Pelosi urges Bush to skip ceremony
Posted: Wednesday, April 09, 2008 1:21 PM by Domenico Montanaro
Filed Under:
White House, Congress, Democrats
From NBC’s Mike Viqueira
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi says that while she does not advocate a boycott of the Beijing Olympics, she does think that the attendance of world leaders at the Opening Ceremonies would "give credibility and face" to the Chinese government and that a boycott should be considered by the president.
Pelosi, who made her bones in national politics on the issue of human rights in China, says "the games should go on," and that if the decision is ultimately made by the president and other world leaders to lend their "aura" to the ceremonies then they get some "change" from the Chinese in return.
She also expressed her hope that the journey of the Olympic torch through her native San Francisco today is conducted in a "safe way," but notes that that the situation in Tibet and Darfur "challenges the conscience of the world."
*** UPDATE *** From NBC's John Yang
In her on-camera briefing, White House Press Secretary Dana Perino refused to be nailed down on whether President Bush would attend the Opening Ceremonies of the Beijing Olympics. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi called on him to skip the ceremonies to show displeasure with the Chinese government but attend events to show support for the athletes.
Also, after meeting with the First Minister of Singapore, Bush continued to pressure China on Tibet: "We both agree that it would stand the Chinese government in good stead if they would begin a dialogue with the representatives of the Dalai Lama. They'll find -- if they ever were to reach out to the Dalai Lama -- they'd find him to be a really fine man, a peaceful man, a man who is anti-violence, a man who is not for independence but for the cultural identity of the Tibetans being maintained."
