Justin And Donnie

John Bolton writes that Donald Trump doesn't like Justin Trudeau. That comes as no surprize. Susan Delacourt writes:

Bolton has given readers a peek behind the scenes of the now-famous G7 meeting in Quebec in 2018, which resulted in a stream of Trump invective toward Trudeau in the immediate aftermath.

The book describes Trump’s reaction after watching Trudeau’s closing news conference, during which the prime minister spoke out about the U.S. tariff war against Canadian steel, levied just days before the G7 gathering.

“He was throwing a fit about Trudeau’s using his closing press conference to score points against him,” Bolton writes in the book, a copy of which was discreetly supplied to me on Monday. “Trump had been gracious to Trudeau in his press event, and he was infuriated Trudeau had not reciprocated.”

Bolton then goes on to say how Trump ordered members of his inner circle, specifically his economic adviser Larry Kudlow, to publicly shame Canada’s prime minister on TV.

Trump arrived at the G7 Conference looking like a tired old man. Trudeau and Emmanuel Macron looked young and vigourous:

As Bolton reports about the G7 meeting itself, “Trump himself seemed very tired; in fairness, so were many others, but not Macron and Trudeau, and certainly not their aides, who were pushing policy agendas contrary to ours.”

Trump seemed oblivious to those policy differences. “I tried to judge whether Trump really wanted a G7 communiqué and would therefore make more concessions, or whether he was indifferent. I couldn’t tell, but Trump (who had not troubled to prepare himself) didn’t really have much of an idea what was at stake.”

As has been the case from the beginning, Trump didn't -- and still doesn't -- give a damn about policy. What matters to him is Image. Justin seems to understand that. And he has refused to retaliate in kind. When asked about Trump's attack on him, he told Delacourt:

“As satisfying as it might be to sort of let it rip in public or respond to personal attacks or personal comments with personal comments, does that help me do my job? Does that help Canadians? No. So I put that aside,”

It seems that Justin has taken a lesson from his father. When the White House tapes revealed Richard Nixon calling Trudeau the Elder "a son of a bitch," Pierre's response was acerbic and on point. "I've been called worse things by better people," he said.

Image: MEME

How Donald Really Feels

Donald Trump has finally let it be known how he really feels about Justin Trudeau. Erin Banco and  Asawin Suebsaeng report in The Daily Beast that:

The famously sensitive American president lashed out during a closed-door meeting at the White House with more than a dozen ambassadors to the United Nations present, according to three sources with knowledge of the gathering.

In doing so, he made a number of foreign officials noticeably on-edge and also upended a portion of the meeting meant to focus on world powers’ security cooperation, not personal gripes.

During this private airing of grievances, President Trump repeatedly denigrated the Canadian prime minister behind his back and called the French president a “pain in the ass” while referring to him as “short,” according to an individual who was present for the meeting. Trump also bashed the French leader for not doing enough to help in recent Iran negotiations.

Over lunch with the ambassadors, President Trump again addressed the video and went on a prolonged tangent, complaining to the diplomats about Trudeau and Macron, according to two sources briefed on the meeting. This lasted several minutes and was enough to derail the ongoing conversation about NATO countries contributing more money to security. 

Another individual in the meeting told The Daily Beast that Trump’s comments made ambassadors present “visibly uncomfortable,” especially those whose leaders were involved in the hot-mic video. (The Canadian ambassador to the United Nations was not present at the meeting.)

None of this should be surprising -- just as the mockery of NATO leaders should be equally unsurprising. And how should Trudeau take all of this? After the late actor Paul Newman discovered he was on Richard Nixon's enemies list, he said he considered making the list "the highest single honour I've ever received."

Image: Chicago Tribune

Unwise

The ascension of Justin Trudeau was greeted with a great deal of hope. But that hope is fading fast. Michael Harris writes:

The politician who promised a bright, new day in Canadian politics, has already disappointed First Nations, environmentalists, veterans, electoral reformers, and those expecting swift action on repealing the odious police-state legislation from the Harper era, Bill C-51.

Some have called Trudeau’s underwhelming performance a question of “over-promising.” It looks more like bad faith.

Trudeau's attempts to dance with Donald Trump are particularly disturbing. Consider what Trump has said about Syria prior to last week's Cruise missile attack:

In 2013, nearly 1,400 civilians died in a gas attack in Ghouta, a suburb of Damascus. That included a large number of children. (By comparison, a relatively modest 72 people died in this week’s gas attack in Khan Sheikhoun.) The President of the day in 2013, Barack Obama, tried to make the case for a military intervention in Syria with a reluctant Congress. He failed. Citizen Trump weighed in on the debate with his Twitter bazooka.

“Again, to our very foolish leader, do not attack Syria – if you do, many bad things will happen and from that fight the US gets nothing…We should stay the hell out of Syria. The rebels are just as bad as the current regime…”

  During the 2016 presidential election, Trump offered this bit of wisdom on Fox News:

“The other thing with the terrorists is you have to take out their families. When you get these terrorists, you have to take out their families…When they say they don’t care about their lives, you have to take out their families.”

When you say it three times, chances are you mean it.

Yet Trudeau backed Trump last week. It's unwise to support a leader whose opinions change as often as he changes underwear.

Image: CBC