The Bush Administration's Woes and Its Image Abroad

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During the first term of his presidency, riding a post-September 11 crest of domestic popularity and with his party in control of both houses of Congress, President Bush set the US on a unilateral path in international relations. Today, on a wide range of foreign policy issues, and with his administration weakened by scandals and the post-war failures in Iraq the President -- and America's position in the world --- is different. His opponents at home and abroad may take joy in his chastening, but what do foreign leaders really think about it? When an American president is overdrawn at the bank of public opinion, is the world a safer place? Guest host Michael Goldfarb explores America's image abroad with journalists, experts in international relations and a former White House official who has faced similar travails.Making News: President Bush Greeted by Protesters at Latin American SummitPresident Bush is in Argentina today, ahead of the 34-nation Summit of the Americas. His visit, inevitably sparked protests, Richard Lapper, who is in Mar del Plata for the Financial Times, has more on anti-American protests and the much anticipated meeting between Bush and Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez.Reporter's Notebook: Super Massive Black Hole at Center of the Milky WayFor a couple of decades astronomers have known about a dark object at the heart of Earth's galaxy, the Milky Way. What it is and how big it is have been the subject of recent study. Peter Spotts, who covers science and technology for the Christian Science Monitor, reports on a scientific study that confirms suspicion that the mysterious center is actually a black hole.
During the first term of his presidency, riding a post-September 11 crest of domestic popularity and with his party in control of both houses of Congress, President Bush set the US on a unilateral path in international relations. Today, on a wide range of foreign policy issues, and with his administration weakened by scandals and the post-war failures in Iraq the President -- and America's position in the world --- is different. His opponents at home and abroad may take joy in his chastening, but what do foreign leaders really think about it? When an American president is overdrawn at the bank of public opinion, is the world a safer place? Guest host Michael Goldfarb explores America's image abroad with journalists, experts in international relations and a former White House official who has faced similar travails.
  • Making News: President Bush Greeted by Protesters at Latin American Summit
    President Bush is in Argentina today, ahead of the 34-nation Summit of the Americas. His visit, inevitably sparked protests, Richard Lapper, who is in Mar del Plata for the Financial Times, has more on anti-American protests and the much anticipated meeting between Bush and Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez.
  • Reporter's Notebook: Super Massive Black Hole at Center of the Milky Way
    For a couple of decades astronomers have known about a dark object at the heart of Earth's galaxy, the Milky Way. What it is and how big it is have been the subject of recent study. Peter Spotts, who covers science and technology for the Christian Science Monitor, reports on a scientific study that confirms suspicion that the mysterious center is actually a black hole.
Guest host Michael Goldfarb has served as NPR's London Correspondent and as Senior Correspondent for Inside Out documentaries. He's covered major conflicts and conflict resolution from Bosnia to Northern Ireland to Iraq. Since September 11 he has traveled extensively in the Middle East. He-s won the Dupont-Columbia Award for -Surviving Torture: Inside Out- and the Overseas Press Club's Lowell Thomas Award for -British Jihad: Inside Out." Goldfarb is also the author of Ahmad's War, Ahmad's Peace: Surviving Under Saddam, Dying in the New Iraq.

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Warren Olney