Latest news with #gaffe
South China Morning Post
4 days ago
- Politics
- South China Morning Post
Liberian president not offended by Trump's ‘good English' remark, ‘honoured' by meeting
Liberia's president was 'honoured' to meet US counterpart Donald Trump this week and wasn't offended by Trump's comment about his fluency in English – his mother tongue – Liberia's foreign minister said on Friday. The US president's gaffe has even inspired a catchy tribute song in the West African country, Foreign Minister Sara Beysolow Nyanti said on Friday evening. Trump praised President Joseph Boakai on Wednesday for his English-speaking skills, apparently unaware that English is the official language of Liberia. Responding to remarks Boakai made at a White House mini-summit alongside the presidents of five mineral-rich, French-speaking countries in West Africa, the US leader said: 'Such good English … Where were you educated?' US President Donald Trump hosts a lunch for African leaders of Gabon, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mauritania, and Senegal at the White House on July 9. Photo: Reuters Boakai – who, like most Liberians, speaks English as a first language – laughed uncomfortably and replied he had been educated in his home country.
Japan Times
4 days ago
- Politics
- Japan Times
LDP lawmaker to quit as parliamentary committee chief over Noto quake gaffe
Liberal Democratic Party lawmaker Yosuke Tsuruho plans to resign as chairman of a parliamentary committee to take responsibility for a gaffe about a powerful earthquake that struck the Noto Peninsula in central Japan last year, sources said Saturday. According to a senior official of the ruling LDP, Tsuruho is poised to step down from the post of chairman of the Budget Committee in the House of Councillors, the upper chamber of parliament, following criticisms of the verbal blunder from both the ruling and opposition sides as well as by people affected by the Jan. 1, 2024, temblor. Tsuruho has already submitted a letter of resignation as Budget Committee chairman to Upper House President Masakazu Sekiguchi, the senior party official said. Tsuruho said in the city of Wakayama on Tuesday, during a campaign speech for an LDP candidate in the July 20 Upper House election, that "it was lucky that the earthquake occurred in Noto." The remark came as Tsuruho expressed hopes that the temblor would facilitate dual residency, or a lifestyle in which people have two bases of living — one typically in an urban area and the other in a rural location. Tsuruho withdrew the remark and apologized later Tuesday, saying that he lacked consideration for the disaster victims. He offered an apology again at a news conference Wednesday, and LDP Secretary-General Hiroshi Moriyama gave him a stern warning. But the criticisms did not subside. Tsuruho is believed to have decided on his resignation to reduce the adverse impact on the LDP in the upcoming election. On Saturday, Yoshihiko Noda, leader of the main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, renewed his criticism of Tsuruho, stating, "I have kept saying that (the remark in question) was beyond a slip of the tongue." Tsuruho "has finally made up his mind," Noda told reporters in the city of Hachinohe, Aomori Prefecture. "It is natural for him to quit." Also on Saturday, the Ishikawa prefectural chapters of the CDP and two other opposition parties, the Social Democratic Party and the Democratic Party for the people, sent a letter to Prime Minister and LDP President Shigeru Ishiba, in which they accused Tsuruho's gaffe and sought a severe punishment against him. On Friday, the assemblies of four municipalities on the Noto Peninsula in Ishikawa Prefecture sent a letter of protest to Tsuruho over the controversial remark. The letter demanded that he step down from "a key post."
Japan Times
4 days ago
- Politics
- Japan Times
Noto assemblies urge LDP lawmaker to step down over quake gaffe
The assemblies of four municipalities on the Noto Peninsula have demanded that ruling party lawmaker Yosuke Tsuruho step down from "a key post" over his gaffe about an powerful earthquake that struck the central Japan region last year. The assembly speakers from the cities of Wajima and Suzu as well as the towns of Anamizu and Noto, all located in Ishikawa Prefecture, made the demand in a joint letter of protest sent Friday to Tsuruho, a member of the Liberal Democratic Party and chairman of the Budget Committee of the House of Councillors, the upper chamber of Japan's parliament. On Tuesday, the Upper House lawmaker said in the city of Wakayama, during a campaign speech related to the July 20 Upper House election, that "it was lucky that the earthquake occurred in Noto." The four municipalities were heavily damaged by the Jan. 1, 2024, earthquake. "We are unable to believe from the comments and attitude (in Tsuruho's apology) that he is regretting his remark (in question)," the letter said. "We can't condone this," it said, noting that the controversial remark hurt the feelings of people affected by the earthquake. The local assembly speakers also sent a letter to LDP Secretary-General Hiroshi Moriyama asking the party to take action against Tsuruho. Also on Friday, the Wajima city assembly sent a separate letter saying that it cannot forgive Tsuruho for his gaffe as it "deeply hurt people's hearts."
CNA
5 days ago
- Politics
- CNA
CNA938 Rewind - Anjani Sinha's Senate hearing: A bad day in the office
President Donald Trump's nominee for ambassador to Singapore, Dr Anjani Sinha, is in the news cycle for an apparent gaffe in his Senate hearing. Andrea Heng and Susan Ng assess his performance and determine what exactly Singapore needs in a US ambassador with Sean King, Senior Vice President at Park Strategies.
