Trump's Initial Foreign Policy Instincts: A Source of Hope | Eastern North Carolina Now

    Publisher's note: BCN welcomes Contributor Ryan Case, who, along with BCN Contributor Austin Goss, publishes a growing journal, The Liberty Fix, already steeped in information of a growing wisdom.

    The foreign policy preferences that Donald Trump espoused on the campaign trail, both in the primary and general elections, were marred by contradictions and an evident lack of intellectual curiosity. Trump seemed dangerously unaware of world affairs in various theaters, an example being when he was apparently ignorant of Russia's annexation of Crimea in an interview with George Stephanopoulos. This lack of understanding led to many foolish remarks on his part, examples coming when he spoke in favor of Japan and South Korea obtaining nuclear weapons and also when said that he would be "neutral" in dealings between Israel and Palestine, among other things. The President-Elect's brazen criticism of NATO also revealed how little he understood with regards to Russian aggression and the important firewall the organization puts up to counter it. Since his election and throughout the transition, however, Trump's words and actions when it comes to foreign policy have shown much promise.

    For example, Trump has made some excellent cabinet nominations in roles pertaining to foreign policy-making. The most notable being the legendary Marine Corps General Jim "Mad Dog" Mattis. Not only is General Mattis a gifted leader of men, but also a brilliant battlefield strategist, an intellectual with a keen understanding of history and a warrior through and through. Trump tapped General Mattis to head the Pentagon as Secretary of Defense, which is a department in dire need of the leadership Mattis will provide. Beyond pure administrative matters, however, I expect for Mattis to have Trump's ear on critical foreign policy issues, and to be the voice of both reason and reality when it comes to solving international problems with strong American leadership. Moreover, the appointment of Governor Nikki Haley to the post of ambassador to the U.N. is also reassuring. While Trump tends to drift, to a fault in most cases, from conservative Republican orthodoxy on several foreign policy issues, most notably with his stance on Russia, Haley's views on foreign affairs closely resemble that of the hawkish Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL), whom she endorsed in the Republican primary. This a good thing. When it comes to the morally bankrupt and bullying United Nations, it is essential to have someone with a realist worldview dealing on behalf of the United States, particularly in Security Council dealings with Russia and China. Haley will be a tough leader on the global stage, just as she was as the chief executive of South Carolina.

    Furthermore, Trump has also hit all the right notes so far when it comes to dealing with Israel, especially considering his careless words in favor of a "neutral" stance in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict during the primary. This starts with his nomination of David Friedman to the post of Ambassador to Israel. Friedman's views are very much in line with Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu's on important issues, and he will be a friend to Israel in the battle against threats like the ruthless terrorism of Hamas and an Iran emboldened by the Obama presidency. Importantly, Friedman also supports moving the Israeli capital from Tel Aviv to it's rightful place in Jerusalem. Trump has also been excellent in his support for Israel against the UN's misguided resolution condemning Israeli settlements, and these types of stands will be critical going forward as the UN often treats Israel as a punching bag while ignoring the human rights abuses of countries like Russia, China and Saudi Arabia. Although the recent abstention seemed to be another example of the Obama administration's weakness on the international stage, more and more evidence is beginning to be released showing that the U.S. had a key role in formulating the resolution, such as the reports that Vice President Joe Biden actively lobbied other countries on the Security Council to ensure that the resolution passed unopposed. For those of us who don't like emboldening terrorists and denigrating important allies, it will be a nice change to see American support for Israel again, the only western-style democracy in the Middle East.

    Trump's toughness on China has also been a welcome change. While some of his talk on trade is still a little disconcerting and misguided, he seems more than willing to stand up to Chinese expansionism in the South China Sea, which, if left unchecked, could pose a real threat to U.S. economic and military interests in the region. The most notable action that he has taken thus far with regards to China, however, involves his conversation with the President of Taiwan. While many on the left were enraged by Trump's 'audacity' and his 'violation of diplomatic norms', Ted Cruz took to twitter to make the important point that he "would much rather have Donald Trump talking to President Tsai than to Cuba's Raul Castro or Iran's Hasan Rouhani." Moreover, the notion that the president of our country can't directly communicate with the freely elected leader of a democratic country because it would anger a dictatorship is appalling, weak and a perfect anecdote for the deterioration of the United States as a force on the global stage.

    Unfortunately, many of these positive signs from Trump have been overshadowed by President Obama's last ditch efforts to implement his increasingly incoherent foreign policy agenda. Between the UN abstention and his last minute diplomatic sanctions on Russia, Obama has been even more brazen and confusing than usual as of late. While I do support sanctioning Russia and investigating their cyber offenses, what the President did yesterday in expelling Russian diplomats and shutting down several Russian facilities remains too little, too late and unsurprisingly only came after the Russians seemed to hurt him in a concrete political sense. The fact remains that Putin wiped the floor with Obama in their global chess match, and there is very little that can be done by the current administration in the next three weeks to change that. Trump's gullibility when it comes to Putin and Russia is still a point of concern, however, he has seemed to change his tone to some extent as of late, an example coming in his promise to strengthen our weakened nuclear arsenal following Putin's announcement of his intention to do the same. While no one wants to see an arms race, much less a nuclear war, it is important that Putin gets the signal from Trump that Russian aggression will no longer be met with passivity. Moreover, while both Trump's National Security Advisor Mike Flynn and Rex Tillerson, his nominee for Secretary of State, have demonstrated views on Russia that are unbelievably naive, the voices of Mattis and Haley, along with key Congressional Republicans, could very well neutralize this.

    While the Obama administration, and to some extent the Bush administration before it, have left America as a less influential global power and have therefore left the world a much more volatile place, the instincts Trump has demonstrated thus far should provide some hope. Trump replaces Obama's professor-esque lectures about moral relativism in foreign affairs with a clear desire to protect American interests. Not only is this refreshing, but it is an absolute necessity if America is to be kept safe in the years to come.

poll#99

With the Democrats losing the presidency, after winning the popular vote by over 2 million votes more than the victor, Donald J. Trump: Should the constitutional provision of the Electoral College be scrapped?

  Yes, the votes for president should be concentrated in the population centers.

  No, the Electoral College provides for better representation from the less populated states.

  I rarely vote because I have little knowledge of the issues.

116 total vote(s)     What's your Opinion?