Trump’s Vibe-based Foreign Policy

It is a well-established fact that President Trump notoriously values instinct over intelligence and pragmatism: “I have a gut, and my gut tells me more sometimes than anybody else’s brain can ever tell me”; the implication is that he considers himself more astute in science, economics, and foreign affairs than the experts in those fields.

In the realm of foreign affairs, Trump has rattled NATO by threatening to annex Greenland with military force, dismissed Canadian sovereignty by suggesting it as a potential 51st state, and treats Ukraine as a nuisance, not a strategic partner. Most disturbing is his gut diplomacy in the war with Iran, where he justified military action with a “good feeling” and claimed he would end the conflict when he “feels it in my bones.”

By subordinating statecraft to whimsy, Trump has degraded our international standing and invited a series of costly policy failures.

Jim Paladino
Tampa