Under Trump, America's Lost Respect Abroad

Nobel Prize laureate Paul Krugman, writing in Substack, shows that despite claims by the mentally ill Malignant Fascist to the contrary, and to no one else's surprise, the United States has lost the respect of our major allies as a result of foolish tariffs, his betrayal of Ukraine, and his foreign military adventures, among other things:

"The general public may not be aware that Trump’s America offers no reward to nations that come to its aid and does nothing to punish nations that aid its adversaries. But I guarantee that every leader in the world — very much including the leaders of nations Trump is now begging for help in the Strait of Hormuz — has taken notice and will treat the United States accordingly.

In short, Trump’s actions have drastically reduced the world’s respect for the United States. Yet Trump and his officials keep asserting that they have, well, made America great again. Why?

I don’t think it’s mainly about persuading the public. It is, instead, a desperate attempt to persuade themselves. For Trump, life is all about dominance displays; his sense of self-worth depends on believing that he’s cowing the world into submission. Others in his administration have more specific motivations. Pete Hegseth has built his brand around the notion that “warrior ethos” and “lethality” are what make a nation strong. Admitting that being smart and having allies are more important than macho posturing would be an implicit concession that he’s been wrong about everything." (our emphasis)

Please read Dr. Krugman's entire piece. After he launched his poorly thought- out attack on Iran, prodded by Israel's Netanyahu and Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Bonesaw, he's now trying to bully other nations into opening the Strait of Hormuz, which is the choke point for oil shipments out of the Persian Gulf.  So far, no one has jumped at the MF's insistence that they join the misadventure he launched. 

BONUS: Also, recall just a week ago when the MF rebuffed UK Prime Minister Starmer's offer to help as too late. Now who's begging?

(image: Stable Diffusion Online)