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Remember how Trump made US a laughing stock, literally? | Column
Donald Trump was perceived as a boob and a fool the world over.
In this image taken from NATO TV, Montenegro Prime Minister Dusko Markovic, second right, appears to be pushed by then-President Donald Trump as they
were given a tour of NATO's new headquarters after taking part in a group photo, during a NATO summit of heads of state and government in Brussels in 2019.
In this image taken from NATO TV, Montenegro Prime Minister Dusko Markovic, second right, appears to be pushed by then-President Donald Trump as they
were given a tour of NATO's new headquarters after taking part in a group photo, during a NATO summit of heads of state and government in Brussels in 2019.
Published July 14, 2023
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One of the most absurd claims the leading candidate for the GOP nomination makes about himself and his term in office is that he restored global
respect to the United States. He said it frequently when he was in office,
and stressed to Bret Baier three weeks ago that heÆs running again ôbecause
I want to make America great again. We had great ù we were respected all
over the world. Very simple.ö
Did you spit out your coffee?
This is one of those claims that, alas, enjoys some currency even among noncultists. Ask your average Republican whether Trump restored AmericaÆs
image around the world and they are quite likely to say yes.
Mona Charen
Mona Charen [ Handout photo ]
This isnÆt a case of both sides having a fair point. This is bonkers. Trump
was perceived as a boob and a fool the world over. (And by the way, it
caused many of our friends to doubt AmericansÆ sanity, too.) He was a
global laughingstock. Literally.
Remember when he addressed the United Nations General Assembly and launched into his typical bombastic B.S. about his administration accomplishing more than almost any in history? The assembled delegates, who are very
accustomed to political exaggeration and even inanity, burst out laughing.
Then, there was the time when European leaders were caught on a hot mic
mocking him at a NATO summit in London. Princess Anne, Emmanuel Macron,
Mark Rutte, Jens Stoltenberg and Boris Johnson smiled knowingly as Justin Trudeau regaled them with accounts of TrumpÆs antics. Trump was so
personally wounded that he cut short his participation in the summit.
International summits were often stages for TrumpÆs cringe-inducing conduct
ù behavior that many Americans as well as nearly all non-Americans found stunningly gross. Here, he shoved the prime minister of Montenegro aside in order to pose at the center of the group.
Worse than the shove was his credulity. If a dictator or a thug whispered something in his ear, he believed it. The examples are legion, but since
the Montenegro leader was manhandled, letÆs recall what Trump said about
that recent entrant to the alliance. Just days after meeting with Vladimir Putin, Trump told Tucker Carlson that Montenegrins are ôvery aggressive
people ... They may get aggressive and, congratulations, youÆre in World
War III.ö
LetÆs be real, before that meeting with Putin, what are the chances that
Trump had ever heard of Montenegro, far less had views about their national character? Naturally, it was in PutinÆs interest for Trump to think that enlarging NATO threatened World War III. And Trump believed it, not
necessarily out of stupidity (though we canÆt rule that out) but because
his sick attraction to naked power made him unusually susceptible to
PutinÆs propaganda.
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Trump routinely insulted allies like German Chancellor Angela Merkel and British Prime Minister Theresa May. At one summit, he reportedly reached
into his pocket for some candy, threw them across the table to Merkel and smirked, ôDonÆt say I never gave you anything.ö Americans elected a mental 7-year-old.
Not just a child, but a ridiculous child. He attempted to buy Greenland
from the Danes, and when he was rebuffed, he canceled a planned diplomatic visit to Copenhagen.
His initial fiery bluster against North Korea was unnerving and his later obsequious fawning was vile. Neither accomplished anything except to remind
the world what a moron America had elevated.
Trump wasnÆt just a joke, though. His obvious instability and tenuous hold
on reality were unnerving to the world. His ôAmerica Firstö slogan
alienated allies. And his softness toward dictators and strongmen
emboldened adversaries.
International opinion polls leave no doubt about how AmericaÆs reputation
fared under Trump. In September 2020, Pew found:
ôAmericaÆs reputation has declined further over the past year among many
key allies and partners. In several countries, the share of the public with
a favorable view of the U.S. is as low as it has been at any point since
the (Pew Research) Center began polling on this topic nearly two decades
ago.ö
Some of this was in response to the U.S. handling of COVID-19. Among 13 European nations, only an average of 31% held a positive view of the United States, while only 16% expressed confidence in Trump. In fact, Trump was
less trusted than the leaders of Germany, France, the U.K., China or
Russia.
President Joe Biden has gone some way toward restoring AmericaÆs global
image. Pew reports that a new survey of public opinion in 23 countries
finds an average of 59% holding favorable views of the United States and
54% having confidence in Biden.
Though views of the United States have improved during the Biden years,
doubts must persist. Hell, they persist among Americans. Though other presidents have been unpopular (George W. Bush in particular), our foreign friends and foes never before had to wonder about AmericaÆs political stability. Confidence about that will take years to rebuild, or just
another election to wreck utterly.
Mona Charen is policy editor of The Bulwark and host of the ôBeg to Differö podcast. Her new book, ôHard Right: The GOPÆs Drift Toward Extremism,ö is available now.
https://www.tampabay.com/opinion/2023/07/14/remember-how-trump-made-us- laughing-stock-literally-column/
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