The king,while being viewed as above politics, has played a stabilizing role over the years in Thailand's often fractious political climate.
VOA: standard.2009.09.21
Some of his critics suggested that the plot had in fact been fabricated to mask power struggles between the ruling elite's fractious clans: the president's father and predecessor as strongman, Haidar Aliev, constantly accused potential rivals of such plots during his three decades in power.
The region's fractious geography has raised concerns in the U.S. and elsewhere about the stability of some of the world's more important shipping routes, as the Obama administration continues its diplomatic pivot back to Asia.
Mrs Gregoire has even waded into Seattle politics, pressuring the city's fractious city council and Greg Nickels Seattle's big, blunt-talking Democratic mayor, who towers over the small, slim governor to agree on a plan to replace the 53-year-old elevated motorway along the Seattle waterfront, which looks horrible and is vulnerable to earthquakes.