Tag: Trump foreign policy

As Trump prepares for his holiday respite in Florida, he is more isolated than ever

Credit: Andrew Harnik, Associated Press

President Trump, more isolated than at any point in his presidency, is scheduled to leave Washington at the end of this week for a holiday respite: two-plus weeks at his Floridaresort, Mar-a-Lago. When he returns in January, he will be girding for what is likely to be the most difficult year yet of his tumultuous presidency.

His approval ratings aren’t much different than they were when he took office. His hardcore supporters haven’t budged. GOP elected officials remain hesitant to break with him. But his party took a beating in the midterm elections, and the legal process continues to move closer to him. Newly empowered House Democrats are preparing to challenge his authority with hearings and investigations.

Republican elected officials have stuck with him, mindful of his support among the GOP rank and file. But Senate Republicans last week joined with Democrats to deliver a pair of rebukes over the administration’s policy toward Saudi Arabia and the president’s unwillingness to condemn Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, whom the CIA concluded sanctioned the murder of journalist and Washington Post contributing columnist Jamal Khashoggi. Was that a one-off or cracks in the wall?

View the complete December 15 article by Dan Balz on The Washington Post website here.

Trump’s gamble on MBS looks worse by the day

Credit: Marcos Brindicci

More than two months after the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul, the Trump administration is desperate to sweep the whole episode under the rug. It won’t be easy.

On Wednesday, Michelle Bachelet, the former Chilean president and current U.N. high commissioner for human rights, became the latest voice to call for an international investigation into his killing. “I do believe it is really needed in terms of ensuring what really happened and who are the [people] responsible for that awful killing,” she said at a news conference in Geneva.

The possibility of an outside inquiry into the affair has also been floated by Turkish authorities, who are still pursuing their own investigation. As my colleague Kareem Fahim reported on Wednesday, a Turkish court issued arrest warrants for two officials close to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman: Maj. Gen. Ahmed al-Assiri and Saud al-Qahtani. The new Turkish arrest warrants, noted Fahim, appeared to be part of an effort to “pressure Saudi Arabia to reveal more details about Khashoggi’s killing, as well as to isolate the crown prince.”

View the complete December 7 article by Ishaan Tharoor on The Washington Post website here.

Pompeo’s North Korea Envoy Can’t Get Face Time With Counterparts

Mike Pompeo Credit: Andrew Harrer, Bloomberg

More than three months after Secretary of State Michael Pompeo picked Stephen Biegun to lead negotiations with North Korea, the former Ford Motor Co. executive has barely met officials from Pyongyang face-to-face.

The standstill is a sign of how negotiations between the U.S. and North Korea have faltered, forcing a lowering of expectations, since President Donald Trump met with Kim Jong Un in Singapore in June. Biegun was appointed in August to help follow up on the opening created by the summit, but North Korean officials have ignored Pompeo’s invitation in September to meet with Biegun “at the earliest opportunity.”

Kim’s regime may feel emboldened to spurn the usual channels of diplomacy because Trump has emphasized his personal rapport with the autocratic leader and his interest in holding a second summit soon, according to current and former administration officials.

View the complete December 6 article by Nick Wadhams on the Bloomberg News website here.

Want to Know More About: Trump China Policy

Max Boot: “Donald Trump Is Not Clear About What He’s Trying To Achieve. Sometimes He Talks About China’s Theft Of Technology, But Other Times He Talks About The Fact That China Has A Trade Surplus With The United States.” BOOT: “I’m concerned Donald Trump is on the verge of blowing up our relations with one of the most important trade partners where you have so many American companies, so many interlinked with China, you have Apple and so many other iconic American companies. Donald Trump is not clear about what he’s trying to achieve. Sometimes he talks about China’s theft of technology, but other times he talks about the fact that China has a trade surplus with the United States.” [Morning Joe, MSNBC, 10/8/18; VIDEO]

Max Boot: “If We Were Really Serious About Standing Up To China, We Would Do So With Our Partners And Allies. Yet The Very First Thing He Did Was Exit The Trans Pacific Partnership.” BOOT: “Donald Trump, I think he’s confused about his goals, and also confused about how he’s going to pursue them because if we were really serious about standing up to China, we would do so with our partners and allies. Yet the very first thing he did was exit the Trans Pacific Partnership. This trade area meant to bolster our allies against China. And he exited that. So that doesn’t make any sense.” [Morning Joe, MSNBC, 10/8/18; VIDEO]

China says it will immediately retaliate when Trump tariffs take effect

President Trump said that his administration’s tariffs on Chinese goods are “doing a very good job,” and threatened more tariffs if China retaliates. (The Washington Post)

BEIJING — Beijing struck back Tuesday against President Trump’s new tariffs on $200 billion in Chinese imports, vowing it would immediately retaliate when they take effect and threatening a protracted dispute that could raise the prices of household goods in both countries.

Chinese President Xi Jinping has refused to budge amid mounting threats from Trump, who vowed to place higher border taxes on practically everything the United States buys from China if Beijing unveils new duties, effective Monday at noon.

“In order to safeguard our legitimate rights and interests and the global free trade order, China will have to take countermeasures,” the country’s Ministry of Commerce said in a statement. “We deeply regret this.”

View the complete September 18 article by Danielle Paquette on the Washington Post website here.

Trump announces tariffs on $200B in Chinese goods

Credit: Visual China Group, Getty Images

President Trump on Monday announced that he is directing the U.S. Trade Representative to impose tariffs on $200 billion of Chinese imports, a move expected to escalate the trade war between the world’s two largest economies.

The tariffs are expected to go into effect on Sept. 24 and will be set at a 10 percent level until the end of the year, after which they will increase to 25 percent.

The tariffs will hit everything from fish such as salmon and halibut, vegetables, nuts, grains, orange juice and metals including titanium and uranium.

View the complete September 17 article by Vicki Needham here.

Trump administration to stop funding for UN Palestinian refugee program

The following article by Justin Wise was posted on the Hill website August 31, 2018:

Credit: AP Photo, Carolyn Kaster

The Department of State on Friday announced that it would stop funding the U.N. Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), a United Nations body that gives out aid to Palestinian refugees.

The announcement comes just a day after the Washington Post reported that the administration was considering funding cuts over its concerns on the number of refugees recognized by the organization and how the organization spends its funds.

“The Administration has carefully reviewed the issue and determined that the United States will not make additional contributions to UNRWA,” Heather Nauert, spokesperson at the department, said in a statement.

View the complete article here.

Want to Know More About: ICE Detained Infant Death

Mika Brzezinski: “A Toddler Who Crossed The Border With Her Guatemalan Mother Seeking Asylum In This Country Died After Receiving What Is Being Reported As Inadequate Medical Care While In ICE Custody.” BRZEZINSKI: “A toddler who crossed the border with her Guatemalan mother seeking asylum in this country died after receiving what is being reported as inadequate medical care while in I.C.E. Custody according to layers for the woman. The mother and her lawyers now plan to file several lawsuits alleging negligence and inadequate medical care when they were held in detention led to the toddler’s death.” [Morning Joe, MSNBC, 8/30/18; VIDEO]

Mika Brzezinski: “The Firm Alleges At The Detention Facility She Became Sick With A Severe Respiratory Infection That Went Under-treated For Nearly A Month.” BRZEZINSKI: “A statement from the law firm representing the mother says Marie had no health problems. At the detention facility she became sick severe respiratory infection that went under-treated for nearly a month. The firm also states that the girl’s mother continually sought attention from medical staff, was prescribed medications that did not improve the child’s condition and her daughter continued to get worse.” [Morning Joe, MSNBC, 8/30/18; VIDEO]

1 month after court-mandated deadline, 528 immigrant families are still separated

The following article by Amanda Michelle Gomez was posted on the ThinkProgress.org website August 24, 2018:

And 23 kids under age 5 are apart from their parents.

The administration has reunited the majority of families they’ve separated, but still over 500 parents and their children remain apart, including 23 infants or toddlers, according the most recent government figures.

Credit: Diana Ofosu
CREDIT: DIANA OFOSU

Continue reading “1 month after court-mandated deadline, 528 immigrant families are still separated”

White House Admits China Has Yet to Budge on ‘Unfair Trade’

The following article by John T. Bennett was posted on the Roll Call website August 23, 2018:

Trump gives himself an ‘A-plus,’ but leaves Beijing’s trade tactics off achievement list

China and U.S. flags were displayed in front of the portrait of China’s late Communist leader Mao Zedong during President Trump’s 2017 visit there. Credit: Lintao Zhang, Getty Images file photo

The White House has tried threats and bluster, then imposed controversial tariffs. Congress even did something rare, passing a bipartisan bill. But despite President Donald Trump’s and lawmakers’ efforts, China has yet to so much as blink on what Republicans and Democrats agree are its unjust trade practices, administration officials said Thursday.

The two U.S. political parties and Trump rarely find themselves in near-unanimous agreement. But when it comes to what they all see as China’s habit of stealing American technology and intellectual properties, playing games with its market and currency, and otherwise tipping the global trade scene to benefit its companies and economy, Washington is mostly unified.

The two parties and the president agree that legislation is needed to update the country’s immigration laws, but they have been unable to agree on the specifics of an overhaul bill. The same is true of other issues, with agreement that changes are needed but wide chasms on the specific remedies.