Nancy Pelosi in Taiwan

 Now that Nancy Pelosi has landed in Taiwan, the Taiwanese are probably thinking to themselves, "Is this all worth it?" By the time I finish writing this piece, everything I say may become irrelevant if the mainland Chinese really decide her presence in Taiwan is a threat to their national security and decide to start a war. Wouldn't it be an irony of history if Nancy Pelosi, of all people, actually launched World War III? 

"So this is Nancy Pelosi."

Not that I think it will happen. It's all bluster in my view, but still, it's another case of the Biden administration shooting itself in the foot. It's not so much that Pelosi is visiting Taiwan. In my opinion, the biggest mistake was announcing it so far in advance and allowing all this tension and drama to build up to where one side will lose face. A "last-minute decision" to land in Taiwan would have been much preferable.

Having said that, once this visit had become such a big deal, with the Chinese making all kinds of threatening statements, whether for effect or not, Pelosi had to go to Taiwan. For her to have backed out would have been a tremendous humiliation for the US, somewhat similar to our recent humiliation in Afghanistan. That's obviously an exaggeration, but you get the point. 

Biden clearly could have given Pelosi better direction on this matter, but no doubt, he will be crowing about how he stood up to China. Perhaps, but diplomatically speaking, it's another example of the incompetence of this administration. Hopefully, Pelosi will have a nice dinner, a good night's sleep, and a safe trip home while the Chinese scramble their jets. Eventually, the Chinese will come to the conclusion that scrambling their jets for Nancy Pelosi is an absurdity.