Behind the futuristic wings of the USA Pavilion facade is a swirling gyre of unsavory politics which its Commissioner General, Jose Villarreal, is having difficulty straightening out. Though these politics haven't prevented the Pavilion from being built, their existence begs two important questions: Is this really the best pavilion the USA could have created? And what will the fallout be?
With an Expo themed "Better City, Better Life," nations around the world are competing to show what great places their cities are for raising families, enjoying life and doing business. Finally, the USA Pavilion, long beset by funding problems, diplomatic incidents, transparency issues and allegations of corruption during the "competitive" request for proposal (RFP) phase, seems to be coming together.
With the Pavilion apparently on schedule for completion by Shanghai Expo 2010's May 1 opening day, the USA Pavilion's events calendar already features a host of fun, with events including a visit by the Philadelphia Orchestra; performances by Grammy award winner Herbie Hancock, Dee Dee Bridgewater and the Thelonious Monk Institute during the "Jazz, an American Tradition" event; an appearance by Ozomatli, the 7-10 piece Latin/Hip Hop/Rock ensemble on May 21st (previously sighted rocking Shanghai's Yue Festival); and for those interested in Better City, Better Life's practical dimensions, a forum called "Science and Technology Innovation and Urban Future, Wuxi."
Despite the good news, the USA team just can't seem to shake all the bad press. The Atlantic contributor and Shanghai Scrap blogger Adam Minter (a big fan of the Expo, by the way), uncovered the most dubious aspect of the USA Pavilion's bizarre, opaque bidding process and, more recently, the questionable, though vague, financial connections between a Department of Commerce Deputy Assistant Secretary for Asia and his wife, a co-founder of Shanghai 2010, Inc, winner of the competitive-in-name-only USA Pavilion RFP process.
Caught in the middle is Jose Villarreal, the USA Pavilion's Commissioner General, a man Minter calls "smart, engaging, and forthcoming." Villarreal has the unenviable job of trying to clean up the media mess caused by Shanghai 2010, Inc's earlier shenanigans, and somehow boost interest in the Pavilion.
Though he offered a fairly rousing defense in Foreign Policy, Villarreal is yet to answer any of Adam Minter's questions. And despite the fact that he's the man responsible for finally bringing some transparency to the Pavilion and getting key documents released, with so much political murk still lurking in the background, it seems as if he has his work cut out for him.
Nevertheless, the USA Pavilion remains one of the most anticipated at the Expo, and Villarreal expects the USA "will have a world-class presence at the largest ever World's Fair." The real question, however, is whether the USA Pavilion will successfully showcase US dynamism and potential, or serve only to tarnish America's image abroad.
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