Two Opinion Columnists on Trump's Era of International Bullying
With President Trump meeting with heads of state in the Middle East this week, the Times Opinion senior international editor Krista Mahr sat down with the columnists Lydia Polgreen and Nick Kristof to talk about how the president is emboldening leaders of all kinds worldwide, and what relationships they're most worried about.
Below is a transcript of an episode of 'The Opinions.' We recommend listening to it in its original form for the full effect. You can do so using the player above or on the NYT Audio App, Apple, Spotify, Amazon Music, YouTube, iHeartRadio or wherever you get your podcasts.
This transcript has been edited for length and clarity.
Krista Mahr: My name is Krista Mahr. I'm the senior international editor at Times Opinion.
One of the things my colleagues and I have been watching closely in the first four months of Trump's second term is how world leaders are reacting to this new administration. I wanted to talk about this so-called Trump effect with Lydia Polgreen and Nick Kristof, columnists who have reported extensively on America's relationship with the rest of the world.
Lydia, Nick, welcome.
Lydia Polgreen: Hi, Nick. Hi, Krista.
Nicholas Kristof: Good to be with you.
Mahr: So, from my perspective, it looks like there are a few different types of leadership that have emerged in response to Trump 2.0. There are the emboldened leaders like Vladimir Putin who are using Trump's foreign policy to advance their own agendas.
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