New York Times (Editorial)
March 8, 2016
You would think that if the leader of a country friendly to America likened a serious contender for the American
presidency to two of the premier villains of the 20th century, it would set off an uproar.
But
Donald Trump has so debased the tone of the presidential race that
there was hardly a murmur when President
Enrique Peña Nieto of Mexico did just that this week. Not only was
there no way Mexico would pay for Mr. Trump’s wall along the border, but
that sort of demagogy, Mr. Peña Nieto said, was “how Mussolini got in,
that’s how Hitler got in.”
That
may be a natural reaction given all the hatred Mr. Trump has hurled at
Mexico. But Mr. Peña Nieto is not
alone among people around the world increasingly frightened by the
irresponsible and ignorant pronouncements of a man who could be the
Republican nominee. Mr. Trump won at least two more states, Michigan and
Mississippi, on Tuesday.
In January, the British Parliament held an extraordinary
debate
on whether to bar Mr. Trump from Britain on the grounds that his
comments about Muslims amounted to “hate speech” (no vote was taken).
Last week, Mr. Trump’s exercise in Japan-bashing set off panic in the
Japanese Foreign Ministry. In China, his vacillation
between proclamations of “love” for the Chinese and fiery pledges of
stern action against China for “ripping us off” has left experts and
politicians scratching their heads. At least one foreign government
tried to learn more about Mr. Trump’s policy positions
by making direct contact with his campaign, but has been unable to
figure out who is the authoritative channel, one diplomat told The
Times.
Spleen
and grievance are at the core of Mr. Trump’s thinking about the world.
China, Japan, Mexico, Europe all
must be made to stop exploiting America’s economy, he says; allies must
be made to pay more for American protection; borders must be made
impermeable to drug dealers, rapists and criminals. The rest is a swirl
of instinctive reactions: He welcomes Russia’s
military intervention in Syria; he would “bomb the hell” out of ISIS in
Iraq; he’d resume waterboarding; he’d keep Guantánamo open.
For
Mr. Trump’s supporters, such talk amounts to “saying it like it is” and
promises to somehow “make America
great again.” For America’s closest allies in Europe, who have long
counted on the United States to be an anchor of liberal democracy, such
talk conjures only alarm. They know from their own difficult experience,
both past and present, what to expect of fascistic
and xenophobic leaders who appeal to the worst impulses. “Whether
Donald Trump, Marine Le Pen or Geert Wilders — all these right-wing
populists are not only a threat to peace and social cohesion, but also
to economic development,” Vice Chancellor SigmarGabriel
of Germany told the newspaper Welt am Sonntag.
Ms.
Le Pen, who has compared Muslim street prayers to the Nazi occupation,
is the leader of the far-right National
Front party in France, which campaigns mostly on anti-immigrant
policies. Mr. Wilders, head of the Dutch far-right Party for Freedom,
has also raged against Islam and demanded a ban on the Quran. Some
Europeans also see Mr. Trump’s reflection in Silvio Berlusconi,
the former Italian prime minister and wealthy businessman who
embarrassed and harmed his country’s reputation with his quips about
Mussolini, his vulgar behavior and his destructive policies.
Dealing with an enormously complex and dangerous world is a major responsibility of the president of the United
States. And that is why to Mr. Peña Nieto and many others Mr. Trump’s rise is so significant and distressing
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