04-15-2017, 01:22 AM
Anyone else worried that Trump has sidelined the State Department (the diplomatic arm of the administration) and is essentially allowing the military to call the shots, so to speak? Yes, General McMaster is a significant upgrade on General Flynn, but the military isn't necessarily the best preparation for dealing with thorny international conflicts.
This is more of an issue as Trump doesn't seem to have any clue about how to solve international conflicts. On the campaign trail, he thought the answer to the North Korean problem was easy. Just tell the Chinese to pull him into line or the US would inflict damage on the Chinese economy. After his meeting with his Chinese counterpart, he conceded that the Chinese don't have the control of the North Koreans that he had assumed and he backed away from threats to nominate the Chinese as currency manipulators.
Now his childish strategy has failed, what does he do now? Who does he turn to for advice? Steve Bannon and his alt-right principles, his son-in-law (who has no foreign affairs experience), or the military?
Meeting bluster with bluster won't work, according to those who have studied the North Koreans. In fact, it may escalate the conflict.
And what will the military want to do in Syria? Will it want "boots on the ground"? Are we seeing an escalation there? As Trump has claimed he'd kill ISIS, will he go along with that?
This is more of an issue as Trump doesn't seem to have any clue about how to solve international conflicts. On the campaign trail, he thought the answer to the North Korean problem was easy. Just tell the Chinese to pull him into line or the US would inflict damage on the Chinese economy. After his meeting with his Chinese counterpart, he conceded that the Chinese don't have the control of the North Koreans that he had assumed and he backed away from threats to nominate the Chinese as currency manipulators.
Now his childish strategy has failed, what does he do now? Who does he turn to for advice? Steve Bannon and his alt-right principles, his son-in-law (who has no foreign affairs experience), or the military?
Meeting bluster with bluster won't work, according to those who have studied the North Koreans. In fact, it may escalate the conflict.
And what will the military want to do in Syria? Will it want "boots on the ground"? Are we seeing an escalation there? As Trump has claimed he'd kill ISIS, will he go along with that?