Category Archives: Foreign
Wall Fall
Click Nancy to enlarge image.
Pelosi’s a pro at politics. Trump, not so much. He ended the government shutdown for 3 weeks and got nothing in return but a promise to negotiate a wall Democrats don’t want and have no incentive to build. President Trump offered to take the blame for the shutdown and Nancy was glad to give it to him. Hard. His base is bummed.
“[Speaker Nancy] Pelosi ordered everything off the menu and left Trump hanging with the bill,” one Trump ally texted.
Agent Trump
Click image to enlarge
President Trump took offense when Fox News’ Jeanine Pirro asked if he’s a Russian agent.
She asked because the NYT ran a story Friday titled “F.B.I. Opened Inquiry Into Whether Trump Was Secretly Working on Behalf of Russia.”
And now Democrats want the translator’s notes from private meetings between Agent Trump and President Putin.
1980s Want Foreign Policy Back
Click Mitt to enlarge image.
The day before he reported for duty as a freshman U.S. Senator, Mitt Romney turned in his grades on the Chief Executive. In a Washington Post column Romney gave President Trump passing marks for some of his policies. But he flunked him for presidential character.
But, on balance, his conduct over the past two years, particularly his actions last month, is evidence that the president has not risen to the mantle of the office.
He also marked Trump down for failure to co-operate with allies. He noted:
The alternative to U.S. world leadership offered by China and Russia is autocratic, corrupt and brutal.
1980s Want Foreign Policy Back
Romney’s been consistent about Russia as our number one threat. And President Obama mocked him for it in their 2012 debate.
“And, the 1980s are now calling to ask for their foreign policy back, because, the Cold War’s been over for 20 years.”
Trump responded that if Romney had stood up to Obama’s taunts he might be president today.
Syria Pullout
ISIS J.V. Team
President Trump got off the phone with Turkish President Erdogan and announced he’s pulling the troops out of Syria. And Secretary of Defense James Mattis resigned.
Democrats and Republicans found common ground slamming the Syria pullout decision. They say the pullout sells out the Kurds and creates a vacuum that ISIS will fill. Same as when Obama pulled out of Iraq. (At least the Republicans say that.)
Pro Syria Pullout
But Reason’s Nick Gillespie and Andrew McCarthy of NR think Trump did the right thing. If we stay in Syria we’d have to choose sides in a war between Turkey and the Kurds. Erdogan’s nasty but Turkey is a NATO ally. Besides, we’re there illegally. Congress never approved it and that makes it unconstitutional.
White House Safe House
Accidental President
I got the idea of a the White House as a safe house from a Holman Jenkins column in the WSJ. He doesn’t think Trump expected to win.
Winning was his colossal if propitious miscalculation. Nobody would care about Stormy Daniels if he weren’t president. His decades-long pursuit of a Trump Tower in Moscow would be a non-story…
Unfortunately, it will also occur to Mr. Trump now that his best move is to cling to the White House at all costs. That’s because under Justice Department guidelines he can expect not to be indicted as long as he remains in office.
