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Matilda

(6,384 posts)
Wed Apr 12, 2017, 09:23 PM Apr 2017

'The most ill-informed, under-prepared, and psychologically ill-equipped president in US history'

Comments from an address to be given to the National Press Club in Canberra today (Thursday) by Gareth Evans, senior Cabinet member in the Hawke and Keating Labor Governments:

"Former foreign affairs minister Gareth Evans is urging Australia to reduce its dependence on the United States alliance and accept China as a legitimate "global rule maker".

(snip)

"Mr Evans said Australia's support for the 2003 invasion of Iraq and the immediate backing of last week's American missile strikes against Syria were examples where Australia had been too quick to back the US."

(snip)

"He will accuse the Turnbull government of "absolute capitulation to US pressure" on nuclear disarmament efforts. Australia and other US allies recently walked away from United Nations talks that seek to ban and eliminate nuclear weapons.

"In provocative terms, Mr Evans labelled Donald Trump "manifestly the most ill-informed, under-prepared, ethically challenged and psychologically ill-equipped president in US history".


http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/the-most-illinformed-underprepared-and-psychologically-illequipped-president-in-us-history-20170412-gvk1tf.html


Malcolm Trumble is yet another in a long line of conservative PMs who have been too happy to kowtow to overseas governments. We used to crawl to Britain, now we crawl to the United States. There are some of us who think it's high time that Australia began to think for itself.

Oh, yes, and become a Republic too!

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Sculpin Beauregard

(1,046 posts)
2. That's pretty fucking rich. Current Chinese
Wed Apr 12, 2017, 10:44 PM
Apr 2017

dictator looks like voice of reason compared to Trump admin. Hysterical.

Sculpin Beauregard

(1,046 posts)
4. I fucking hope you can vote out Trump.
Wed Apr 12, 2017, 10:51 PM
Apr 2017

If he doesn't destroy the whole US legal apparatus that would hold him accountable first. He appears to trying to install his own family dynasty at the moment.

Honeycombe8

(37,648 posts)
6. But to a foreign country (Australia), the form of the govt of another country isn't relevant.
Wed Apr 12, 2017, 11:39 PM
Apr 2017

What matters is the other country's economy, global leadership role, the personality and ethics of the leader.

True, dictatorship is as bad as it gets. But the U S does business gladly with China, and courts it for certain things. That China has a dictatorship doesn't enter into it, except when it comes to human rights issues. Which is different from becoming allies with another country for a specific purpose, trading with it, entering into treaties, etc.

Honeycombe8

(37,648 posts)
7. Well, I looked up China's govt in Wikipedia...it doesn't seem to be a dictatorship.
Wed Apr 12, 2017, 11:46 PM
Apr 2017

It seems to be a communist govt, with a structure of legislative bodies and a President, all of whom pledge allegiance to the Communist Party.

I didn't read the whole article, but it doesn't seem to describe a dictatorship.

Matilda

(6,384 posts)
5. This is also a dig at the unquestioning subservience of Australian conservatives to the U.S.
Wed Apr 12, 2017, 11:32 PM
Apr 2017

I don't think many on DU would question Gareth Evans' comments about Trump, but Australian conservative leaders in particular, even Anglophiles like Abbott, have a bad habit of going along with ill-judged forays of the U.S. into foreign wars.

Labor leaders are rather less into forelock-tugging than their Lib counterparts, but voters of all persuasions are often unhappy at seeing us dragged into messy, protracted overseas wars that generally end up going nowhere and proving nothing.

And when the U.S. President is a man of demonstrable ignorance and poor judgment, it's horrifying to see our ridiculous PM jump up and start echoing him. I remember Vietnam all too well - it was my friends who were being called up - and none of us (except the Liberal Party) have forgotten the huge outcry against going into Iraq. Yet Malcolm Turncoat seems to have forgotten this in his desperate eagerness to be accepted by Trump.

Some people never learn.

peakhillfm

(79 posts)
8. chuck him out
Thu May 11, 2017, 02:39 PM
May 2017




The only wat to get rid of Trump is to impeach him and I think that this has been now mentioned....The bloke is a loser

pink

(497 posts)
9. Malcolm Turnbull must have been spitting chips
Sat May 20, 2017, 01:32 AM
May 2017

when he visited the Trumpster only to find out that he would have to wait another 3 hours and then have his "one on one" reduced to half an hour. The excuse being that Trump needed to stay back in DC to celebrate the passing of the bill through the house to take healthcare away from approx. 24million people. The really sad thing was seeing Turnbull congratulating him for doing it.

Matilda

(6,384 posts)
10. Trump is ignorant.
Tue May 23, 2017, 04:05 AM
May 2017

But Turnbull's chosen to play the toady, so he deserves whatever he gets.

I don't doubt he'll drag us into another US war before long.

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