The new president of France, Emmanuel Macron, is already proving to be a leader of strength, courage and integrity. And Macron does not mince his words. Days ago, Macron stood right next to Vladimir Putin during an international press conference and censured Putin, the leader of the Russian Federation for interference during the French presidential campaigns. Macron also pressed Putin on issues of Syria and gay rights.
The Independent writes that Macron compared Trump to “autocratic leaders” while commenting on pictures of the tense handshake between the two during the NATO summit in Brussels last week.
Mr. Macron said the tense handshake, which lasted several seconds with both men’s knuckles looking white before Mr. Trump was forced to pull away first, was “not innocent” and was designed to show he was not a pushover.
Here is the handshake:
Macron told a predominate French newspaper Le Journal du Dimanche:
“Donald Trump, the Turkish president or the Russian president see relationships in terms of a balance of power.”
Macron adds,
“That doesn’t bother me. I don’t believe in diplomacy by public abuse, but in my bilateral dialogues, I won’t let anything pass.”
This is why so many Americans are dealing with “president envy,” especially when it comes to France’s Emmanuel Macron, Germany’s Angela Merkel and Canada’s Justin Trudeau who are becoming known as the new leaders of the free world.
The Independent also adds there have been numerous reports of Trump behaving like a “drunk tourist” on his first trip overseas. A better description might be a “perilous, war-mongering, embarrassing, lying, scamming, hate-filled drunk tourist.” But who can keep track? There’s is plethora of odious characteristics to contend with when it comes to Donald Trump—here in the U.S. as well as abroad.
One of the most embarrassing scenes (and there were many) for Americans to witness while Trump was overseas, was watching the clip of our Fake President blatantly pushing aside the Prime Minister of Montenegro, Dusko Markovic so his pompous and narcissistic ass could appear front and center for the group photo on the first day of NATO. It’s almost the epitome of who this man really is. The scene is so cringe-worthy it hurts the eyes and head, so someone decided to make it a little more palpable with a slo-mo humorous musical. (And yes, it still hurts to watch, but you can, at least, hum along.)
In the clip we see some of the leaders smiling that nervous smile we’ve all been known to make in awkward situations, but one can imagine that deep down most i near him were thinking, at minimum, “This fucking guy...”
And then there was Trump lecturing and denouncing fellow NATO leaders to their faces for not spending enough on defense—like he was still the host “boss-man” on his reality show The Apprentice, and the NATO leaders of the world were his contestants.
But perhaps one of most disturbing, dangerous and damaging actions Trump took while overseas was his refusal to commit to Article 5 of the NATO treaty—stating if a NATO country is attacked, others will come to its aid—the way NATO countries stepped in to support the United States after the September 11 attacks in 2001. Article 5 is sort of an “all for one, one for all” agreement. Like the bombastic self-serving man that he is, Trump embarrassed our country by opting out. Days later, German Chancellor Angela Merkel publicly stated Europe could no longer rely on the United States to help them. What Trump might not realize or care about, but we do, is that thanks to him, the United States may no longer be able to rely upon our long-standing allies to come to our aid, should we ever be in need of help again. Of course, the now—international buffoon probably thinks we would never need the help of other countries or go so low to ask, because he thinks he’s “making America great again” and he’s the Boy-King of the world.
It’s not hard to see why President Macron and others would compare Trump to power-hungry authoritarians like Russia’s Vladimir Putin and Turkey’s Erdoğan. Most Americans can compare him in the same vein, simply by his actions.
We’ve seen Donald Trump nonchalantly authorize the bombing of other countries while he’s dining—without consulting Congress. We’ve seen him push a “healthcare” bill and tax plan that benefit only the wealthiest and demoralize and devastate those most in need. We’ve seen him appoint alleged racist and corrupt members to his cabinet and various government departments, including our Department of Justice and EPA, and attempt to wipe out a history of environmental protections to suit the needs of corporate pals in oil and other environment/climate-destoring industries. Trump’s xenophobic and racist scandals, “Muslim Ban” and his hateful nationalism including his promise a “Mexican Border Wall” (at presumable Mexico’s expense) are samples of his method of operation which has put millions of Americans in fear, sometimes for their lives, because of their religion, national origin and/or the color of their skin. And we’ve seen him attack and try to sabotage the media that continues to expose his corruption and refuses to condone his tyranny as he tries to create a fake and alternate reality for the public, marking the beginning of the end of a free society. These are all signs of authoritarian governing—with many labeling the Trump reign “neo-Nazism” and “fascism” along with VP Mike Pence and Republican leaders Paul Ryan and Mitch McConnell who support Trump’s autocracy.
The good news? We are seeing the Resistance against Trump (and his entourage) grow stronger in numbers and in resolve every day. The objective is to stop this country’s most powerful and malicious human detriment of our time—possibly in the nation’s history.
So, thank you, President Macron, for being the first world leader to put Donald Trump into the same category as dictators, despots and oppressors where he belongs, and where he will ultimately fail—and fall.
Special thanks to Daily Kos community member “Just Bob” for reminding us that Article 5 of the NATO treaty called NATO countries to come to our aid after the United States was attacked on 9-11. They were there for us, yet Trump won’t commit to being there for them. The end of this dark era in American history can’t come too soon.