Trump's foreign trip is a bit of a trainwreck so far
by digby
Macron tried to flatter him and make him love him, but he's stuck in a groove about Europe ripping him off and he can't get out of it. But when Macron said that Europe needs to arm up to defend itself, which is pretty much what Trump is asking them to do when he says they have to pay more to NATO, he gets mad.This is because he's so stupid that he still hasn't gotten it into his head that these countries don't write him a personal check to "pay for" NATO.
By the way, when he said they might need to protect themselves against China, Russia and even the US he was talking about cyberwarfare. The other comment about building up a European Army came later. Not that it matters. Trump is clueless about all of it.
He skipped the ceremony to lay a wreath for the WWI veterans, which is what that picture with Macron and Merkel above is referring to. Frankly, it's a good thing. He would just pollute sething that's actually a very meaningful moment.
Nobody really knows why he didn't go. They said it was raining and they couldn't fly Marine One. But nobody believes them. It was just drizzlig. He stayed in his hotel room and tweeted insults instead.
None of the European leaders know what to do with him. They've tried standing up to him and flattering him and ignoring him and none of it works. Welcome to our world.