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Trump asked: "So it could be bilateral?" Merkel reportedly nodded in response to the question, The Times said, citing several people who were in the room. The newspaper said Trump then turned to commerce secretary Wilbur Ross and said, "we'll negotiate a bilateral trade deal with Europe."
German officials were reportedly rattled by the president's lack of knowledge on world affairs. During one of Trump and Merkel's first phone calls, Merkel reportedly had to explain the history of Ukraine to Trump, who was said to be unaware of the country's importance in trans-Atlantic relations.
There is a cult of ignorance in the United States, and there has always been. The strain of anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that "My ignorance is just as good as your knowledge."- Isaac Asimov
yes...but Trump is discussing issues with Angela Merkel, not with Moon Jae-in or King Salman.
basic prep work for any meeting with a world leader. if he's asking basic questions about Ukraine or talking about "negotiating a bilateral trade deal with Europe", just goes to show he didn't do it.
There is a cult of ignorance in the United States, and there has always been. The strain of anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that "My ignorance is just as good as your knowledge."- Isaac Asimov
yes...but Trump is discussing issues with Angela Merkel, not with Moon Jae-in or King Salman.
basic prep work for any meeting with a world leader. if he's asking basic questions about Ukraine or talking about "negotiating a bilateral trade deal with Europe", just goes to show he didn't do it.
There's nothing impossible about agreeing to a bilateral trade agreement with Germany. With the European Union, not exactly, but you can have a deal with the EU that does not involve joining the EU. Canada is negotiating just such a deal. This is fundamentally different from an agreement like the WTO.
Germany is a sovereign nation, it can do whatever it wants. The EU is not a nation and has no sovereign authority.
Trump's still stupid, of course, but I don't particularly give a damn about these particular instances. We should continue to needle them about a bilateral trade deal, because the EU is a freakin' stupid idea.
"The great questions of the day will not be settled by means of speeches and majority decisions but by iron and blood"-Otto Von Bismarck
Germany is a sovereign nation, it can do whatever it wants. The EU is not a nation and has no sovereign authority.
Sorry, but Germany as a sovereign nation has decided to put the following two articles in its constitution:
Article 23 [The European Union]
(1) With a view to establishing a united Europe, the Federal Republic of Germany shall participate in the development of the European Union that is committed to democratic, social, and federal principles, to the rule of law, and to the principle of subsidiarity, and that guarantees a level of protection of basic rights essentially comparable to that afforded by this Basic Law. To this end the Federation may transfer sovereign powers by a law with the consent of the Bundesrat. [...] Article 24 [International organizations]
(1) The Federation may by a law transfer sovereign powers to international organizations.
(1a) Insofar as the Länder are competent to exercise state powers and to perform state functions, they may, with the consent of the Federal Government, transfer sovereign powers to transfrontier institutions in neighboring regions.
(2) With a view to maintaining peace, the Federation may enter into a system of mutual collective security; in doing so it shall consent to such limitations upon its sovereign powers as will bring about and secure a lasting peace in Europe and among the nations of the world. [...]
Article 207 of the Lisbon Treaty establishes the Common Commercial Policy in connection with Article 218 defining how the EU negotiates treaties with third nations.
Published on Oct 19, 2017
Former president George W. Bush spoke about the perils facing U.S. democracy on Oct. 19, and appeared to weigh in on President Trump's tenure.
(I am adding this new content to an old thread because I think this old thread is where this circa 2017 video best belongs.)
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