Thirdly, around 62 police trainers, largely to complement and supplement the continuing mid term bilateral police training programmes.

Fifth, Obama announced a new series of stimulus proposals just weeks before the mid term elections.

Most political prognosticators are expecting large losses for Democrats in the November 2010 mid term elections over this issue.

The Republicans defeat in this month s mid term Congressional elections is a sign that Americans want to sanction their leaders for their strategic and ethical shortcomings, and they did so with gusto.

The defeat of the Democrats in the mid term elections in 1994, followed by the Monica Lewinsky affair, hampered the effectiveness of one of America s most energetic and gifted Presidents.

The opposition Democratic Party seems poised to take up growing wage inequality as a central issue in this year s mid term US congressional elections and in the 2008 presidential election.

Of course, his supporters argue that he had to adapt to two ongoing wars and the worst recession since the 1930 s. Moreover, after the 2010 mid term elections, a hostile Republican controlled House of Representatives blocked his initiatives.

Negotiations for a real budget that all sides can live with are beginning. And assessments of how the shutdown will affect the Republican Party s fortunes in the 2014 midterm elections are rife.

If America s Democrats lose in the mid term elections this November, there is a risk of persistent fiscal deficits as Republicans veto tax increases while Democrats veto spending cuts.

But, taken together, these cancellations make clear that even a US administration that wants to engage more with Asia may still find itself preoccupied with domestic priorities, especially this year, as mid term elections approach.