benefit direction at joe biden's expense and more evidence from the g 20 trip he's more happy talking to tyrants than heads of state like himself. before going further, hard headed diplomacy deals with less than savory characters and out right thugs and if that's what the president was doing, it would be controversial but for good purpose or a definable purpose. instead, his critics and they span the spectrum, worry this president turned a diplomatic necessity for advancing the interest of the united states and democracies into something else such as failing to rebut vladimir putin's claim that western style liberalism is obsolete. he didn't do what john f. kennedy did when he confronted nikita and didn't defend what nato was to form instead he confused western style lib list -- liberalism with opposition in