Wing it, with shouting

Aaron Blake at the Post on why it’s so alarming that Trump cheerily admits he lies to heads of state government.

The first reason is that this is perhaps the one issue Trump has focused on for decades: trade. It would be more understandable for him to make things up on guns and immigration, but trade is supposedly the issue on which Trump has been entirely consistent for many years. The idea that other countries are taking advantage of the United States was a talking point long before he became a politician.

Yet he doesn’t know even a basic fact about it, so what does that say about his knowledge of other issues? Combine the ignorance, the lies, and the belligerence, and then plug in Kim.

What happens if Trump takes this approach — or the one from the meetings on guns and immigration — to his meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un? Can a guy who can’t be bothered to understand the basics before talking to foreign leaders and lawmakers do the kind of homework required for very sensitive and complicated negotiations involving nuclear programs? And what if he doesn’t even try? What if he decides to wing it, as he did with Trudeau?

Thus far, Trump has shown no signs that he thinks that style isn’t working. And apparently, it’s still very much a part of his international diplomacy.

Scary enough?

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