If in doubt, read his declaration of wiping off North Korea off the map. And if still in doubt, read his attacks on Iran, and Venezuela. Still in doubt regarding the U.S. President gone rogue? Read his declaration at the U.N., an organization of equal state sovereignty, about "America First."
Could it be the stress of multiple investigations in his possible collusion with Russia to put him on top in the 2016 elections? Or could it be that his flaunted wall on the American/Mexico border cannot be funded? Or that his son, Donald Jr. and his son-in-law, Jared Kushner are now in the cross-hairs of multiple investigators? With no hope of eventual pardons by Trump, unavailable at the New York State level?
To fathom how "Trump is the shame of America," compare his UN speech with that of a leader, El-Sisi, of Egypt -a developing nation!! For content analysis is a useful tool for comparing two speeches given at the UN on September 19 from the rostrum of the General Assembly. I served there for more than 30 years and wrote many speeches for the UN Secretary-General and for other presentations in his name. As a long-time insider, I know how leaders often talk, behave, interact and project. By these standards, I judge Trump as the American Idi Amin of Uganda, or Qaddafi of Libya, or Chavez of Venezuela. The Fraternity of the Deplorables!!
The UN Charter, in its Article I on "Purposes and Principles" provides for taking "effective collective measures for the prevention and removal of threats to the peace, and for the suppression of acts of aggression or other breaches of the peace." That charter is a World War II document which was in the making since 1942, though signed in San Francisco in June 1945.
In spite of those provisions, Donald Trump stood under the dome of the UN General Assembly to shoot holes into that international treaty. Declaring war of annihilation of North Korea, he said: "The United States has great strength and patience. But if it is forced to defend itself or its allies, we will have no choice but totally destroy North Korea." An unequivocal threat to the peace in East Asia.
By comparison, the Egyptian President declared from the same spot on which the Trump's sabre-rattling took place: "We are certain that the purposes and principles of the United Nations are still valid for the founding of a world which provides for all its inhabitants the opportunity for benefiting from ...the great potentiality of realizing the dream of a just and peaceful world order. An order of open interaction with all of humanity." How more statesmanship can one hope for?
But that direct threat of genocide, uttered by an unhinged Donald Trump, against North Korea was not enough for the American President. Other verbal idiocies followed, as he castigated Venezuela, Cuba, Iran, Syria, and more. Armed with a teleprompter, but baffled by the lack of applause from a chamber silenced only by diplomatic protocol, he pontificated: "If the righteous many do not confront the wicked few, then evil will triumph."
It is said that Bush Jr.'s downfall began with his infamous description of "Iraq, Iran and North Korea" as the axis of evil. That slogan underpinned a non-winnable war of 16 years in Afghanistan, the sectarian mayhem in Iraq, the voids filled by the crazy jihadists, and the launching by both Iran and North Korea of the quest for an ultimate deterrent called nuclear armament.
Contrast this aggressive hyperbole from the US, reflecting disdain for a UN world of equal sovereignties, with what El-Sisi said only four hours after the Trump's shameful spectacle. The Egyptian leader said: "In an interconnected and complex world, replete with challenges which are difficult to overcome by any single State, regardless of its capacities and determination, it has become logical for Egypt to aspire to implementing a development plan. Such a plan has to be intertwined with an energetic foreign policy which draws its inspiration from a moral code entrenched in our heritage and culture. Such a policy closely adheres to the legal principles of the world order to which Egypt has contributed to its emergence."
Well!! Haven't Trump invoked the concept of "sovereignty" from the UN General Assembly rostrum 20 times? Sovereignty is not a weapon which is uncheased at will by the strong with a view to overwhelming the sovereignty of the weak. The UN General Assembly is the world's house of commons where Malta and China have co-equal voting powers, regardless of demographic size and influence.
That concept is also operational as reflected in Article I (par.2) of the UN Charter. That provision calls on all UN members "to develop friendly relations among nations based on respect for the principle of equal rights and self-determination of peoples, and to take other appropriate measures to strengthen universal peace."
An important mechanism for fostering that coveted "universal peace" is to respect the sanctity of treaties and international agreements. At law schools, we drill in the minds of our students the Latin phrase: "Pacta Sunt Servanda." (Pacts must be observed). But Trump has consistently demonstrated that pacts are a process whereby their terms must remain open for possible unilateral change.
An ominous demonstration of that Trumpian trait is his attacks on the Iran nuclear deal. Assailing that agreement, which had been ratified in 2015 by the Security Council, nitwit Trump declared at the UN: "The Iran deal was one of the worst and most one-sided transactions the United States has ever entered into." Then looking straight in the direction of Iran's seats in the GA hall, he belligerently fulminated: "Frankly, that deal is an embarrassment to the United States, and I don't think you've heard the last of it, believe me."
Unbelievable!! The parties to that historic deal are all the five permanent members of the Security Council, plus Germany and Iran. America alone cannot undo that agreement. Moreover, the International Atomic Energy Agency has verified Iran's adherence to that agreement which postponed for 15 years Iran's non-enrichment of uranium.
The reaction by both Iran's President Hassan Rouhani and its foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif was swift. Rouhani warned that America's exiting that agreement would lead to "no one will trust America again." Less diplomatically, Zarif who negotiated that agreement for two long years said: "Trump's ignorant hate speech belongs in medieval times -not the 21st Century UN."
But El-Sisi speech at the UN in regard to "Pacta Sunt Servanda" belonged to the 21st Century UN. Referring to the Egypt-Israel treaty of 1979, he directly addressed both the Palestinians and the Israelis. To the Palestinians he said: "Your unity is most important for achieving your goal. Do not waste any more time in readying yourselves to co-exist with the Israelis in security and peace."
And for the Israelis, El-Sisi said: "I address this call to you directly. We, in Egypt, have with you a great experience -living in peace with you for forty years. It is an experience which, once more, can be replicated -security and peace for the Israeli citizen living side by side with the Palestinian citizen."
Where is scatter brained Trump from the President of a country in transition "From Chaos To the Strong State," as I described Egypt in my 2016 book by Amazon? The Greeks invented the term Enosis as a movement for unity -unity between Greece and Cyprus. El-Sisi and many other leaders like him made of enosis a global cause in their UN speeches. Who is Trump kidding when he told the General Assembly: "The United States will forever be a great friend to the world, and especially to its allies!!" Really, Mr. President?! Your own Chief of Staff, General John Kelly was observed bringing his head between his two hands while you fulminated nonsense as if in an American campaign rally.
At the UN, by his measured statement on September 20, Hassan Rouhani of Iran proved that Trump was irrelevant to the very concept of the UN. His words rang true as he said: "The ignorant, absurd, and hateful rhetoric with ridiculously baseless allegations that was uttered before this body yesterday was not only unfit to be heard at the UN which was established to promote peace and respect between nations. But indeed also contradicted the demands of our nations from this world body to bring governments together to combat war and terror." And "the prize goes to" --the leader wearing a turban!!
In the New York Times of September 25, 2017, Peter Baker, the author of "Obama: A Call to History," said about Trump: "He has made himself America's apostle of anger, its deacon of divisiveness ... Mr. Trump has attacked virtually every major institution in American life ... even the United States of America."
Note: New blog postings will resume on a weekly basis after my new book is ready for the press this Fall. Its title: "War on Jihadism By Ideology: The New Islamic Religious Revolution"
