Post opinion piece on why Biden should step down and give someone with a better chance the opportunity to run.

President Biden should not run again in 2024

opinion piece