One of Trump’s favorite themes on the stump was complaining that “other countries are laughing at us, believe me” and offering himself as the strong man who could restore American honor. It was an absurd proposal based on a lie; President Obama was widely respected in the world, and Trump is a buffoon.
Still, a significant portion of our fellow citizens lapped it up, and now the buffoon is doing what clowns do for an audience, provoking laughter:
White House: US President Trump and Philippines President Duterte discussed human rights and the latter's war on drugs during their closed-door conversation https://t.co/YG8bgnbD6N pic.twitter.com/BrCWXsVHcJ
— CNN (@CNN) November 13, 2017
“The issue of human rights did not arise,” Duterte’s spokesperson says after Duterte’s 40-minute meeting with Trump.
— Jennifer Jacobs (@JenniferJJacobs) November 13, 2017
Of course it didn’t come up. Who’s going to bring it up, Trump?
There was a similar “did they or didn’t they” controversy after Trump got his ass in a crack this weekend over his remarks about Russian meddling in the U.S. election. First, Trump spoke to reporters on AF1, leaving the distinct impression that the two men discussed the issue at length and that he, Trump, took Putin’s word that Russia didn’t meddle in the 2016 elections.
Then, when those remarks were received with derision at home — even on Fox News! — Trump walked them back, claiming (absurdly) that what he actually meant was that PUTIN sincerely believes that Russia had nothing to do with the election meddling. As if it’s remotely plausible that Russian agents would undertake a massive coordinated cyberattack on the U.S. without clearing it with Putin.
At first, a Kremlin spokesman said Putin and Trump didn’t even discuss the election. Later, he said the two DID discuss it.
The common thread here is that foreign leaders have no respect for Trump. They don’t fear contradicting him. And why should they? They’re busy running circles around Trump, distracting him with geegaws while the grownups negotiate deals. And he’ll come home tomorrow convinced the trip was a big success because red carpets.