Trump’s take on Pelosi’s trip

Here’s my quote tweet from this morning:

Trump chose the easy name-calling route here, as usual. He’s bashing Pelosi’s trip to Taiwan in this video, as if her trip was the problem, because nothing gets the right fuming like mentioning Nancy Pelosi, except perhaps mentioning Hillary Clinton. Whenever I even hear either of them speaking, I automatically cringe. However, American domestic, partisan politics is different than American foreign policy. Trump can’t see beyond the domestic spin sideshow – ever.

Many Americans are worried about the potential for major wars starting and the fear of WWIII features heavily in a lot of commentary on the left and right in America. China may actually invade Taiwan, but if that happens it won’t be because Pelosi went to Taiwan. It will be because China has planned to do that for years and believes the US and West won’t respond. The only way to push back against Russian and Chinese aggression is to work to unite Americans around the belief in freedom and support freedom around the world.

Every time American leaders show fear, buy into our foreign adversaries narratives about events, and most of all escalate the partisan divides here at home, we’re helping our enemies. American weakness on the world stage is seen as a green light by Russia and China to push further. Trump bought into China’s framing of the situation and said Pelosi gave China an excuse. That’s a very misguided view, I think. Pelosi did not cause China’s actions – China did.

I know plenty of people on the right who loathe Pelosi (I react negatively to her scorched earth politics), but stepping back from our domestic politics, when it comes to the world stage it’s not red or blue America – it’s just AMERICA and China wants America cowering and backing down. If even the right in America is now backing down from America’s adversaries, who is left to stand up for freedom in the world?