Other than the fruits of the commercial deals, it is unclear what “deliverables” Mr Obama can show back home for his India trip. But the intangibles will matter. Far from apologising, the president is on a mission to deepen ties with a democracy that shares many of America’s values and fears. Diplomacy is not a game Mr Obama has mastered. Far from it. But his aims chime with America’s national interest. Self-declared patriots such as Mr Pence and Ms Bachmann should honour that adage about the water’s edge.
