Thursday, 4:30 PM
Romney gets snickers, raves from Beijing college students
By Jehangir S. Pocha
GLOBE CORRESPONDENT
BEIJING — Governor Mitt Romney’s weeklong trip to Asia took him to the renowned Tsinghua University here yesterday, where he fielded questions from a sometimes skeptical audience of students and sketched out his views on China’s emergence as a world power.
‘‘The question is, for China, how will you use that power? And it is our hope that that power will be used to encourage peace and stability in the world,’’ Romney told a small group of mostly business school students.
‘‘And ..... my experience with my own country is this: We make mistakes as a country; every country does. Mistakes in information, mistakes in judgment. But never mistakes in purpose. America’s purpose, I believe, has always been to help people, to expand their freedom, and to expand their prosperity and their hope.’’
But the audience snickered.
‘‘We think America does things for different purposes,’’ Guo Yanglei, a doctoral candidate at the business school, said after Romney and his entourage left the classroom where he had given his lecture. ‘‘We have our own understanding of the US.’’
The brief exchange reflected the difficult reputation the US faces overseas and the importance foreign relations will play for the next US president. Romney, a one-term governor who is likely to seek the GOP presidential nomination in 2008, is traveling to China, Japan, and South Korea on a trip widely seen as an attempt to add to his foreign policy credentials.
The students asked Romney about his potential presidential run, his views on Iraq, and banking and trade issues. At times, Romney stumbled over relatively straightforward geopolitical issues: Romney had to ask the US Embassy staff accompanying him the value of the Chinese renminbi to the US dollar, despite the fact that this is one of the hottest economic issues between Washington and Beijing.
The business students also smirked when Romney asserted that the United States believes in free trade. Recent threats by Washington to levy tariffs on Chinese products and continued US opposition to China’s demands that it lift agricultural subsidies have made locals skeptical of that assertion.
Yet the students were clearly intrigued by the thought that they were getting a sneak preview of a politician who could be the next president. Almost as soon as Romney invited questions from the audience, a student asked him if he would throw his hat into the presidential ring. Romney declined to be specific, but it was clear his audience thought he was going to run.
‘‘I’d say he impressed me with his views,’’ said Guo, who, like most Chinese people used to watching stiff and dour Communist Party leaders, enjoyed watching Romney charm the audience. ‘‘Even when I compare him to Bush and Clinton [who also spoke at Tsinghua University in 2002 and 2003, respectively], I think he is good.
‘‘Of course, I don’t really think he will make much difference to US-Sino relations,’’ Guo added. ‘‘No matter who comes to power, things will start well and then slowly become more tense.’’
But the students’ interest in the US economy and American management was sharp, and Romney’s reminiscences about his days as head of Bain Capital had the audience hooked.
The room broke into laughter when Romney described the economic success of Bain Capital as ‘‘almost as good as China’s economic growth.’’
While many American leaders have annoyed their Chinese hosts by speaking up boldly in favor of democratic reform in China, Romney’s subtle but pointed words on how ‘‘debate and discussion’’ ultimately create the best policy went down well.
‘‘I really appreciated his view,’’ said Chen Weima, a 20-year-old senior. ‘‘Though Americans have very different perspectives from China sometimes, I think this 8approach shows he wants to under8stand our side.’’
In the question-and-answer session, Romney was deferential to the Chinese powerhouse.
‘‘I shouldn’t speak for the whole country, of course, but I think many Americans look with great expectation and hope as we see China emerging as a very powerful economy,’’ he said.
‘‘We hope that China will become a partner with other great nations, to encourage stability and peace and prosperity in the world,’’ he said, referring to efforts to eliminate poverty and encourage countries such as North Korea to reject nuclear weapons.
Romney referred repeatedly to North Korea and China’s role in containing the country during his talk, and it was also clear from his itinerary that gaining a better understanding of Pyongyang was high on his list of priorities. When Romney was in Seoul Wednesday and Thursday, he met with Prime Minister Han Myeong Sook, Acting Foreign Minister Cho Jung Pyo, and Unification Minister Lee Jong Seok. Romney also visited the demilitarized zone separating North and South Korea.
Romney’s full agenda in Beijing was not revealed to the media, underlining the low profile the governor is attempting to keep in his Asia trip.
