The Duterte visit: Trump’s masterstroke on the Philippines – IOTW Report

The Duterte visit: Trump’s masterstroke on the Philippines

American Thinker:

They’re all upset about President Trump’s announcement that he would host the Philippines’ controversial president, Rodrigo Duterte, in the White House.

According to this report in the New York Times, the human rights groups are wringing their hands, the State Department and the National Security Council are tearing their hair out, and the congressional Democrats are ruefully stroking their chins and trying to make political hay.

In reality, Trump’s move is an exceptionally bold and clever one, and strongly rooted in advancing U.S. interests.  Big time.  Here’s what they don’t get:

The Philippines has elected Duterte, a wild-man populist, out of frustration with the status quo.  Whatever his merits – and cripes, he does pop off – he does represent the outcome of years of frustration from a population long silenced and held down by its soggily leftist Davos-style elites.  Trump can see through that dynamic even as the left shrieks.

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8 Comments on The Duterte visit: Trump’s masterstroke on the Philippines

  1. The Philippines needs us more than we need them. I don’t know if Duterte is as bad as Ferdinand Marcos was but he knows that the probably trusts Trump more than he does the Chicoms. And having been to the Philippines in the 70’s while in the Navy I know how much the P I is of strategic value to not only our security (and the freedom of the seas) but to the rest of Asia and Australia as well. Maybe, hopefully we can renegotiate with them to gain access to base our Navy and Marines there once again to maintain and operate a strategic outpost and balance in that region once again. The P I is still a chokepoint for maintaining stability in that part of the world as it has been since World War 2 and beyond.

  2. President Trump is a cat playing with the liberal mice.

    The saying, ‘give them enough rope and they’ll hang themselves’ is so matsterfully being played out, with congress, with the MSM, with foreign policy, on every front.

    President Trump allowed the MSM to lose its credibility by exposing their lies with his own direct, unfiltered communication.

    He is exposing the traitorous congress, in the same manner and they are too stupid and cocky to see the mouse trap!

    And he is building foreign policy back in line, despite the left.

    I love President Trump. I love how he works without obama-trappings, like red carpets, gold fixtures and fake columns. I love how he signs things, in front of the press, without ‘prop people and a different pen for each downward stroke!! I love the accessibility of President Trump.

  3. I don’t know a lot about what’s happened in the Philippines since Duterte’s election, I did read that his popularity has dropped – to around 75% from 80%. If Trump had that kind of support here the wall would be up, 0bamacare would be gone, and the tax reductions would be taking effect.

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