As promised I’m doing a second part of my
letter to America setting out the view from overseas as the election
nears. More than in any past year I’ve
been asked to comment on how the United States is perceived abroad, with some
people even sending videos, others asking whether people have “tuned out” and
more just wanting to know (and I quote) “how bad it is”.
Look – in the things that I write I always
try to be thoughtful (and I appreciate those who have commented on that fact),
I try to be considerate – and I even formulated what I consider to be a set of
rules for engaging in any campaign related commentary. Those “rules” were:
Civility –
When stating your opinion have consideration for those with whom you are
engaging.
Perspective
– Remember not to overstate the
importance of your opinion. No, everybody who disagrees with you on health care
is not “a piece of shit”. No, everyone
who differs with you on the importance of retaining the name “Redskins” is not
a Nazi. No, those who are in favor of
enhanced civilian review panels are not automatically members of “Antifa”.
Purpose –
Focus more on what we are fighting FOR than what we are fighting ABOUT.
I’m going to try to adhere to those rules
in this letter. I’m sure everyone will
accept that I’m being civil. I hope
everyone understands that my purpose is just to try to give an honest opinion
in the expectation that it will be of some value. I worry that in what I say people will think
I’ve lost perspective – that I surely must be overstating what I’m seeing and
hearing. Please, believe me – I’m
probably not going far enough.
Here’s a bit of a personal story. In 2001
we’d been in Dublin for about 3 years – I was working for a law firm here and
had spent the summer in the London office working on some deals that were
underway in the UK. Once people returned
from their holidays I went back to Dublin and resumed working in the office
there – and it was on an afternoon on the 11th of September that
news first filtered in about the events in New York, Washington and
Pennsylvania. Like the rest of you I
spent the balance of that day watching the horrors unfold on television,
worrying about people I knew who might have been in the towers or on the planes
and wondering what it all meant. Perhaps
a bit different from many of you the feeling of being away from my roots,
separated from my country, was probably the deepest and toughest it had ever
been. The world is getting smaller all
the time – but it didn’t seem so on that day.
I was a long way from home.
Again, as with most of you, the next couple
of days were a blur. On Thursday the 13th
word filtered through the office that there was going to be a memorial service
in an area of the International Financial Services Centre near our building. I thought this might be something to break
the feeling of numb futility I was feeling.
But then, it began to rain, a cold, driving torrent that would leave you
soaked seconds after being outside unless you had a sturdy umbrella or
excellent rain gear. It was bucketing as
noontime approached and, while I was determined to go to this ceremony, I was
sure that it would only depress me as it would surely be a few ex-pats like
myself standing around in a pouring deluge in a big, echoing courtyard. With my
head down against the storm I started towards the gathering place.
As I neared the square where the service
was scheduled to be held I raised my head up and peaked out from under the
umbrella. What I saw astounded me. From every corner of the complex, from the
banks of the river, from the balconies of the surrounding apartments people
were arriving in droves. Far from being
empty it was difficult to find a place to stand. People who I hadn’t seen for the entire summer
I was away rushed up to me to express support, say hello, ask after friends and
family. Then, speaker after speaker rose to declare their sympathy for the
victims, outrage at the attacks and, above all, their support for the
country. I remember one in particular
who said something like this:
“We sometimes take America for granted,
forget what it has done and what it has meant.
We get frustrated sometimes but need to recall that it has always tried
to provide the best example it can to the rest of us. If it falls short it's not for lack of trying
– and when the time comes for it to need some support we need to be there to
give it. This is one of those times and
we must stand with our friends now – because they have stood with us in the
past”.
The goodwill was something tangible – you
could reach out and feel it, grasp it, taste it. I wish I could
convey just how much those words meant, how good it felt to look up through
that driving rain to see all those people, in a foreign country, taking the
time to stand up with a friend. I would want to do that because it might make
you feel good during what has been a terrible year, but also because it would
make you understand the importance of the following words.
We are losing that goodwill.
We are losing those friends.
We are fumbling that support away.
People ask me what the impression of Donald
Trump is overseas. Here is the truth of
the matter. The overwhelming majority of
the people I speak with in Ireland and around Europe find him as follows:
1.
Ridiculous (as opposed to just “embarrassing”);
2.
Overwhelmed (by his job); and,
3. Dangerous/Unstable
OK – so what is meant by each of those statements? Let’s take them one at a time.
First “Ridiculous” - I included the qualifier “as opposed to just “embarrassing”” because lots, if not all, Presidents have been placed (or placed themselves) in embarrassing positions. Ronald Reagan cracking jokes about “outlawing Russia and we begin bombing in five minutes”, George H.W. Bush vomiting onto the Japanese Prime Minister, the second Bush’s malapropisms – they’re all embarrassing moments. The all-time winner for embarrassment has to be Bill Clinton’s shenanigans, which bordered on the ridiculous. The fact that he was able to salvage his Presidency from the abyss of “ridiculousness” that it teetered on may be his most notable accomplishment. Still – while the subject of self-inflicted shame – he was still able to retain the aura of the office while going through the Monica Lewinsky debacle. I was in Ireland during that period – and if that hadn’t been the case there likely would have been no Good Friday Agreement brokered in the late ‘90’s – so I can provide first hand testimony that “the Presidency” retained its aura.
That is not the case with Trump. The continual descent into areas of behaviour never before seen in a Chief Executive may run off the back of the Trump supporters in the U.S. – but that is not the case overseas. Each time the President - is revealed to have paid off a porn queen, been caught on tape making yet another outrageous statement, breaches the norms of diplomacy, gets impeached for attempting to strong arm a foreign leader, suggests holding a summit at his own golf resort in the middle of a pandemic, or routinely insults the leaders of U.S. allies he comes off as more and more ridiculous.
There is an entire litany of these instances. He has reportedly called Angela Merkel “stupid” (she holds a doctoral degree) and Theresa May “a fool” (Britain is supposed to be our closest ally). So – you think Canada is our closest ally? He called their leader “dishonest and weak”. Maybe you still hold with France, which is at least our oldest ally. He attacked their head of state for his “low approval ratings”. Okay – maybe Australia? Surely, we didn’t have a President who went after our surfing, barbequing, crocodile-hunting friends from down under? Actually, he said his call with them was “the worst ever” – and then hung up.
These are not remarks made during closed door meetings amongst his staff. This was to the leaders directly or to the press openly. At the same time he has been grotesquely obsequious to dictators like Erdogan of Turkey, Kim of North Korea, and, of course, Vladimir Putin. When he does these things he does not, as he might imagine, make the United States look tough or competent. He makes us look ridiculous. When he sends his daughter in to meetings with global leaders – it’s not endearing – it’s ridiculous. When he refers to entire groups of nations who will have to choose between trading with China or the United States as “shithole countries” he looks (and makes America look) ridiculous. When he gets on major conference calls with foreign leaders clearly unprepared – we look ridiculous. When he tweets a constant barrage of nonsense – he looks ridiculous. When he cannot retain staff for more than a period of months (meaning that no one overseas can know from one month to the next who they are supposed to deal with) – the U.S. looks ridiculous. When the country with the greatest wealth and most advanced medical infrastructure in the world is worst affected by a global pandemic – the country looks ridiculous. I am telling you truthfully – the overwhelming view overseas of the current President is that he is a buffoon. That is simply a fact.
But that is not the most disturbing fact. The worst aspect of Trump’s image problem is that it is no longer just Trump’s problem. It’s now yours as well. Here are two articles that demonstrate the danger. The first is from 2017, when Trump took office. It notes that he was already not well regarded – but the United States was still seen as a beacon for its “people, culture and civil liberties”.
The second is from last month. In it there is no longer such a split between Trump’s standing and that of the country. He has become America’s image abroad – and it isn’t in a positive way. We are losing status, we are losing prestige.
We are losing – period, and a large part of that is because of who occupies the Oval Office.
The next aspect of Trump’s performance that creates enormous difficulty overseas is the fact that, from day one, he has appeared overwhelmed by the job. Every President has a learning curve, but Trump hasn’t seemed to grow into the office at all. In fact, if you measure his performance by crisis – he’s getting worse. The response to the Covid pandemic is shambolic in the extreme. When you view the numbers Stateside it is bad enough. When you look at what is going on from overseas it appears unbelievable. The death toll of over 200,000 people is not just heartbreaking – it is clearly avoidable. I know this because I live somewhere where it has been avoided. That region, Europe, routinely watches while Trump lies to his own people and claim that the mortality rate in Europe is worse than the United States – it is not:
https://theintercept.com/2020/09/29/excess-mortality-data-shows-trump-lying-covid-deadly-europe/
They routinely watch as the situation in the States deteriorates beyond all conceivable standards. Trump himself, while presumably leaving some room to declare victory, stated that 60,000 deaths should be expected as a result of the virus. That now looks like it will end up being a QUARTER of the actual cost before we even get to the traditional flu season. Anyone who can be that far off is going to be seen as someone who is overwhelmed by the job – and that is exactly how this President is viewed.
Trump is, beyond any doubt, seen as a person who is unable to handle even the most basic requirements of the office of the Presidency. Now, remember – this isn’t about whether that is actually true or not – we all have our opinions on that score. It is simply about how he (and by association, the country) is perceived abroad. America is now thought of as untrustworthy (Trump routinely backs out of agreements he doesn’t like), undiplomatic (see above concerning his penchant for insulting anyone he doesn’t see as sufficiently deferential), and mistake prone (there doesn’t seem to be a fire that he doesn’t pour gasoline on). The situation with regard to race relations is a prime example.
You might recall that early in the Obama administration professor Henry Louis Gates was arrested in his own house by a white member of the Cambridge police. Gates has a forum and seemed ready to use it to equate that incident with systemic racism – Obama didn’t feel that was a useful or advantageous way to have that discussion. So, to defuse the situation he invited both parties to the White House to a “beer summit”. It was widely derided in the American press. Be assured it was seen as a smashing success overseas.
Contrast that with what is seen coming from the White House on this topic since Donald Trump has taken office. Foreigners see a country that is already a powder keg – and from the White House it observes the reaction to Charlottesville, the indifference to killings in Minneapolis, Wisconsin, Georgia, the invocation of the “Proud Boys”, the use of tear gas to clear the way for a photo opportunity, the clashes between armed citizens in the streets. Oh, for the days of sitting down over a beer.
Having circumstances get away from you like that, not being able to get your hands around a situation – those are indications of someone not up to the job. So, I ask you, if the perception abroad is that the U.S. President can’t lead his own country – how does he hope to remain “the leader of the free world”?
Finally, Trump is perceived as both dangerous and unstable when viewed from afar. While there has been an undercurrent of such sentiment amongst certain overseas elements in the past (George W. Bush worried some people with his willingness to undertake military adventures), I’m not talking about fringe elements here. I’m speaking of America’s closest allies and partners. Here are a couple of examples.
In June of this year Donald Trump proposed cutting the number of U.S. troops stationed in Germany by about one-third. This was an unprecedented move that the administration tried to justify by saying that Germany was not paying for the troops fast enough. Germany disputed this and pointed out that the troops were not there for the purpose of defending Germany – but to maintain transatlantic security. The U.S. military itself was appalled at the decision. Here is how the BBC reported on what had happened:
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-53058985
When it comes to this topic the Germans are, for the most part, correct. The presence of U.S. troops on foreign soil is one of the most unique peacetime arrangements in recorded history. Just consider how many times you have visited the German bases in Arizona. Or the British bases in North Carolina. Or the Japanese outpost in Hawaii.
That would be “never”. That is because there are no such bases and under no circumstances would the United States ever even consider allowing the same. Sovereign countries simply do not allow others, even their allies, to establish a military presence on their land in peacetime. Post World War II there were Russian bases in Poland and Czechoslovakia – but I doubt they would be deemed “voluntary”. But, uniquely, that is not true for American troops stationed in Western Europe and Japan. In both those instances the governments of those countries accepted, with only minimal dissent, the presence of U.S. military personnel in great numbers. The reason for this was quite simple (and only partially involved Russia) – they trusted America more than they trusted themselves when it came to defense. In Japan this was due to a massive realignment of their societal norms. In Europe it had to do largely with the consequences of history. Europeans understood that when left to build their own armies, they tended to use them. Against each other. About every twenty or thirty years. A stabilizing third party presence was called for – and that presence was American.
America was ready for this solution as well. The country had intervened twice in European wars during the first half of the 20th century. The possibility of a third, late, intervention into a shooting war made the long term provision of early intervention into an armed peace quite attractive. Payment for that arrangement is important – but not as important as the arrangement itself. NATO was established, American troops moved in – and given the fact that there has not been a major European armed conflict in more than 75 years – things seem to be working out pretty well.
So why would Donald Trump, over a relatively small amount of money, alter the defensive structure that has created a higher degree of global stability than anything since, arguably, the Holy Roman Empire of Charlemagne? What is the real reason he reduced troop strength in Germany? The answer provides insight into why Trump is seen as dangerous and destabilizing.
Here's what seems to have really happened. When the President proposed a summit meeting to be held at the Trump owned Doral resort in Florida he was reportedly incensed that Angela Merkel turned the idea down as unworkable during the current pandemic. Trump then seized the opportunity to contradict the advice of his senior military advisors to pull U.S. troops out of Germany as a means of paying Merkel back for “refusing to play ball”. Sources confirmed that the decision was “sped up because he (Trump) was mad at Merkel for cancelling his G7 party because of COVID.”
Think about that. Think about how that is going to be perceived
overseas. The President of the United
States risked altering the defensive structure that has stabilized the world
for going on four generations because his party was ruined. Not his political party.
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-germany-military-trump-idUSKBN23G0BE
That is a classic example of why Trump is seen as dangerous and unstable. Another, would, of course, be his dalliance with Kim Jong Un, a leader who was seen as so unstable himself that a film making fun of him was given delayed release because it was feared that he might start a war over it. Trump, after initially calling Kim “Rocket Man” during the early days of his administration, has afforded the North Korean numerous opportunities to legitimize himself, has engaged in bizarre correspondence between the two and has actively undercut the position of both South Korea and Japan in the Far East. In case anyone was wondering the latter two countries are typically referred to as our “allies” in the region. Someone should inform the President.
There are numerous other examples. Trump most recently disclosed the existence
of a secret nuclear weapons program, evidently having missed the part about “if
you tell everyone, then it’s not a secret anymore”. https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/36300/trump-discloses-supposed-existence-of-a-secret-new-nuclear-weapon-system-to-bob-woodward
Representative.
Remember back to the beginning of this letter, where I told about the reaction I witnessed following the events of 9-11? That feeling was not just there for a few days, and it was not confined only to the major cities throughout the world. In the most remote parts of Ireland (and, indeed, Europe) that respect, that underlying sympathy for America still existed. If you need proof, consider the following. In a small village in Ireland’s least populous county there is a lake on whose shores can be seen a series of flagpoles. As you approach you observe that, in addition to a local banner and the Irish tri-color an American flag flies over the top of a stone bench that looks over the waters. It is obviously a memorial of some kind – but how and why there would ever be such a thing in what is truly the back of beyond has to raise questions for anyone who stumbles across the spot. Indeed, there is a story as to why it is there, why there is an inscription on the bench. But the story is not as important as the sentiment, the underlying inspiration for the memorial.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NdD74ZVtb0M
I know that spot well. I fished there before the 11th of September was "9-11", I spent the night before my wedding in a house by the spot, I suppose it’s possible I’ve had a pint or two in the pub up the lane (rumor has it). I take great pride in the presence of that memorial, and I hope that there will always be the willingness to erect such remembrances, but never the need.
But, as I said at the beginning of this letter we are losing that feeling, that regard, that sentiment. There is a very clear reason why that is happening.
So – if you want to retain American prestige abroad I can give you this clear message.
Vote Donald Trump out of office.
Elect Joe Biden
President.
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