Donald Trump’s foreign policy speech today was arguably the worst major speech I’ve ever heard a major presidential candidate deliver.
And I’ve heard a lot of them through the decades.
Trump’s new slogan “America First” is a throwback to the group who wanted to prevent our nation from going to war to defeat the Nazi’s in World War II. Prior to the bombing of Pearl Harbor, members of this group contended the Jewish people were “better off” without American intervention.
We know how that turned out.
Trump has been consistent in attacking former president George W. Bush for taking the nation to war in Iraq. He has made it clear he wouldn’t have made that call.
But unlike Saddam Hussein, Adolf Hitler was rounding up and murdering an entire race of people. Americans knew it, but many argued America First and resisted intervention.
Is that the message from Trump today? Unless we have another Pearl Harbor, we’re not getting involved?
And is that the position of the Republican Party?
Putting slogans aside, let’s look at his specifics. As in, Trump offered no specifics in his teleprompter prepared speech. Just more generalities that you would expect from a candidate for class president.
And talk about contradictions.
Trump said on one hand we will have the “best relationship ever” with our allies, while in the very next sentence threatened to cut off all financial ties.
He said our nation should be more “unpredictable” but then promised a “disciplined and consistent” foreign policy.
He said he’ll work only with nations who “have been our friends” and then talked about how he’ll work with Russia.
Trump then offered his hand to the Middle East saying we must “work closely with our Muslim allies” and then said he will prevent any Muslim from entering the United States.
All of this seriously makes your head spin.
There are other examples, like when he says, “I’ll get tough on China believe me!” That’s not a policy proposal, it’s just rhetoric.
Most of the people I’ve met who back Trump really hate politics and think it’s fun the loud, reality TV billionaire wants to be president.
I get it. I hate math. I’d love to run the math club. I don’t know the first thing about math and so I could promise to go in there and just smash it to pieces. And I would.
But hating politics and wanting to be the top politician in the world has consequences.
You could say the entire world is at stake.