Sweet Nothings of Foreign Policy: Our Relationship Has 'Never Been Stronger'

    This month, President Obama welcomed New Zealand Prime Minister Key to the White House to discuss, as they say, a range of issues. After the meeting, the president's remarks included the following:

[T]he U.S.-New Zealand relationship has never been stronger. - June 20, 2014

    Prime Minister Key could have been forgiven for retorting, "I'll bet you say that to all the foreign leaders."
    Well, perhaps not all, but one can almost picture White House aides in the back of the room mouthing the words along with the president, or the vice president, or the press secretary, as the case may be. And as a review of the White House website reveals, the case may be rather often:

• [T]here's every indication that the alliance between our two countries [U.S. & South Korea] has never been stronger. - November 20, 2009

• Ties between our two peoples [U.S. & India] have never been stronger. - August 13, 2010 

•  [T]he relationship between our two countries [U.S. and Poland] has never been stronger. - May 28, 2011

• [T]he alliance between the United States and Australia has never been stronger. - November 17, 2011

• [T]he relationship between Italy and the United States has never been stronger. - February 9, 2012

• I'm so pleased to be here today, to celebrate an essential relationship [U.S. & Great Britain] that, as you say, has never been stronger[.] - March 14, 2012

• [T]he relationship between Brazil and the United States has never been stronger. - April 9, 2012

• [T]his relationship [U.S. & Israel] has never been stronger. - September 10, 2012

• [S]ecurity cooperation between the United States and Spain has never been stronger. - January 13, 2014

• [T]he United States-Chile partnership, which has never been stronger. - March 11, 2014

• Our relationship with ASEAN countries in Southeast Asia have never been stronger - April 28, 2014

• [T]he relationship between the United States and France has never been stronger. - June 5, 2014

    A recent report out of Poland quoted a secret recording of the Polish prime minister as saying that Poland-United States ties were "worthless," and signs of strain are evident in our country's relationship with Israel.  So while New Zealand may be the latest  country to be courted by the United States, for others the bloom is clearly off the rose.