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Trump Foreign Policy Tag

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is meeting with President Trump at in Mar-a-Lago, with trade and North Korea being two of the key topics the leaders will discuss.
Abe is set to arrive Tuesday at Trump’s winter resort in Palm Beach, Fla., for two days of meetings as concerns mount in Tokyo that Trump’s risky diplomatic gambit with Kim Jong Un could undermine Japan’s security. Abe also was blindsided by Trump’s decision not to grant Japan a waiver on new steel and aluminum tariffs, as he did for other U.S. allies and partners.

Following President Trump's announcement that the United States, the United Kingdom, and France had launched a joint missile strike in Syria, MSNBC's Rachel Maddow told her audience that the strikes might be motivated as a means of distracting from domestic problems Trump is facing.  Apparently, she is concerned that even this impression will "taint" military operations. In her best "no, you are not dreaming Trump really won" voice, Maddow announced that the timing of the strikes and her sense that it seems to be a diversion weakens our military's "impact and effectiveness."  National security, she intones, is at risk.

There are few traits Americans share more than our love of "the underdog". In fact, the science on the matter is quite settled!
Put simply, most of us are uncomfortable with inequality. We think it’s wrong for one team — or one person — to have too great an advantage. So we root for the less advantaged, in the hope that the scales of justice can be righted.

Last night, President Donald Trump announced that he ordered America's armed forces to target places in Syria associated with chemical weapons. A chemical weapon attack on Douma last weekend killed 70 people and injured at least 500 others. Minutes later, videos emerged of bombings in Syria. The Pentagon stated this morning that the coalition "successfully hit every target" in Syria.

A chemical attack in Syria has left dozens dead.  Assessment is on-going, so reports vary as to how many people were killed.  Early reports say that at least 42 people were killed, with hundreds in need of medical care.  The International Rescue Committee (IRC) is reporting that over 70 civilians were killed. According to reports, the victims of Saturday's chemical attack showed signs of chlorine and nerve agent poisoning. President Trump has responded vigorously on Twitter, tagging Syria's president "Animal Assad" and reminding us that Obama's 2013 empty "red line" threats against Syria's use of chemical weapons emboldened the Russia-supported regime.

Last year, tensions between America and Turkey rose after members of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's security detail attacked and beat up protesters outside of the Turkish embassy. Those tensions may ease since federal prosecutors have decided to drop charges against 11 of the 15 men charged...even though people caught the brawl on tape.

President Donald Trump finally visited California when he landed in the San Diego area to tour the border wall prototypes as part of a whirlwind trip that also included an address to the troops at Marine Air Station Miramar and a swank fundraising dinner in Los Angeles.

I woke up this morning to numerous news alerts that told me North Korea is open to talks with the US about denuclearization. I rolled my eyes because does anyone honestly believe this? Yeah, I don't especially after I dug deeper. North Korea said it is open to talks "and that it would suspend all nuclear and missile tests while it is engaged in such talks."

The United States and Argentina are to work together to cut off Lebanese terrorist outfit Hezbollah’s funding networks in Latin America. U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Argentinian Foreign Minister Jorge Faurie declared their intention to cooperate in this regard during a press conference in Buenos Aires on Sunday. Argentina is home to a large Lebanese expatriate population and U.S. authorities believe that the Iranian-backed terrorist group has been raising funds for it activities through organised crime in the region, including drug trade.

President Donald Trump and his administration continues to crack down on Iran, but this time it took aim at terrorist group Hezbollah, which relies on Iran. The sanctions will also try to dim Iran's influence across the Middle East. From the Treasury Department:
“Hizballah is a terrorist organization responsible for the death of hundreds of Americans. It is also Iran’s primary proxy used to undermine legitimate Arab governments across the Middle East. The Administration is determined to expose and disrupt Hizballah’s networks, including those across the Middle East and West Africa, used to fund their illicit operations,” said Secretary of the Treasury Steven T. Mnuchin. “The Treasury Department will continue to sever Hizballah from the international financial system, and we will be relentless in identifying, exposing, and dismantling Hizballah’s financial support networks globally.”

Politico has reported that President Donald Trump has decided to extend the Iran nuclear deal. He stated, though, this will be his last waiver "unless the deal is strengthened by Congress and European allies." Politico continued:
Trump faced a Friday deadline to decide whether to reimpose economic sanctions on Iran the U.S suspended as part of a 2015 nuclear agreement negotiated with Tehran by the Obama administration and five other nations.

Last Thursday, the United Nations (UN) voted to condemn America's recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital and decision to move its embassy to the city. Professor Jacobson pointed out in a follow up post that the vote gave President Donald Trump to turn that loss into a win with money. The UN loves to crap on America, even though we host the UN and contribute a ton of money into the organization that has basically become useless. That is exactly what Trump has done: $285 million budget cut to the UN. There may be more cuts to come, too.