(Yomiuri: March 8, 2016 – p. 4)

 Prime Minister Shinzo Abe gave a speech at a gathering in Tokyo on the evening of Mar. 7. He cited the biography of former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, “Never Despair,” which he received right after he stepped down as prime minister in 2007, and stated that, “I was able to make a comeback because I did not despair.” This elicited an enthusiastic response from the audience.

 The book was given to him by James Auer, professor emeritus of Vanderbilt University who is a former special assistant for Japan in the office of the U.S. Secretary of Defense. Auer reportedly visited Abe at home in November 2007, two months after he resigned. Churchill once lost an election and stepped down as prime minister but made a comeback later on.