Guess who’s coming to dinner in April.... Pres Barack Obama

The labor front in this country welcomes the coming of President Barrack Obama to the Philippines this summer. This US President is pro-Philippines in our problems with China. He is pro-Filipinos in their immigration problems in the USA. He is pro-labor and pro-people, both in his legislative records as a former Senator from the great state of Illinois and in his policies and decisions as President.. Like his predecessor, Abraham Lincoln, who also came from Illinois, he is pro-human rights, pro-working class, and pro-poor. Many Filipinos can readily identify with President Obama because of his humble beginnings and his passion for education and his advocacy for the underprivileged, as well as his rather difficult, if colorful family background. His life story inspires many Filipinos and he is the idol of many young Pinoys in America.

America has always been an ally of the Philippines since the turn of the twentieth century. Our relations might not have been all too rosy but, compared to the way China is treating us, the USA is the closest friend of our country for more than a century now. The Americans never abandoned us in bad times and in good. The Democrats have always been good to the Filipinos and the administrations of Democrat US Presidents had generated a lot of positive things for Filipino immigrants in the US, the Filipino veterans, the seniors and handicapped, and even the undocumented Filipinos in America. President Barrack Obama, like his predecessor, President Bill Clinton had treated Filipino workers in the US, especially those working in the White House, with deep respect and warm gratitude.There are millions of Filipinos in the US, and most of them are Democrats, especially those in Hawaii, California, New York, New Jersey, Texas, Florida, and Illinois.

In his last State of the Union Address, President Barrack Obama profusely thanked a Filipino woman nurse who saved many American children at a time of disaster. A Filipino driver in Las Vegas who returned a large sum of  US dollars in his taxi became the toast of American gratitude and admiration. The Filipinos had proven many times to the Americans that we are also a reliable and loyal ally in Asia Pacific. Our soldiers fought under the American flag, and many of them died, in the war between South and North Korea. We sent a sizable contingent under the prodding of the USA, and we called it PEFTOK, the Philippine Expeditionary Forces To Korea under Colonel Nicanor T. Jimenez. We likewise sent a PHILCAG, Philippine Civic Action Group to Vietnam also under the prodding of  Uncle Sam.Wise or unwise, we opted to side with the US in many crucial struggles, in arms or in diplomacy.

And so, the announcement of the coming State Visit of President Barrack Obama this April to the Philippines, should be deemed as a strong reaffirmation of our ties with the US, especially now with the bullying pressures of China against our country. This President is well loved in this country and also by the Filipinos in America. During the Yolanda disaster, President Obama was among the first head of State to respond to our need for help. He ordered massive aid and assistance in our rescue, retrieval and relief operations. He declared right then and there: " When our friends are in trouble, we help. And today, my message to the Philippines is that we stand with you.". In his State of the Union Address, he said: " We will continue to focus on the ASIA-Pacific where we support our allies shape a future of greater security and prosperity, and continue to extend a hand to those devastated by disaster, as we did in the Philippines." Is there any other head of S tate who could beat that ?

And so, while the radicals in our country, the leftist and the left-leaning groups have threatened to meet Obama with a massive demonstration, in his State visit, the great majority of peace-loving and democratic Filipinos look forward to the visit with positive expectations. America is the only ally that we can rely on if and when China accelerates its bullying psy-war and aggressive stance against us. When we were young, we used to burn the American flag and the effigies of  Presidents Reagan and the Bushes. We cried "Down with Imperialism" with reckless abandon, but did not really understand the ramifications of foreign relations. Now, that we discern the meanings and implications of Philippine foreign relations, we are convinced that America is a friend. It has its faults and excesses at times, its superiority complexes and occasional patronizing attitude towards us. But we, Filipinos, too, have our own faults and fixations.

The bottomline however is that America has proven, time and again, that it can be relied upon in times of crises and disasters, man-made or natural. We have had a lot of sufferings together and we do share a lot of history. What matters most is that, among the many nations that came to our shores, it was only America that educated us, gave us the model for freedom and democracy and came to our succor, against Spain, Japan, and many bullies like China. And so, we should welcome Obama, not with placards and burning effigies, but with open minds and hearts. When a friend come a visiting, we should treat him with respect and hospitality.