Weekly Standard: Trump the Chump (Never Trumpers' ITYS)
Source: Weekly Standard
We have now had several opportunities to see just what the president, practitioner of the art of the deal, can do when given an opportunity to negotiate with other heads of state. Short answer: give away the store.
Start with North Korea. Trump gave Kim Jung-un the gift of prestige and credibility by meeting with him to discuss North Korea’s dismantling its nuclear weapons infrastructure. Worth it, says Trump, since after the meeting Kim was rushing home to begin that process “right away,” so that “there was no longer a nuclear threat from North Korea.” Half right. Kim was indeed rushing home, but to begin the acceleration, expansion, and concealment of his country’s nuclear production. U.S. intelligence agencies report that North Korea is stepping up its uranium enrichment program in at least one undeclared facility and upgrading another. It is also completing an expansion of a plant manufacturing solid-fuel ballistic missiles capable of reaching U.S. military installations in Asia. None of which is something one does as a prelude to destroying these facilities.
Meanwhile, our negotiator-in-chief, who did not see the need to bring along technical advisers, then proceeded to give Kim something he has long sought—cancelation of joint military exercises with South Korea—and an indication that America is impatient to withdraw its troops from the Korean peninsula. Not a bad day’s work for Kim.
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There’s more, but you get the idea. Our chief negotiator can be had, and easily, so eager is he to do three things. First, prove that he can get a meeting with whichever dictator desperately wants one. Second, give away the store in return for, well, not very much. Third, return to Washington waving some meaningless piece of paper that he claims shows just how great a negotiator he really is.
Meanwhile, Kim has his nukes, Xi has a functioning ZTE, and Putin gets to keep Crimea, with sanctions probably to be eased. It seems that “Trump” and “chump” do more than rhyme; they can be used interchangeably.
https://www.weeklystandard.com/irwin-m-stelzer/donald-trump-is-a-bad-negotiator
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Oh, wait...
What will cadet bone spurs tell their parents?
