President Obama says world leaders are “rattled” by Donald Trump — and have good reason to feel that way.
Mr. Obama was discussing the 2016 presidential campaign during a news conference in Japan, saying foreign leaders are surprised by Trump and not sure how seriously to take the things he says.
The assessment of the presidential campaign came on the sidelines of a Group of Seven advanced economies summit in Japan, the latest world gathering to be colored by global concerns about Trump.
Mr. Obama said many of the likely Republican nominee’s proposals display ignorance about world affairs, a cavalier attitude or an interest in getting “tweets and headlines.” He contrasted that to proposals to make America safe.
We don’t know which one of the world’s leaders was rattled. He did not say!
At the same time, we do know that China is turning international waters into its own private lake and Russian jets keep flying within feet of U.S. ships. Furthermore, Iran is pushing its weight around with lots of U.S. dollars as a result of the recent deal.
Leaders rattled? Yes, and they are probably looking at their watch every hour counting down to Mr. Obama’s successor.
Last, but not least, why is President Obama talking about U.S. presidential candidates on foreign soil?
Where is the media? What if President Bush had said overseas that a one term senator with no executive experience was not ready for presidency?
