US Stocks Close Turbulent Week Higher 08/16 16:10
US Stocks Close Turbulent Week Higher 08/16 16:10 Stocks around the world jumped Friday to cap another tumultuous week. (AP) -- You're not the only one confused about where the economy is headed. Just look at the stock market, where perplexed investors have been sending stocks on a wild ride in August. And there could be plenty more where that came from. Two notoriously volatile months for stocks lie just ahead. Stocks around the world jumped Friday to cap another tumultuous week. Investors have been frantically trying to rejigger their predictions about whether President Donald Trump's trade war and slowing economies around the world will drag the United States into a recession. In the U.S., the result was a week where the Dow Jones Industrial Average had four days where it rose or fell by more than 300 points --- with an 800-point drop thrown into the mix. On Friday, the S&P 500 rose 1.4%. The Dow climbed 1.2% and the Nasdaq picked up 1.7%. But each index still finished with a third straight weekly decline. Stocks, bonds and other investments heaved up and down throughout the week, with worries hitting a crescendo on Wednesday when a fairly reliable warning signal of recession flipped on in the U.S. Treasury market. Friday marked the seventh time in the last 10 days that the S&P 500 swung by at least 1%, something that hasn't happened since the end of 2018, the last time investors were getting worried about a possible recession. At that time, they were concerned about rising interest rates, along with the trade war. Don't expect the volatility to go away anytime soon, analysts say. No one knows when Trump's trade war will find a resolution. Nor whether all the uncertainty it's created will push enough businesses and shoppers to hold off on spending and cause a recession. Some investors are digging in for trade tensions to last through the 2020 election. "We're also heading into a tough season for the market," said Emily Roland, co-chief investment strategist at John Hancock Investment Management. "September and October tend to be the most volatile of the year for markets. We've been talking to investors for that reason to look for areas to prune risk within a portfolio." The S&P 500 has lost an average of 1.1% in September over the last 20 years, making it the worst-performing month of the year. October's track record is better, but it includes the worst monthly performance in that stretch, a nearly 17% drop in 2008. But Roland and other professional investors also caution that this kind of turmoil is actually normal for the market, when looking at it from a very long-term point of view. The U.S. stock market historically has had such bursts of tightly packed volatile days, interspersed between longer periods of calm. Since early 2009, whenever the S&P 500 has had a drop of 3% in a day, it either preceded or followed another such drop within a month 70% of the time. "What's been abnormal is the super-low volatility" that investors have been enjoying for much of this bull market, which began in 2009, said Brian Yacktman, portfolio manager of the YCG Enhanced fund. He sees the volatility as an opportunity to buy stocks at cheaper prices, and he's recently been partial to bank stocks, which have been hammered on worries that lower interest rates will hurt their profits. "When you have volatility like this, you're actually buying the market on sale," said Rob Scheinerman, CEO of AIG Retirement Services. "That's a great thing." Technology companies and banks did the most to drive Friday's broad rally as investors regained some appetite for riskier holdings. Utilities, which have been one of the safer havens for investors this month, lagged the market. The S&P 500 rose 41.08 points, or 1.4%, to 2,888.68. The Dow, which had an 800 point drop earlier in the week, added 306.62 points, or 1.2%, to 25,886.01. The Nasdaq climbed 129.38 points, 1.7%, to 7,895.99. Investors favored smaller company stocks, which pushed up the Russell 2000. The index rose 31.99 points, or 2.2%, to 1,493.64. Even with the latest bout of turbulent trading, the S&P 500 is still having a good year. The broad market index is up 15.2% for 2019. Similarly, the Nasdaq is still up 19% for the year. Long-term bond yields also climbed Friday. The yield on 10-year Treasury rose to 1.56% from 1.52% late Thursday. The bounce for yields followed a weeklong slide that included a sharp drop on Wednesday that rang yet another alarm bell for the economy. The 10-year yield dropped below the yield on the two-year Treasury, a rare occurrence and one that has historically suggested a recession may be a year or two away. Investors are hoping that the Federal Reserve will continue to cut interest rates in order to shore up economic growth. The central bank lowered interest rates by a quarter-point at its last meeting. It was the first time it lowered rates in a decade. Benchmark crude oil rose 40 cents to settle at $54.87 a barrel. Brent crude oil, the international standard, rose 41 cents to close at $58.64 a barrel. Wholesale gasoline rose 2 cents to $1.66 per gallon. Heating oil was unchanged at $1.81 per gallon. Natural gas fell 3 cents to $2.20 per 1,000 cubic feet. Gold fell $7.10 to $1,512.50 per ounce, silver fell 9 cents to $17.10 per ounce and copper was unchanged at $2.59 per pound. The dollar rose to 106.29 Japanese yen from 106.11 yen on Thursday. The euro weakened to $1.1093 from $1.1107. (BE)
Kim:Great Satisfaction of NKorea Tests 08/17 09:01
Kim:Great Satisfaction of NKorea Tests 08/17 09:01 North Korea said Saturday that leader Kim Jong Un supervised another test-firing of an unspecified new weapon, seen as an attempt to pressure Washington and Seoul over slow nuclear negotiations and their joint military exercises. SEOUL, South Korea (AP) -- North Korea said Saturday that leader Kim Jong Un supervised another test-firing of an unspecified new weapon, seen as an attempt to pressure Washington and Seoul over slow nuclear negotiations and their joint military exercises. Pyongyang's Korean Central News Agency, or KCNA, said that following Friday's launches, Kim expressed "great satisfaction" over his military's "mysterious and amazing success rates" in recent testing activity and vowed to build up "invincible military capabilities no one dare provoke." The report did not mention any specific comment about the United States or South Korea. The launches were North Korea's sixth round of tests since late July that revealed developments of a new rocket artillery system and two separate short-range mobile ballistic missile systems that experts say would expand its ability to strike targets throughout South Korea, including U.S. bases there. KCNA did not describe what Friday's weapons were or how they performed, but said that the tests were successful and strengthened the military's confidence in the reliability of the system. North Korea's official Rodong Sinmun newspaper published photos that showed what appeared to be a missile soaring from a launcher installed on a vehicle and striking what appeared to be a coastal target. Kim is seen jubilantly raising his fist while celebrating with military officials. "(Kim) said everyone should remember that it is the (ruling) party's core plan and unwavering determination to build a powerful force strong enough to discourage any forces from daring to provoke us and to leave any opponent defenseless against our Juche weapons of absolute power even in situations of physical clashes," KCNA said, referring to the North's national ideology of self-reliance. In a separate statement on Saturday, KCNA berated the ongoing U.S.-South Korea military drills as an invasion rehearsal that compels North Korea to constantly develop "powerful physical means and their deployment for an actual war." The United States has downsized its major military exercises with South Korea and halted dispatches of strategic assets such as long-range bombers and aircraft carriers to the region since the first summit between Kim and President Donald Trump last year. But North Korea says even the smaller drills violate agreements between the leaders. South Korea's military said earlier that two projectiles launched from the North's eastern coast flew about 230 kilometers (143 miles) before landing in waters between the Korean Peninsula and Japan. The U.S. and South Korean militaries were analyzing the launches but didn't immediately say whether the weapons were ballistic missiles or rocket artillery. Experts say Trump's repeated downplaying of the North's recent launches allow the country more room to intensify its testing activity and advance its short-range weaponry while it seeks to build leverage ahead of nuclear negotiations with Washington, which could resume after the end of the military drills later this month. The U.S. envoy for North Korea, Stephen Biegun, will visit Japan and South Korea early next week for talks on how to "further strengthen coordination on the final, fully verified denuclearization" of North Korea, the U.S. State Department said. North Korea has ignored South Korean calls for dialogue recently and is seen as trying to force Seoul to make stronger efforts to coax major concessions from Washington on its behalf. Hours before the latest launches, an unidentified North Korean government spokesperson used unusually blunt language to criticize South Korean President Moon Jae-in for continuing to hold military exercises with the U.S. and over his rosy comments on inter-Korean diplomacy, and said Pyongyang has no current plans to talk with Seoul. Moon said in a televised speech on Thursday that momentum for dialogue remains alive despite the series of "worrying actions taken by North Korea recently" and called for Pyongyang to choose "economic prosperity over its nuclear program." The spokesperson also criticized South Korea's recent acquisition of advanced U.S.-made fighter jets and said it would be "senseless" for Moon to believe that inter-Korean dialogue will automatically begin after the end of the U.S.-South Korean drills. The North had recently said it would talk only with Washington and not Seoul, and that inter-Korean dialogue won't resume unless the South offers a "plausible excuse" on why it keeps hosting military drills with the United States. Seoul's Unification Ministry, which deals with inter-Korean affairs, criticized the North Korean statement, saying it wouldn't help efforts to improve relations. (KR)
Protests Call for Fair Moscow Elections08/17 09:04
Protests Call for Fair Moscow Elections08/17 09:04 MOSCOW (AP) -- About 4,000 people have held a rally in Moscow to demand fairness in upcoming city council elections, and solo pickets protesting the exclusion of some opposition and independent candidates are taking place at prominent monuments. The actions Saturday have been much smaller and less heated than recent weekend protests over the issue. Two unauthorized demonstrations were previously harshly broken up by police, with more than 2,000 people detained altogether; a sanctioned demonstration last week attracted as many as 60,000 people, the largest protest in several years. The authorized rally on Saturday was organized by the Communist Party. The solo pickets are following a law that demonstrations by a single person do not require official permission. No detentions have been reported. (KR)
Signs of Recession Worry Trump 08/17 09:05
Signs of Recession Worry Trump 08/17 09:05 President Donald Trump is warning of an economic crash if he loses reelection, arguing that even voters who personally dislike him should base their ballots on the nation's strong growth and low unemployment rate. WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Donald Trump is warning of an economic crash if he loses reelection, arguing that even voters who personally dislike him should base their ballots on the nation's strong growth and low unemployment rate. But privately, Trump is growing increasingly worried the economy won't look so good come Election Day. The financial markets signaled the possibility of a U.S. recession this week, sending a jolt of anxiety to investors, companies and consumers. That's on top of concerns over Trump's plans to impose punishing tariffs on goods from China and word from the United Kingdom and Germany that their economies are shrinking. Though a pre-election recession here is far from certain, a downturn would be a devastating blow to the president, who has made a strong economy his central argument for a second term. Trump advisers fear a weakened economy would hurt him with moderate Republican and independent voters who have been willing to give him a pass on some his incendiary policies and rhetoric. And White House economic advisers see few options for reversing course should the economy start to slip. Trump has taken to blaming others for the recession fears, mostly the Federal Reserve, which he is pushing for further interest rate cuts. Yet much of the uncertainty in the markets stems from his own escalation of a trade war with China, as well as weakened economies in key countries around the world. Some of Trump's closest advisers have urged him to lower the temperature of the trade dispute, fearing that further tariffs would only hurt American consumers and rattle the markets further. The president blinked once this week, delaying a set of tariffs in an effort to save Christmas sales. Aides acknowledge it is unclear what steps the White House could take to stop a downturn. Trump's 2017 tax cut proved so politically unpopular that many Republicans ran away from it during last year's midterms. And a new stimulus spending program could spark intraparty fighting over big deficits. The hope among administration officials is that a mix of wage gains and consumer spending will power growth through 2020. Yet Trump knows his own survival hinges on voters believing that he alone can prolong the economy's decade-plus expansion. "You have no choice but to vote for me because your 401(k), everything is going to be down the tubes," the president said at a Thursday rally in New Hampshire. "Whether you love me or hate me, you've got to vote for me." Trump has spent much of the week at his New Jersey golf club, many of his mornings on the links, his afternoons watching cable television and his evenings calling confidants and business executives to get their take on the market's volatility. Though he has expressed private worries about Wall Street, he is also skeptical about some of the weaker economic indicators, wondering if the media and establishment figures are manipulating the data to make him look bad, according to two Republicans close to the White House, not authorized to discuss private conversations. His skepticism has been reinforced by White House officials who have long been inclined to only show Trump rosier economic assessments. Amid the market turmoil this week, the president tweeted out defenses of his economic record. He blasted the Fed for not cutting interest rates deeper, under the belief that sharper cuts would lead to more lending activity and make the U.S. dollar more competitive against foreign currencies. The president also highlighted the strength of consumer spending --- as retail sales have jumped 3.4% from a year ago. Yet his focus on the Fed may be counterproductive. The Federal Reserve voted last month to trim rates for the first time since 2008, a step taken to insulate the economy against trade uncertainty. But consumers interpreted that as a precautionary move ahead of a downturn rather than as part of an effort to keep the economy growing, according to the University of Michigan's consumer sentiment survey released Friday. Consumer confidence has dropped 6.4% since July. The pessimism could worsen if the Fed decides to slash rates in accordance with Trump's wishes. "Additional cuts in interest rates would act to increase consumer apprehensions about a potential recession," said Richard Curtin, director of the survey. One sector already suffering this year is manufacturing, the very industry that Trump pledged to revive and fortify with his tariffs. Factory output has fallen 0.5% during the past 12 months, the Fed said Thursday. There are a few steps the government could take to help manufacturing and the economy, said Linda Dempsey, vice president of international economic affairs at the National Association of Manufacturers. Congress could approve the updated trade agreement among the United States, Canada and Mexico --- which would protect the North American supply chain. Secondly, the government could renew the soon-to-expire charter for the Export-Import Bank. But reconciling the situation with China is tricky because it involves negotiations between two countries with competing interests. "That requires two sides --- it's not something the United States and our own political environment can deal with," Dempsey said. Most economists --- including Fed officials --- still expect the economy to grow this year, just at a slower pace than last year's 2.9%. A senior White House official said the growth in the second quarter this year was artificially low because of unusually bad weather and problems at Boeing that hurt aircraft production. Thus the baseline economy might be stronger than many forecasters think. Financial markets on Wednesday pointed to a possible downturn as the interest rate charged on a 10-year U.S. Treasury note fell below the rate on a 2-year note. That event has traditionally foreshadowed a recession. But the Trump official said it might have lost its predictive power because of the low rates and other policies of central banks worldwide. But the falling rates on U.S. Treasury notes indicates that the recession countdown clock is now ticking, said Scott Anderson, chief economist at Bank of the West. The only challenge is figuring out when that alarm bell might ring. "I think we're heading down that road to recession --- we're on that steady march toward that inevitable conclusion," Anderson said. "It's just that drip, drip, drip of trade war anxiety that is hanging over market sentiment." (KR)
Portland Braces for Opposing Protests 08/17 09:07
Portland Braces for Opposing Protests 08/17 09:07 PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) -- More than two dozen local, state and federal law enforcement agencies, including the FBI and the Federal Protective Service, were in Portland, Oregon, on Saturday to help police there monitor a right-wing rally that's expected to draw demonstrators from around the U.S. Self-described anti-fascists have vowed to confront the rally while leaders from the far right urged their followers to turn out in large numbers to protest the arrests of six members of right-wing groups in the run-up to the event. Patriot Prayer's Joey Gibson, who is not involved in this weekend's event but organized similar rallies in 2017 and 2018 that erupted in clashes, surrendered Friday on an arrest warrant for felony rioting. He was at a confrontation that broke out on May 1 outside a bar where members of the so-called "antifa" movement had gathered after a May Day demonstration. In a video he livestreamed on Facebook, Gibson accused the police of playing politics by arresting him but not the masked demonstrators who beat up conservative blogger Andy Ngo at a June 29 rally that drew national attention to this small, liberal city. A video of that attack went viral and led the Proud Boys, who have been designated a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center, to organize Saturday's event. "What I'm saying to everybody who's listening to this (is) they're trying to shut you guys up. They want you to not show up in Portland, they want to put fear in your hearts," he said. "When a government pushes back like that, we don't bend the knee," Gibson said, as he walked to the jail. Portland Police Bureau spokeswoman Tina Jones declined to comment about specific arrests but said generally police continue to investigate several incidents from clashes on May 1 and June 29 and are politically neutral. Members of antifa often cover their faces with masks, making it harder to identify them. "We receive criticism no matter what. It's either too much, not enough, you arrested this group and not this group," Jones said. "It seems like some people are keeping score, and that's not what it's about on the law enforcement side. One hundred percent, it's about public safety." In addition to the Proud Boys, the white nationalist American Guard and the Three Percenters, a far-right militia, have said they will have members in Portland. Hate group watchdogs say the Daily Stormers, a neo-Nazi group, are also expected. The Oath Keepers, another far-right militia group, said in a statement they were pulling out of the rally because organizers have not done enough to keep white supremacist groups away. "It would be best for the patriot/conservative cause if this August 17 rally were simply canceled," the group's founder, Stewart Rhodes, wrote. "Those who want to protest the way Portland coddles Antifa should start over, with a clean slate." Authorities asked residents not to call 911 unless it's a life-threatening emergency and to stay away from the heart of downtown. Some city streets will be closed Saturday, as well as a major bridge connecting the east and west sides of the city. (KR)
China Flexes Muscle Near Hong Kong 08/17 09:08
China Flexes Muscle Near Hong Kong 08/17 09:08 SHENZHEN, China (AP) -- Members of China's paramilitary People's Armed Police marched and practiced crowd control tactics at a sports complex in Shenzhen across from Hong Kong in what some interpreted as a threat against pro-democracy protesters in the semi-autonomous territory. The sound of marching boots and synchronized shouts echoed from the grounds on Friday. Officers in green camouflage stood guard at closed entrances. A stadium security guard said "it wasn't clear" when the paramilitary police would leave the grounds. Chinese state media have only said that the Shenzhen exercises were planned earlier and were not directly related to the unrest in Hong Kong, though they came shortly after the central government in Beijing said the protests were beginning to show the "sprouts of terrorism." From a distance, police could be seen conducting drills in military fatigues, using shields, poles and other riot-control gear. In one exercise, two groups marched in formation with those in front raising shields as if to protect themselves from projectiles. Others behind held red flags and banners. The words "the law" and "prosecuted" could be seen on one. Outside, dozens of armored carriers and trucks sat in the parking lot of the Shenzhen Bay Stadium, close to a bridge linking mainland China to Hong Kong. Asked if Hong Kong police could maintain order or if mainland Chinese intervention is becoming inevitable, Hong Kong police commander Yeung Man-pun said that while they face tremendous pressure, "I can tell you we're confident the police have the capability to maintain law and order." Germany, meanwhile, said it considers China to be a responsible actor that will respect Hong Kong laws guaranteeing freedom of speech and rule of law. Government spokesman Steffen Seibert said Friday that Hong Kong's 1997 Basic Law, under which the city was promised a high degree of autonomy when the former British colony returned to China, "is a Chinese law, and as such we naturally expect that the People's Republic of China, too, won't call into question the peaceful exercise of these rights." Weeks of protests in Hong Kong have been marked by increasing violence and a shutdown of the Hong Kong airport earlier this week. The demonstrators are demanding expanded political rights and the scrapping of legislation that could have seen criminal suspects sent to mainland China. A weekend of protests began Friday night with a university student-led "power to the people" rally in Chater Garden, a public square in the financial district. A pro-democracy march is planned for Saturday along with a separate pro-government "Save Hong Kong" rally, ahead of a major pro-democracy rally called for Sunday. Police have denied permission for the march on Sunday, but protesters have ignored such denials in the past. China has pressured foreign and Hong Kong companies to support the ruling Communist Party's position against the protesters. The CEO of Cathay Pacific Airways, one of Hong Kong's most prominent companies, resigned Friday following pressure by Beijing on the carrier over participation by some of its employees in the anti-government protests. Cathay Pacific said Rupert Hogg resigned "to take responsibility" following "recent events." The company chairman, John Slosar, said in a statement the airline needed new management because events had "called into question" its commitment to safety and security. On Monday, Hogg threatened employees with "disciplinary consequences" if they took part in "illegal protests.' Last week, China's aviation regulator said Cathay Pacific employees who "support or take part in illegal protests, violent actions, or overly radical behavior" are banned from staffing flights to mainland China. On Friday morning, Frenchman Alain Robert, who has been dubbed "spiderman" for his unauthorized climbs of skyscrapers, hung a banner appealing for peace as he scaled the 62-story Cheung Kong Center, a landmark Hong Kong building that is the base for property tycoon Li Ka-shing's business empire. The banner showed the Chinese and Hong Kong flags over a handshake and a small yellow sun with a smiley face. "The banner is to give joy and smile to the people of Hong Kong," he told the AP as he sat in a taxi about to leave for his climb. He added that he didn't want to get "mixed up in the political situation." Robert, 57, was taken to a police station afterward. It wasn't immediately clear if he would be charged. He was banned in 2017 from returning to Hong Kong for one year after climbing another building. (KR)
Clampdown Easing in Kashmir 08/17 09:11
Clampdown Easing in Kashmir 08/17 09:11 NEW DELHI (AP) -- Authorities in Indian-administered Kashmir began restoring landline phone services on Saturday after a nearly two-week security crackdown and news blackout following a decision by India's government to downgrade the Muslim-majority region's autonomy. Shahid Choudhary, a government administrator in Srinagar, the region's main city, said restrictions were being lifted in most areas and government offices were open. He also said on Twitter that food and other supplies were available "in abundance." Police said restrictions on the movement of people were relaxed in several parts of the region. "Situation remains peaceful," they said on Twitter. Rohit Kansal, another administrator in Srinagar, told reporters that public transport buses had started operating in some rural areas in Indian-controlled Kashmir. He also said cellphone and internet services had resumed in some districts, but news reports said that happened only in the Hindu-dominated Jammu region, which was not threatened by anti-India protests. Security forces that blanketed the region remained on high alert after hundreds of people took to the streets for an anti-India protest following Friday prayers in Srinagar. The government had imposed the lockdown to avoid a violent reaction to its decision on Aug. 5 to downgrade the autonomy of the region. The decision by the Hindu nationalist government in New Delhi has raised tensions with Pakistan and touched off anger in the Indian-controlled portion of Kashmir. There was a deadly exchange of gun and mortar firing between Indian and Pakistani forces Saturday across the militarized Line of Control that divides Kashmir between the archrivals. Both countries claim the Himalayan region in its entirety, and they have fought two of their three wars over Kashmir. An Indian soldier was killed by Pakistani forces in Nowshera sector, Col. Aman Anand, an Indian army spokesman, said in New Delhi. Earlier in the week, Pakistani security forces said firing by India in the region killed three Pakistani soldiers and two civilians in separate incidents. Both sides frequently exchange gunfire in the region and accuse each other of violating a 2003 cease-fire accord. In Islamabad, Pakistani military spokesman Maj. Gen. Asif Ghafoor said the country's armed forces were fully prepared to respond to any Indian aggression. The U.N. Security Council met to discuss Kashmir for the first time in decades, and Pakistan's U.N. ambassador said the session showed that people in the region "may be locked up ... but their voices were heard today." The council took no action during the closed meeting, which was called for by China and Pakistan. President Donald Trump spoke with Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan by phone on Friday and conveyed the importance of India and Pakistan reducing tensions through dialogue, said White House spokesman Hogan Gidley. Khan welcomed the Security Council meeting, saying on Twitter that "addressing the suffering of the Kashmiri people and ensuring resolution of the dispute is the responsibility of this world body." According to Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Trump said he would also talk to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Qureshi said the Security Council taking up Kashmir proved that it is an international dispute and not an internal matter of India as New Delhi claimed. Kansal, the Srinagar administrator, said landline services in 17 of around 100 telephone exchanges had been made operational in Indian-held Kashmir on Saturday. Half of the region's exchanges are expected to be in service by Sunday, he said. Primary schools will reopen on Monday, and public transport will be restored gradually after evaluating the security situation, said B.V.R. Subrahmanyam, a senior official with the regional government. On Friday, hundreds of demonstrators in Srinagar carried green Islamic flags and signs reading "Stop genocide in Kashmir, wake up world." Some threw stones and clashed with security forces, which responded with tear gas. Modi, who has defended the Kashmir changes as freeing the territory from separatism, and his supporters have welcomed the move. One of the revisions allows anyone to buy land in Indian-controlled Kashmir, which some Kashmiris fear could change the region's culture and demographics. Critics have likened it to Israeli settlements in Palestinian territories. India and Pakistan have fought two wars over control of Kashmir since they won independence from British colonialists in 1947. India accuses Pakistan of arming and training insurgents who have been fighting for Kashmir's independence from India or its merger with Pakistan since 1989. Pakistan says it only provides moral and diplomatic support to rebels. (KR)
Pelosi Emerging as Force Abroad 08/17 09:12
Pelosi Emerging as Force Abroad 08/17 09:12 House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., is emerging as an alternative ambassador abroad, an emissary for bedrock democratic values and the promise of stability that some see as diminishing in the Trump era. WASHINGTON (AP) -- There's an American leader whose words resonate on the global stage. Who draws attention in foreign capitals. Who carries a message from the United States by simply arriving. It's not just President Donald Trump. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., is emerging as an alternative ambassador abroad, an emissary for bedrock democratic values and the promise of stability that some see as diminishing in the Trump era. As the president heads to the Group of Seven summit in France next week with his "America First" agenda , Pelosi has been quietly engaging the world from another point of view. She is reviving a more traditional American approach to foreign policy, in style and substance, reinforcing long-standing U.S. alliances and commitments to democracy and human rights, at a time when the old order appears to be slipping away. "What's really important for people to know is, we're all in this together," Pelosi told The Associated Press in an interview. "This isn't about me. It's about our country and our shared values, to show our strength of who we are and what we believe." Since retaking the speaker's gavel this year, Pelosi has led large congressional delegations abroad: to assure European allies at a Munich security conference; warn Britons of the pitfalls of Brexit; assess the migrant crisis in Central America; and mark the 400th anniversary of the slave trade in Africa with members of the Congressional Black Caucus, including the immigrant congresswoman who became the subject of a Trump rally chant, "Send her back!" Former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright said that at a time when U.S. policy is "confusing everybody in the world," Pelosi and the members of Congress are trying to "present the best face of America." "Thank goodness that they're doing this," Albright said. With the lawmakers, Pelosi is sending a "very clear message" to the foreign officials in the room, said Rep. Norma Torres, D-Calif., a Guatemalan American who joined the Central American trip. "Presidents come and go. Congress will always be there," Torres said. The scope of Pelosi's diplomacy often resonates with members of the president's party, creating rare bipartisan accord. This past week, when Trump said he hopes it works out with Hong Kong pro-democracy protesters facing retaliation from China --- "I hope nobody gets killed," he told reporters --- Pelosi affirmed the U.S. commitment to human rights and urged the Hong Kong government to end the standoff. It was a sentiment shared by several top Republicans, including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky. Congressional leaders routinely play a role influencing policy abroad. While House speaker, Newt Gingrich, R-Ga., visited the former Soviet Union. More recently, when John Boehner, R-Ohio, was speaker, he invited Israel's Benjamin Netanyahu to address a joint meeting of Congress amid opposition to the Obama administration's nuclear deal with Iran. Pelosi, as a young lawmaker, went to China to oppose the violent crackdown on democracy protesters in Tiananmen Square. But not since the late Republican Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., globe-trotted the world has a U.S. lawmaker emerged with such a presence, as a protector of long-held American values, as Pelosi. "This is what diplomacy looks like," said Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Mass., who traveled with Pelosi this month to Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras as the migrant crisis at the U.S.-Mexico border played out. Trump has not been pleased with some of Pelosi's trips. In a stunning move this year, the president abruptly ordered the grounding of the military aircraft that was set to take lawmakers to Belgium and Afghanistan to visit troops. The move was in retaliation for Pelosi's decision to postpone Trump's State of the Union address during the federal government shutdown. Trump dismissed Pelosi's "excursion" as a "public relations event" and suggested the lawmakers could fly on commercial aircraft to the combat zone. Congressional travel is, by law, federally funded. Critics may see the trips as merely junkets or, worse, meddling in the administration's foreign affairs. American politicians generally abide by a rule to leave their political differences at water's edge. During a trip to Africa, Pelosi surprised some when she declined to answer questions about Trump's racist tweets against members of Congress. Sometimes more can be said diplomatically by saying little. At the Munich security conference this year, Pelosi was embraced by European leaders at a time when Trump's attacks on NATO were threatening the decades-old alliance of Western nations. "She was greeted like a rock star," said Wendy Sherman, an Obama-era ambassador and former State Department counselor under Albright. Around that time, Pelosi and McConnell invited the NATO secretary-general address to Congress. Still, words matter and Pelosi's interventions in Brexit rippled this past week across the United Kingdom again. She reiterated the message delivered earlier this year, in London and in a speech to the Irish Parliament, that there will be "no chance" of a U.S.-Britain trade deal passing Congress if British efforts to leave the European Union result in a hard border between Northern Ireland and Ireland, which could undermine the peace process there. Her stand countered the one Trump's national security adviser, John Bolton, was taking during his own visit talking up a quick trade deal. Lawmakers who travel with Pelosi say the trips are demanding, with grueling schedules and working meals, but rewarding as she delegates others to speak for the group. Many of the trips were initially their ideas. When the head of the Congressional Black Caucus, Rep. Karen Bass, D-Calif., asked her to Ghana, Pelosi sought out the highest ranking African American in the House, Democratic Rep. Jim Clyburn of South Carolina, to lead the group's discussion with the country's president. Later, Pelosi took a photo with Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., the Somali American refugee who the Trump rally crowd wanted to send "back," as the two passed through a historic doorway at the coastal site where enslaved Africans were bound for the middle passage to the Americas. "So much of what we are doing carried history," Clyburn said. Mark Salter, a longtime aide to McCain, said while the Republican senator and the Democratic speaker disagreed on "a million things," Pelosi, like his former boss, "believes in the ideals of this country" and fostering those ideals abroad. "She's a statesman and McCain would applaud it," Salter said. "He would look at the speaker, those activities, with appreciation." (KR)
