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It may be daytime in America but it's night in Japan, and, as such, President Obama will be overnight at Hotel Okura in Tokyo for the remainer of the day.

On Saturday morning in Japan – Friday evening in America – the president will deliver a speech on the future of U.S. leadership in the Asia Pacific region at Suntory Hall in Tokyo. Later, Mr. Obama will visit with United States Embassy employees and their families.

Later the president will have lunch with Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko. After that, Mr. Obama departs Tokyo en route Singapore.

Here's the full schedule from the White House (all times Eastern):

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Politics Today is CBSNews.com's inside look at the key stories driving the day in politics, written by CBS News Political Director Steve Chaggaris:

** The president meets with world leaders...

** Afghanistan decisions to come next month...

** The story on WH counsel Greg Craig's resignation...

PRESIDENT OBAMA: "President Barack Obama arrived in Japan today to start an eight-day swing through Asia, meeting with major U.S. creditors and trading partners to assure them he intends to maintain American influence in the region," write Bloomberg News' Edwin Chen and Julianna Goldman.

"After a meeting and news conference with Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama ... in Tokyo, Obama will deliver a speech tomorrow intended to articulate his vision for a Pacific alliance that focuses on geopolitical and economic issues including trade, climate change and halting the spread of nuclear weapons."

During today's news conference, Mr. Obama said the U.S. and Japan must "find ways to renew and refresh the alliance for the 21st century," reports the Associated Press.

Hatoyama noted that Japan will no longer refuel ships that supply Afghanistan, but he promised aid for Afghan civilian needs such as schools, agriculture and police. He also vowed to cooperate with the United States on combatting climate change and nuclear proliferation.

On the nuclear issue, Mr. Obama and Prime Minister Hatoyama" also "agreed to host a conference in January on nuclear security," Reuters reports.

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As President Obama was leaving the White House for his trip to Japan, he announced he would host a Jobs Summit next month. With unemployment over 10 percent, he said the summit is needed: "Millions of Americans -- our friends, our neighbors, our family members -- are desperately searching for jobs," said the president.

Jobs and the economy are going to be the key issue on his trip to Asia. While other diplomatic issues are on the agenda, specifically nuclear weapons issues with Iran and North Korea as well as global climate change, no issue is as pressing as the economy.

"Asian economies, in particular China, are emerging from the economic crisis stronger and earlier than almost anyone else. So these countries are assuming much greater roles in the global system," said Evan Feigenbaum of the Council on Foreign Relations. "I think the trip to Asia is in part a recognition of that."

Specifically, President Obama will wrestle with the issue of free trade, trying to make sure emerging Asian markets are open to U.S. made goods. He will be attending a major economic summit while here, but the president does not have any new free trade agreements to announce with Asian markets.

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Even before President Obama sets foot on Air Force One tomorrow to begin a 9-day trip to Asia, he has traveled to more countries in his first year in office than any of his predecessors.

Since taking office, he has made 7 foreign trips and visited 16 countries, 3 of them twice.

The Asia trip – which takes him to Japan, Singapore, China and South Korea – will bring his total to 8 foreign trips and 20 countries.

The only other president to come close to Mr. Obama's first-year-in-office globe-trotting numbers is President George H. W. Bush, who took 7 foreign trips to 14 countries.

His son traveled abroad five times to 11 countries during his first year. President Clinton only did 2 foreign trips to 3 nations in 1993.

Foreign travel by American presidents is a relatively new practice. No sitting U.S. president left the country until Theodore Roosevelt in 1906. He made a single foreign outing: a 3-day visit to Panama in November of that year to inspect construction of the Panama Canal.

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Politics Today is CBSNews.com's inside look at the key stories driving the day in politics, written by CBS News Political Director Steve Chaggaris:

** Obama sounds uncomfortable with the health care bill's abortion amendment...

** The president settles on a new Afghanistan strategy...

** Restoring American influence in Asia...

FORT HOOD: President Obama and the first lady travel to Fort Hood in Killeen, Texas today to meet with the families of those killed during last week's shootings as well as with wounded soldiers.

Mr. Obama will then address the Fort Hood community during a memorial service. Later, Mr. and Mrs. Obama will meet with wounded soldiers at Darnall Army Medical Center before flying back to Washington.

CBS News coverage of the Fort Hood tragedy

Associated Press' Ben Feller, "Obama pressed into role as national healer"

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President Obama will make his first trip to Asia as president in November, the White House formally announced Wednesday. He will visit Japan, Singapore, China and South Korea.

The president will begin his trip in Tokyo, Japan, on November 12 and will meet for the second time with the Japanese prime minister, White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said.

"The president's visit will provide an opportunity to deepen coordination with this key ally on a range of economic, security and other issues," he said.

From there, Mr. Obama will travel to Singapore for the annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meeting, where he will meet with leaders from the APEC member economies and business leaders from the Asian-Pacific region. The president will also hold bilateral meetings with leaders from Singapore and other partners.

Mr. Obama will also hold the first-ever meeting between a U.S. president and leaders of the 10 Southeast Asian nations that make up the ASEAN, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.

He will then visit China and hold his third bilateral meeting with President Hu Jintao to work on a range of issues, including security, nonproliferation, energy and climate change.

The last leg of the trip will be a stop in Seoul, South Korea, where Mr. Obama will hold his third bilateral meeting with President Lee and consult on North Korea and other issues.

While the president has previously discussed visiting Indonesia, where he spent part of his childhood, Gibbs said Wednesday that Mr. Obama will most likely visit there some time next year.