Former President Donald Trump asserted that a “president of a big country” — presumably in NATO — asked him if as POTUS he would help protect that country against an invasion from an aggressor like Russia.
Trump made headlines with his claim, in response, that if the threatened country was in arrears on its NATO dues, he and the United States would not provide protection.
For emphasis, Trump said that — on the contrary — he would “encourage” the aggressor to do “whatever the hell they want.”
International elections expert and political strategist Trygve Olson, who works with the conservative anti-Trump Lincoln Project and runs the political consultancy Viking Strategies, called Trump’s statement “the most shamelessly irresponsible, dangerous, and anti-American interests statement made by a leading candidate for President in the history of our nation.”
This is the most important (and shamelessly irresponsible, dangerous, and anti-American interests) statement made by a leading candidate for President in the history of our nation. Media that covers it any other way is in fact playing into Trumps narrative that it is all fake… https://t.co/xxccXFdXpq
— Trygve Olson (@trygveolson) February 10, 2024
Trump’s line brought cheers from the MAGA faithful who don’t believe a Europe safe from Russian aggression is in America’s best interests, even if most Republicans still consider a free and functioning Europe as essential to world order.
Conservative Bill Kristol, one of those Cold Warrior Republicans, noted on X that as “reprehensible” as Trump’s provocative and dangerous assertion is, the situation he conjures never occurred — that is, no “president of a large country” posed such a question to Trump. It is all rhetorical setup, Kristol asserts.
As with any alliance, NATO is only effective if its promises are respected. It follows that if NATO is backed only conditionally by the U.S., as Trump claims, then that inconsistency defangs the alliance.
Trump’s public balking at honoring America’s commitment to the treaty undermines it with doubt. Trump’s statement, Olson asserts, is historically irresponsible and dangerous even with Trump out of office, because it introduces the possibility that NATO’s strength could be at risk in the future.
Trust takes a lifetime to build but can be destroyed in an instant. This is what Republicans are doing to the trust in America’s word, which was established around the world and among our allies from the outset. It is central to what made our nation exceptional—a shining city on…
— Trygve Olson (@trygveolson) February 8, 2024
