Trump’s terrorism speech in Saudi Arabia was an embarrassing attempt by this White House to try to make Trump look presidential while illustrating a lack of policy and a driving desire to change the subject away from the Russia scandal.
Trump spoke in his reading from a script trying to sound like a president soft voice.
The speech itself was straight out of the Trump campaign format with standard US foreign policy language sprinkled in. Trump read off a bunch of statistics to prove that he knows stuff, and then moved into the fear portion of the program by painting a description of the evil and death of terrorism.
Trump trashed all of his campaign rhetoric, by never using the term radical Islamic terrorism, but he still targeted his supporters by telling the Muslim nations that there should be no refugees and that they should pay their fair share.
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What was missing in the speech was any policy vision. Trump told the Muslim countries what they must do, but he didn’t offer any policy or leadership. He told the countries that they must kick terrorists out of their countries, but he didn’t offer any plans for fighting terrorism.
The President was obsessed with deals. He touted the selling of arms to Saudi Arabia. He also praised the agreement to cut off terrorist funding.
This speech was also full of lots of empty words and contradictions.
For example, Trump praised an arms deal, but claimed the US wants peace:
"Above all, America seeks peace not war," Pres. Trump says in speech at US-Arab Islamic Summit https://t.co/gqaj0fgdBt pic.twitter.com/OTEen1eP7M
— CBS News (@CBSNews) May 21, 2017
Trump offered such shallow insights as terrorists worship death:
"Terrorists do not worship God, they worship death," Pres. Trump says in address https://t.co/eYZOX9EZ0E pic.twitter.com/jdDPVy4dpA
— CBS News (@CBSNews) May 21, 2017
Republicans criticized Obama’s foreign policy eight years, but they have a president who is offering no policy at all. Trump’s speech was embarrassing. It is impossible to see how the United States can lead in the combatting of terrorism with a man in the White House who has no idea what he is talking about.
The Saudi Arabia speech was a perfect example of how Trump is weakening America. The President’s is creating a global leadership vacuum by not offering the guiding vision for the world. America and the world need a President Of The United States who knows what he is talking about and can lead in the fight against terrorism.
Trump’s speech was filled with fluff, as once again, the administration used a major platform to try to make Trump look presidential instead of laying out a policy and leading the world.
America’s power and influence weaken with each moment that Trump remains in the White House.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
