Just slightly over a week long, the first Asia-Pacific raised American President Barrack Obama, born in Hawaii who spent a bit of his youth growing up in the region and perhaps with one of but just a few to spend more than a little time in the region. Concluded a week long trip across the worlds largest consumer market. Also the world manufacturing center.

President Obama in his weekly video address says that his travels were meant to secure help for the economy. “As we emerge from the worst recession in generations,” Is a key phrase – but uttered even as more alarming numbers of the unemployed are reported. et every optimistic Obama says, “There is nothing more important than to do everything we can to get our economy moving again and put Americans back to work, and I will go anywhere to pursue that goal,” Obama recorded his message from Seoul while on a week and day journey across the region.

He seeks to increase America’s exports abroad – one area American leads at this point is Agriculture – and Asia and the Pacific is the largest population center on the planet, A increase in agricultural sales could “help create new jobs at home and raise living standards throughout the world.”

Fitting perhaps that this weeks weekly address – comes from a recorded message made in Seoul South Korea.

Perhaps other American Presidents have served in Asia prior to becoming president of the U.S. among them George  Bush the 41st a soldier in World War II he got his feet wet in Asian waters getting shot down in Tokyo Bay and later as diplomat he served as a popular Ambassador in China, earlier William Howard Taft who served as Governor General in the Philippines, and Eisenhower, who few remember served as an aide to Douglas MacArthur and learned the fly at the now Philippine Air Force Flying school in the 1930′s or perhaps the best known for his expliots made into a book and movie John F. Kennedy also like Bush 41, served in WW2, Jimmy Carter as well while in the Navy – there have been others but most in official capacities for military or civilian roles in Government  that have spent more than just a few months in Asia in their lives.

Obama is America’s first in many ways, aside from the obvious, he was born in Hawaii, raised across the region as a child and speaks a little of the language of the region – trade – Harvard Law his alma mater is of course a huge source along with Harvard business school of a major force in the Alumni strength factor that is a high value across a region where a harvard degree is often what it takes to get top level job in business and government.

Asia, values its education – and – America is and has been the destination of choice in the post WW2 era for learning the economic game plans that have chartered the last quarter century of growth – much of it learned and developed in the ivy league schools of the U.S.A. and the regions universities.

Hence, Obama’s education background is as much part of the pedigree of his title in the region and means a lot to the tens of thousands in Korea, China, Japan, and Singapore that were the Presidents stops across the region. Yet, one place he did not visit was Manila. Albeit he did send US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

Another noteable missed spot was Guam, where, America’s day begins, the island territory that gave him his first delgate votes in the last Presidential campaign  - Guam’s people, while American citizens have been seeking rights to vote directly in the US election for president for decades. Since they are not a State but a territory its local island tribe and its leaders have been pushing for recognition as indigenous people under the US Native American laws to least have more direct say in Federal matters concerning the region and American Pacific Islanders.

Yet, among others in Guam’s local population, there are others who seek more than just recognition as a tribe but also some who want independence for the US territory – albeit – a minority with most surveys seeing themselves as part and parcel of the U.S.A. there have been those seeking a UN sanctioned referendum on self determination.

However, Washington as always even on this trip ignored the opportunity for a visit to the America’s island outpost at least on this trip. Perhaps another day – another - visit might happen. Guam could play a major role in Pacific trade to the mainland USA as the Obama administration seeks to improve the regional ties it already is being seen as major upgraded area role in security for the region and America’s major forward deployment post for US forces scheduled to be moved from Okinawa.

However, many of the Islands business community leaders also want to it see it play a major role in any increased trade efforts with Asia.

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