DIPLOMACY: The Importance of Sounding Earnest

Two separate and distinct political campaigns were under way in Washington last week. One, of course, was the gearing up of machinery that staffers hope will bring Gerald Ford a second term. The other was the President's campaign to convince worried leaders of Pacific nations that despite the fall of South Viet Nam, the U.S. intends to remain a superpower in the region and that its commitments and promises can still be relied upon.

In rapid succession the President met with four Prime Ministers—New Zealand's Wallace Rowling, Australia's Gough Whitlam, Britain's Harold Wilson and Singapore's Lee Kuan Yew—all on their way...