What Trump didn't say is making diplomats nervous
President Trump’s speech Tuesday evening left diplomats and allies wondering exactly how he views America’s role in the world. He made no mention of the thousands of U.S. troops in Afghanistan and Iraq or the small number in Syria, and he left unexplained why it is he’s expanding the fight against al Qaeda in Yemen.
Mr. Trump made a statement of support for Israel, and he didn’t elaborate on his calls for a new relationship with Russia. This has been worrying European allies in NATO, who, Mr. Trump said, should be spending more on their own defense.
The new budget the administration is preparing also contains little comfort for diplomats and allies, though a senior State Department aide told CBS News Wednesday that the Trump White House proposal to slash foreign aid - by as much as 30 to 40 percent - is simply the “opening salvo of the administration and a suggestion made by political wonks.” Further, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson is “not looking at it through the same lens,” the aide added, suggesting it’s more of a “political message than an actual budget.”
Earlier Wednesday White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer responded to my question about how the president reconciles gutting foreign aid with his call Tuesday night in his joint address for “robust” engagement in the world. Spicer responded that “dollars do not decide engagement.” This is a sentiment that top U.S. aid recipients - Israel, Egypt, Pakistan - may disagree with.
The State Department senior aide said that Tillerson is “comfortable with his working relationship with President Trump” and speaks to him frequently by phone. The two were also having dinner together Wednesday. However, when pressed on the question of which portfolios the secretary of State runs, versus those of the president’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, the aide demurred.
Among other countries in his portfolio, Tillerson should count Iran, a rogue country that the State Department is in a unique position to directly communicate with, given the parameters of the Iran nuclear deal. However, the aide would not say whether Tillerson had reached out to his counterparts in Tehran yet or not.
I also asked about President Trump’s rare mention of his chief diplomat, but frequent public praise of “the Generals,” as Mr. Trump likes to refer to his Defense and Homeland Security secretaries who are both retired U.S. Marine Corps commanders. In response, the aide pointed to Mexico as one area of diplomacy where Tillerson’s skills are very much needed.
“The military is not going to help with Mexico,” the aide said. This issue “needs the soft touch of a diplomat.”
Tillerson views his role as the guy who “sets up the deal so that the president can close it,” said the senior aide, as opposed to Hillary Clinton and John Kerry. Tillerson has a more quiet and deliberate style.
At this point, the secretary does not yet have key positions like his deputy and policy planning director filled, but the aide said Tillerson has staff he needs, and he is “probing” and trying to identify where talent is within the building.
