Trump Goes to Europe and CNN Goes Berserk

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Promoted from the diaries by streiff. Promotion does not imply endorsement.
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If CNN had any clue as to why they have declining ratings, they need look no further than one of their recent opinion pieces by Julian Zelizer, a CNN political analyst.  In a piece posted online, the Princeton professor outlines the horrors inflicted upon America by the international order that he, the author, lies at the feet of President Trump who he compares to Groucho Marx in Horse Feathers.

And just what has Trump done that ruffled the feathers of the good professor from Princeton?  Let us count the ways.

Preserving historic alliances? He’s against it. As promised, Trump has followed through to keep “America First,” but it has been to the country’s disadvantage globally… As a result of his blistering words and policies, most recently with the separation of migrant children from their families at the US southern border, the President has reversed the improved standing that the US had achieved around the world under Obama.  He has taken concrete steps to pull out of a series of international agreements that were at the heart of international efforts to combat climate change, reduce the nuclear threat and strengthen global market exchanges. The Trans-Pacific Partnership, the Paris Climate Accord and the Iran nuclear deal have all been abandoned in the President’s first year and a half in office.

Well, imagine that: a CNN analyst railing against putting “America first.”  If one remembers correctly, that was the mantra of Trump’s campaign and I am sure there are a few red hats floating around out there with that very message.

Pursuing peace and reconciliation? He’s against it. In the Middle East, the President is playing a dangerous game by throwing strong support to Benjamin Netanyahu’s government. Starting with the decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, Trump has shifted US policy in the region away from any attempt to achieve a two-state solution between Israel and the Palestinians. Instead, the US has influenced a regional alliance between Israel and the Persian Gulf States against Iran.

Avoiding the disastrous trade wars of the Great Depression era? He’s against it. On the economic front, the President has further alienated our allies by imposing tariffs on steel and aluminum from the European Union, Canada and Mexico.

In a tweet, Sen. Ben Sasse (R-Nebraska) complained, “Europe, Canada & Mexico aren’t China. You don’t treat allies the same way you treat opponents.”

And with China, President Trump’s trade war has now officially gone into effect. On Friday, the US imposed tariffs on $34 billion worth of Chinese products. Warning that President Trump has “launched the largest trade war in economic history,” the Chinese immediately hit back with its own $34 billion tariff on US goods.

Standing firm against authoritarian regimes? He’s against it. With President Trump in the Oval Office, the United States has also been remarkably quiescent and sometimes outright supportive of authoritative regimes. Human rights don’t seem to matter in the Trump White House. Strong-states have thrived — most notable has been Russia. The President has refused to come down hard on almost anything that the Russians do, even after US intelligence agencies concluded that Russia had interfered in the US election on an unprecedented scale…Added to that list is Kim Jong-un. Thus far the opportunity for a historic diplomatic breakthrough with North Korea has not materialized. Though it is important to give the administration time to work out a deal that would curb North Korea’s nuclear program, Trump’s strategy has only served to elevate Kim on the world stage.

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