I guess I should be getting used to this by now, but here you have Susan Rice being interrupted with applause as she announces an American policy shift toward a UN body. Rice is speaking at a meeting of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, which is an entity that supports the interests of historically marginalized indigenous populations.
Back in 2007, the General Assembly overwhelming approved the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, which was supported by the Permanent Forum. The vote passed 143 to 4. The four dissenters? Canada, New Zeland, Australia and the United States. The Bush administration’s objections were numerous, but now it seems that the United States will revisit its position–an announcement that earned Rice the applause.
Also, notice how Rice invokes the recently-passed health care bill to bolster U.S. position on indigenous rights. It’s an interesting example of how domestic issues can have real knock-on effects for U.S. diplomacy