Trump isn't ‘un-American', he's just transparent
A common reaction to that notorious Trump/Zelensky press conference is 'we haven't seen anything like this before'. Seen is the key word.
Bust-ups and walk-outs do occur in diplomacy, the difference is that Donald Trump does in the open what is meant to be conducted in private. An example: in 2022, NBC reported that Joe Biden had spoken to Zelensky by phone about a $1 billion aid package, and when Zelensky began asking for more, the US president 'lost his temper' and told him to be more grateful.
So, yes, America argues with its friends. Worse than that: it has a record of abandoning them. I'm struck by the parallel between Ukraine and South Vietnam, two regimes encouraged by the US to fight an invader – at huge cost in money and lives – only for Washington to cut and run.
America's stake was far greater in Vietnam (it lost about 58,000 soldiers trying to see off the Viet Cong) and Richard Nixon, unlike Trump, attempted to strengthen his ally's hand with devastating bombing raids. But Nixon had promised his voters peace and, in December 1972, his administration suggested terms to South Vietnam's President Thieu.
If you want a sense of how the sausage is made in foreign policy, read the transcripts of Nixon's conversations with national security adviser Henry Kissinger. Thieu, it seems, rejected a peace deal that would be generous to the Viet Cong; Kissinger called him a 'cheap, self-serving son-of-a-b----', 'criminal' and 'insane.' He suggested cutting off Thieu's economic and military aid and 'doing a Diem on him' – referring to a coup d'état in 1963 that resulted in the assassination of one of Thieu's predecessors, Ngo Dinh Diem. Henry and Dick were discussing murder, but that was part of the job.
To keep face, they decided to bomb the Viet Cong a bit more – then offered it ceasefire terms obviously unfavourable to their own ally. ('We bombed [the enemy] into accepting our concessions,' explained Kissinger). Thieu was left with a promise of ongoing US funding, what you might call a 'backstop', but Congress, including a young Joe Biden, soon voted to turn off the tap.
South Vietnam fell in 1975. Some politicians opposed accepting refugees almost as vociferously as Trump does today. Decades later, Biden applied the withdrawal method to Afghanistan, believing voters were tired of building democracy in exotic locales.
All foreign policy is domestic. Rightly so. Presidents are elected to represent Ohio and Alabama, not Kabul or Kyiv, and as circumstances change it would be madness to stick to a failed policy. What confuses outsiders about America is that its ideals are universal, all men created equal etc, so it sounds as if it's operating out of the goodness of its heart. 'We shall pay any price,' said John F Kennedy, 'oppose any foe to assure the survival and success of liberty.' (The Diem coup, incidentally, happened on Kennedy's watch.)
Historian Mark White's latest, very good book, Icon, Libertine, Leader, suggests that Kennedy believed those words, that he entered office in thrall to his generals and the novels of Ian Fleming. He approved a disastrous invasion of Cuba and, probably, some plots to assassinate Fidel Castro. His strategy likely agitated the Soviets and gave a pretext for sending nuclear weapons to Cuba in 1962, bringing us closer to World War Three than we've ever been. Some argue that Kennedy's diplomacy during the Cuban Missile Crisis, though brilliant, de-escalated a drama he had helped to cause.
Trump would have been 16 years old during Cuba. Does he remember it? Most people my age have no memory of living with the fear of a nuclear exchange, but it conditioned an entire generation's attitude towards Russian relations – and Donald mentions the risks often.
That's why he's reluctant to provide security guarantees for a country outside Nato, which puts him in the tradition of non-interference adopted during the Soviet invasion of Hungary, in 1956. Today it is taken for granted that Ukraine should be allowed to join Nato if it so wishes, but as late as 1998, when senators discussed Nato's expansion, politicians of a less utopian era warned about 'poking the Russian bear'.
As for fawning over Moscow's leaders, as Trump does Putin, even Harry Truman, the wisest eagle of all, wrote in his diary, 'I can deal with Stalin. He is honest – but smart as hell.' This did not stop him defending Europe or Korea when the communists went on the march, but the point is that politicians can be charmed, awed, fooled or irritated by choices as small as not wearing a tie.
While many historians agree that Trump is something unseen before, a few might conclude he's the most American president we've ever had – his chief novelty being transparency. Viewers of the press conference were shocked by his volatility, but when he said 'you don't have the cards', he expressed the way countless administrations have handled smaller countries, including our own. The reason why British policy consists solely of trying to persuade the US to support our goals is because the Americans previously undermined our ability to act as an independent power.
They made demolition of the empire a tacit condition for their support during the Second World War. The US insisted on creating a unipolar world and now complains about having to police it almost on its own. The irony.
Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


The Hill
13 minutes ago
- The Hill
Vance on LA unrest: Newsom should ‘look in mirror' and stop blaming Trump
Vice President JD Vance on Tuesday tore into California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) for suggesting the unrest in Los Angeles is a consequence of federal involvement in state and local law enforcement efforts. 'Gavin Newsom says he didn't have a problem until Trump got involved,' Vance wrote in a post on X, attaching two photos that he said were taken before Trump ordered the National Guard to protect border patrol agents in California. One depicted rioters appearing to attack a 'border patrol' van, and another depicted a car set ablaze. The Hill was not able to verify the authenticity of the photos. 'Does this look like 'no problem'?' Vance asked. Vance suggested Newsom and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass 'fomented and encouraged the riots,' with the goal of promoting mass migration into the U.S., adding, 'It is their reason for being.' 'If you want to know why illegal aliens flocked to your state, stop accusing Donald Trump. Look in the mirror,' Vance said. 'If you want to know why border patrol fear for their lives over enforcing the law, look in the mirror.' Vance pointed to California's Medicaid expansion last year to low-income undocumented immigrants as an example of a policy that has 'encouraged mass migration into California.' Newsom has since proposed ending new Medicaid enrollment for undocumented adults, but his proposal faces resistance from the state legislature. 'Your policies that protected those migrants from common sense law enforcement. Your policies that offered massive welfare benefits to reward illegal immigrants. Your policies that allowed those illegal migrants (and their sympathizers) to assault our law enforcement. Your policies that allowed Los Angeles to turn into a war zone,' Vance continued. 'You sure as hell had a problem before President Trump came along. The problem is YOU,' Vance added. Vance's post is the latest in a back-and-forth between the administration and Newsom, who has resisted Trump's extraordinary steps to deploy 4,000 National Guard troops to the area and mobilize 700 active-duty marines. Newsom has insisted that the situation was under control before the Trump administration escalated tensions by making a provocative show of force. He accused Trump of 'intentionally causing chaos, terrorizing communities and endangering the principles of our great democracy.' After Trump suggested his border czar arrest Newsom, the California governor responded by saying, 'The President of the United States just called for the arrest of a sitting Governor. This is a day I hoped I would never see in America.' 'I don't care if you're a Democrat or a Republican this is a line we cannot cross as a nation — this is an unmistakable step toward authoritarianism,' Newsom added Monday afternoon. Vance then replied to Newsom, saying, 'Do your job. That's all we're asking.' 'Do YOUR job. We didn't have a problem until Trump got involved. Rescind the order. Return control to California,' Newsom responded, prompting Vance's latest response.


Axios
16 minutes ago
- Axios
Newsom denies Trump spoke to him before deploying more National Guards
California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) on Tuesday said President Trump did not speak with him, despite deploying national military personnel to respond to Los Angeles protests. Why it matters: Trump claimed that he had spoken with the governor and criticized his handling of the rallies against Immigration and Customs Enforcement's actions. "There was no call. Not even a voicemail," Newsom said on X. "Americans should be alarmed that a President deploying Marines onto our streets doesn't even know who he's talking to." Driving the news: Trump, speaking to the media on Tuesday, said he last talked with Newsom "a day ago." "Called him up to tell him, got to do a better job," Trump said. "He's doing a bad job, causing a lot of death and a lot of potential death." Reality check: California authorities have not reported any deaths during the protests. A total of 72 people have been arrested over the past weekend, with five police officers being injured, according to local media report on Monday Context: The Marines deployed to LA have not yet responded to immigration protests.


Axios
16 minutes ago
- Axios
Black Caucus chair says Trump's actions on L.A. are impeachable
Congressional Black Caucus chair Yvette Clarke (D-N.Y.) said Tuesday she believes President Trump mobilizing the National Guard and deploying Marines to Los Angeles rises to the level of an impeachable offense. Why it matters: It's a break with House Democrats' general aversion towards impeachment from the head of one of their most powerful groups. The comment comes amid growing animosity between Democrats and the Trump administration over the president's use of law enforcement to carry out a campaign of mass deportations. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Driving the news: During a press conference, Clarke was asked if Trump's actions to quell protests in L.A. rise to the level of an impeachable offense "I definitely believe it is," she responded, "But we'll cross that bridge when we get to it." Clarke and other Democrats have argued that Trump has violated the U.S. Constitution by mobilizing the National Guard over Newsom's objections. Reality check: Democrats are highly unlikely to pursue an organized impeachment effort against Trump any time soon. Two rank-and-file members, Reps. Shri Thanedar (D-Mich.) and Al Green (D-Texas), have spearheaded their own rogue impeachment initiatives, but most Democrats have dissociated themselves with those efforts. Most Democrats are clear-eyed that impeachment would be doomed to failure with Republicans in control of Congress — and they often note that Trump won in 2024 despite previously being impeached twice. What they're saying: House Democratic Caucus chair Pete Aguilar (D-Calif.) told reporters at a subsequent press conference, "I've said before that ... House Democrats aren't focused on impeachment today."