Unless Donald Trump can out-cuss the leaders of the countries he despises, he should think twice before going down the path of profanity as a diplomatic tool. I can tell you with a great degree of certainty that both the Chinese and Indian leaders would out-cuss him without any effort, if that’s the way the potential US president wants to conduct himself.
I cannot wait for him to become president and make his first official call to the Chinese president to say, “Listen you motherfuckers, we are going to tax you 25 per cent” or the OPEC and say, “You are not going to raise that fucking price. You understand me?” Both his exact expressions, not mine.
Trump’s gangsta swagger, unvarnished language and wag of the finger has captivated many on the extreme right in America. But I must warn them that as president he would be dealing every day with those countries in Asia and Africa where ruthlessness is an intrinsic part of statecraft. If he thinks he can out-cuss a Chinese or an Indian, he is deluding himself.
The prospects of Trump becoming president are not as outlandish as many might think. A part of America is in a reckless mood that tells them that they have nothing to lose because they have hit the rock bottom. It is fine as long as they know that Trump’s braggadocio will not really impress the entrenched power structures in Asia or Africa. In a bare knuckle street brawl of the kind Trump is proposing as his foreign policy, there are far more seasoned players than America could ever be.
For decades America has become accustomed to its global primacy as a matter of its natural right, while other emerging economies such as India, China and Brazil have had to roam the streets with their gloves off, punching their way through. I don’t think those who uncritically applaud Trump (like the women in these two clips do) have a real sense of how raw and unsparing life can be on the streets of the world. Toughness here is not a pose that people strike for television ratings. If someone says he would slit your throat, it is not figurative. It is literal.
So before people get swept up in the thrill of Trump’s gangsta swagger, they would be well advised to consider some of these factors. If they remain convinced after that, go right ahead and install him in the Oval Office and watch him struggle cuss and finger-wag his way out of crises.
P.S.:On April 17, I wrote what I thought was a reasonably humorous spoof under the title ‘The Apprentice White House Edition’ about Donald Trump ‘s first day as president on January 21, 2013. I just caught this piece in the Wall Street Journal by Joe Queenan today.
