How Abe Lost His Groove

On his band's trip to Tokyo last week, U2 frontman and global do-gooder Bono visited Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to discuss Japan's work on development aid. After Abe donned a pair of the rock star's shades, Bono pronounced the new Prime Minister "very cool."

If only the Japanese public agreed. A survey by the Mainichi Shimbun last week found that Abe's popularity had dropped to 53%, down 14 points from when he took power at the end of September. Some deflation was to be expected after his quick start, but the steep dip is feeding the perception...

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