Trump says it’s the right thing to do
The confidence Trump has in his own judgement and rightness is astounding. He has no qualms about reversing decades of policy just because he glorious he thinks it’s an awesome idea.
President Trump on Wednesday formally recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, reversing nearly seven decades of American foreign policy and setting in motion a plan to move the United States Embassy from Tel Aviv to the fiercely contested Holy City.
“Today we finally acknowledge the obvious: that Jerusalem is Israel’s capital,” Mr. Trump said from the Diplomatic Reception Room of the White House. “This is nothing more or less than a recognition of reality. It is also the right thing to do. It’s something that has to be done.”
How would he know? What does he ever know about what “the right thing to do” is? He has a long history of doing the very very wrong thing, so why should we have any confidence that he can even see the right thing when he encounters it, let alone come up with it all by himself?
Oh but he has brilliant advisers, like his brave and stunning slumlord son-in-law, and…no, slumlord is it.
Mr. Trump emphasized the domestic political dimension of the decision. He noted that he had promised to move the embassy during the 2016 presidential campaign, and added, “While previous presidents have made this a major campaign promise, they failed to deliver. Today, I am delivering.”
Also? Electoral college. They said it couldn’t be done. Inaugural crowd. Her emails. Pocahontas. Everybody says. Good people on both sides. Covfefe.
“There will of course, be disagreement and dissent regarding this announcement,” the president said. He appealed for “calm, for moderation, and for the voices of tolerance to prevail over the purveyors of hate.”
Yes, let’s make that happen, starting with getting the Purveyor of Hate in Chief out of office.
Mr. Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem isolates the United States on one of the world’s most sensitive diplomatic issues. It has drawn a storm of criticism from Arab and European leaders, which swelled on Tuesday night after the White House confirmed Mr. Trump’s plans.
Pope Francis and the Chinese foreign ministry joined the chorus of voices warning that the move could unleash a wave of violence across the region. At a meeting in Brussels, Secretary of State Rex W. Tillerson was sternly reproached by European allies.
Standing next to Mr. Tillerson, the European Union’s top diplomat, Federica Mogherini, made clear that Europe saw the president’s decision as a threat to peace in the Middle East.
They like that; they see it as swamp drainage.
Mr. Tillerson has been largely shut out of the usual back-and-forth between Israelis and Palestinians that many secretaries of state spent much of their tenures conducting. Instead, Mr. Trump entrusted that task to his son-in-law and senior adviser, Jared Kushner.
Sure, why not? Why not let some callow little weasel with no experience or knowledge play Junior Secretary of State with one of the most highly charged issues on the planet. What’s the downside?
At least one former Obama administration official also weighed in with sharp criticism. John O. Brennan, the former director of the Central Intelligence Agency, said in a statement that Mr. Trump’s action was “reckless” and would “damage U.S. interests in the Middle East for years to come and will make the region more volatile.”
He’s just jealous.
But when he finds out that Israelis are Jewish he’ll deny that he officially recognised Jerusalem as the capital, declare it a terrible, terrible thing, and blame Tillerson, Obama, Clinton, and of course the Fake Press.
DT: “This is nothing more or less than a recognition of reality.”
OB “What does he ever know about what “the right thing to do” is? ”
Hell, I’d be happy if he could even begin having a passing acquaintance with reality. We can work on the whole “right” and “wrong” thing after he’s mastered that.
He thinks he can make things happen through sheer force of will like some Uri Geller wannabe. When things (inevitably) explode (if he’s lucky, in other people’s faces), he’ll blame someone else.
It’s becoming increasingly clear that there is something to be said for bureaucratic inertia. It’s not always a good idea for national and international policy to turn on a dime. Government, one would think, should be more careful and deliberative, with change made after wide consultation and study of the likely effects of the proposed new course of action. You don’t try to steer a supertanker like a jet-ski, especially in uncharted waters.
I am just wondering how it is possible for one single individual to decide that the US will recognize Jerusalem as the capitol. That seems like a decision that calls for many layers of input, not just from State, but also from Congress. The whole idea of the three branches of government is to prevent abuse. The problem is, all three branches appear to be dysfunctional right now, mostly because they have all tied themselves so closely to the ridiculous policies of the GOP. They are unable to function as a government, so they spend their time functioning as a kindergarten classroom.
Personally, I think Trump should be able to officially recognise Jerusalem as the capital when he can find it on an un-marked map. Mind you, I think he should only be allowed to be president of the USA under the same conditions.
I doubt he could find Washington DC or New York on an unmarked map.
Presumably he wants to appear strong by picking a side – any side – and simply doesn’t care about the consequences. Or he’s picked the action that’s going to cause the most problems because he thinks that will make it look like he made the harder or braver choice. That’s assuming he understands the concept of consequence. He hasn’t showed any signs of doing so before and has indeed been proven right so far. None of the horrible things he’s done have had any lasting consequences.
I’m not sure which is worse. Either way, I don’t think for a moment that he’s trying to solve anything.
latsot, it’s possible he took the Jewish side just for brownie points with the First Princess.