WASHINGTON (AP) ? President Barack Obama is trying to deepen America’s relationship with Asia, eyeing jobs and security interests back home.
Obama leaves Washington on Friday for a nine-day venture that will be bracketed by far-reaching summits in Hawaii and Indonesia. In between will come his first trip as president to Australia, an ally that has seen him cancel visits twice.
The administration views the Asia-Pacific region as a rising voice in world economic and political affairs.
The travels will take Obama across more than 10,000 miles and many time zones at a moment when domestic concerns matters most to the electorate.
His challenge will be to explain to voters how the U.S. role in the Asia-Pacific region is essential to American jobs and security.
