POTUS Commands Respect - That's Why Third World Pres Just Told Him to 'Go to Hell'
Because nothing projects strength like a U.S. president getting slapped around by a banana boat dictator. Repeatedly.
10.4.2016
16
Nothing projects strength like a U.S. President consistently getting slapped around by two-bit despots.
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte is at it again, trashing President Obama during a speech Tuesday on the topic of his country's anti-drug campaign. Because calling Obama a "son of a b***h" wasn't enough, now he told the U.S. President, "You can go to hell."
The U.S. has been critical of Duterte's brutal handling of drug-related crimes, and the Filipino leader hasn't taken the criticism constructively:
"Instead of helping us, the first to criticize is this State Department, so you can go to hell, Mr. Obama, you can go to hell," Duterte said. Then addressing the EU, he said: "Better choose purgatory, hell is filled up."
OK, then.
The Associated Press adds:
The tough-talking former city mayor, who describes himself as a left-leaning leader, has had an uneasy relationship with the U.S. and with Obama and has declared intentions to bolster relations with China and Russia as he revamps the country's foreign policy that has long leaned on Washington.In a speech before a local convention attended by officials and business executives, Duterte outlined his disappointments with the U.S., which has asked his government to stop the widespread killings under his anti-drug campaign and has questioned whether human rights are being violated. He also described Washington as an unreliable ally, saying Filipino forces have not benefited from joint combat exercises with U.S. troops.Angered by U.S. criticism, Duterte has made a series of public pronouncements that he could scale back the activities and presence of visiting U.S. troops in the country. He said he wanted them out of the volatile south, saying their presence has inflamed restiveness among minority Muslims, which could complicate efforts to forge a peace accord with Muslim insurgents.
Duterte has announced he will not allow the Philippine navy to conduct joint patrols with the U.S. military in the disputed South China Sea because it could spark an armed conflict in Philippine territory.
AP adds that Duterte said the joint U.S.-Philippine combat exercises that are slated to commence this week will be both the first and the last of his presidency -- likely a move meant to "impede Washington's plans to expand the footprint of U.S. forces in Southeast Asia to counter China."
The point, of course, is that no U.S. President who actually commanded authority and respect would ever be treated this way. When Donald Trump calls on voters to "make America great again" this is largely what he is referring to. Our standing in the world, and in the eyes of other leaders -- even Third World despots -- has diminished significantly under President Obama.
It is more than an embarrassment for the world's superpower, and it's high time for a change.
(photo source: Duterte poster via Spot.ph)
Posts
