The White House is tired of seeing reports that the president and his secretary of state are not getting along.
The White House is tired of seeing stories that president Barack Obama and secretary of state Hillary Clinton are not getting along.
"The notion that there is some rift or disagreement is nothing more than silly Washington games," White House spokesperson Robert Gibbs said on Wednesday when asked about the relationship between the president and his secretary of state.
Clinton, who joined Obama's team despite their bitter rivalry for the Democratic presidential nomination last year, has weathered several reports that her influence as the country's chief diplomat is hampered by other foreign policy heavyweights in the administration and her own history with Obama.
Gibbs said reports about tricky relations between the former rivals were false. "They enjoy a very close relationship," he said.
"The secretary of state is somebody who the president relies on greatly," he said. "She has an enormously important role in the development of and execution of a foreign policy that changes our image in the world."
As pundits in Washington speculated that Clinton was being sidelined within the Obama administration and overshadowed by the president's recent high-profile diplomatic forays to West Asia, Russia, Italy, and Ghana, Clinton planned a week filled with events aimed at raising her public profile as chief diplomat.
"I broke my elbow, not my larynx," she quipped on Thursday at the state department. "I have been consistently involved in the shaping and implementation of our foreign policy, and I am off to India and Thailand."
On Thursday, Clinton embarked on her first trip overseas since breaking her elbow on June 17 — bound for India, and later Thailand.
With foreign policy heavyweight and vice-president Joseph Biden overseeing the US withdrawal and political reconciliation in Iraq, and ambassadors Richard Holbrooke and George Mitchell given the task of dealing with hot spots Afghanistan and West Asia, respectively, it seemed to some observers that Clinton's foreign policy portfolio and stature within the administration was diminishing, especially after losing battles to appoint some ambassadors and staff.
On Wednesday, Clinton delivered a wide-ranging speech that outlined the current US foreign policy agenda, addressed the hot-button issue of Iran, and defined areas of personal priority. She praised the president, but evidently sought to distinguish her contributions from his.
"President Obama has led us to think outside the usual boundaries," she said. "He has launched a new era of engagement based on common interests, shared values, and mutual respect. Going forward, capitalising on America's unique strengthens, we must advance those interests through partnership, and promote universal values through the power of our example and the empowerment of people.
"First, though, let me say that while the ideas that shape our foreign policy are critically important, this for me is not simply an intellectual exercise," she added. "For over 16 years, I've had the chance, the privilege, really, to represent our country overseas as first lady, as a senator, and now as secretary of state."
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
)
)
)
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}