The EU does not put dime one in Benedict Donald’s pocket and Russia does: That is all he understands and all he needs to know.
Yes, we pay an inordinate amount for Europes defense. But a peaceful Europe is very much in the US’s interest. Also, it moves the front lines to the. middle of Europe as opposed the East cost.
Trump doesn’t seem to be clever enough to figure this out.
One would think that European’s find peace in their own lands a worthy investment.
Why, if I didn’t know better, I would think that Trump is in cahoots with Putin and Russia against our allies.
I’d say these European leaders know pretty much what our own intelligence community knows about why Donald says and does these things—the mix of complicity, stupidity, and mental illness. And here’s the EU president laying it out pretty clearly, saying the American president doesn’t know who’s his friend and who’s his enemy. It’s amazing we get up and go through our days like it’s normal.
European Council President Donald Tusk directed a remark at Trump, saying “it is always worth knowing who is your strategic friend and who is your strategic problem.”
That is waaaaaaaaaaaaay too deep for t rumpp to comprehend.
Unfortunately unless it’s sent in a large-print picture version of Strategic Thinking for Dummies the message won’t get across.
And put in the special red folder that says "If you’re going to read any of your briefing materials, at least read this. P.S. There really is a red folder used in exactly this way. Wheeeee!!!
from the archives:
MESSINA, SICILY, October 1347 {AP} Another merchant triumph as a ship made port today. Though most of the sailors were dead, this meant that the profits would be higher for the Right Honorable Company of Traders that owned the ship. A doctor brought in from the university proclaimed that the bubos on the sailor’s torsos oozing blood and pus were “An imbalance of bodily humours” and nothing to worry about. The ship was fumigated with burning rue, and many rats were seen leaving it for the warves, all excellent signs of the efficacy of this remedy.
lambasting the U.S. leader’s constant criticism of European allies and urging him to remember who his friends are when he meets Russian President Vladimir Putin next week.
Donnie doesn’t need to remember who his friends are. He only needs to remember who his master is. vlad can then tell donnie who his friends and enemies are.
And donnie will remember who his master is, if not because vlad has kompromat, then because vlad is smarter than donnie and has him wrapped around his finger.
Actually, they should write “DON’T READ OR SAY THIS” to get him to read it.
Even better, and more likely geared to Dear Leader’s IQ:
“Dear America, appreciate your allies, after all you don’t have all that many,” he said.
Just to nitpick for a second, because this is actually a semi-important point, 2% of GDP is a target requested by the US. It is not the norm, and only a few NATO countries reach it.
Kasekamp is using a rhetorical trick to make countries not reaching the 2% target look irresponsible - as opposed to having locally differing opinions on the proper allocation of funds to the military,
What else is there to do between now and November 6, 2018?
To be fair - the tRump has no friends, strategic or otherwise, and the concept of strategy is beyond his ken.
Must have bullet points. I have fallen deeper into the rabbit hole today.
On Monday the U.S. president tweeted that “NATO countries must pay MORE, the United States must pay LESS. Very Unfair!”
When the present occupant of the office bloviates about the need for the other NATO members to “pay more”, it’s generally in terms of the 2% GDP target for each member’s defense spending, not the actual (and relatively tiny) budget of NATO, the organization itself.
So, if one were to assume that the occupant knows what the Hell he’s talking about, the “pay less” part would logically mean cutting the U.S. defense budget.
That’s in facts-and-logic land – just one of many foreign countries to which he has not yet appointed an ambassador.
If the Universe were “fair” Slobo-Don would get what he truly deserves and would be writhing in acute agony in some jail as we speak. He should appreciate the fact that the Universe does not operate on principles of “fairness”.
He looks at his biggest strategic problem every day in the mirror.