The WP Editorial Board Met With Trump; It Didn't Go Well

[One Girl In All The World]

www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/we-met-with-donald-trump-electing-him-is-still-a-radical-risk/2016/03/21/bfbe5498-ef90-11e5-85a6-2132cf446d0a_story.html?postshare=6561458610522767&tid=ss_fb-bottom

AS DONALD Trump observed during a visit to The Post on Monday, we have been critical of his candidacy, so give him credit for agreeing to sit down with us and answer questions for more than an hour. Unfortunately, the visit provided no reassurance regarding Mr. Trump’s fitness for the presidency. “I’m not a radical person,” he told us as he was leaving. But his answers left little doubt how radical a risk the nation would be taking in entrusting the White House to him.

There was, first, a breezy willingness to ignore facts and evidence. Are there racial disparities in law enforcement? “I’ve read where there are and I’ve read where there aren’t,” Mr. Trump said. “I mean, I’ve read both. And, you know, I have no opinion on that.” Global warming? “I am not a great believer in man-made climate change,” he said.

In that, Mr. Trump is not different from many Republican politicians these days. But no one can match the chasm between his expansive goals and the absence of proposals to achieve them. He would remake the nation’s libel laws, but how, given Supreme Court jurisprudence on the First Amendment? “I’d have to get my lawyers in to tell you,” he said. How could he implement a ban on non-citizen Muslims entering the country? “Well look, there’s many exceptions,” he said. “There’s many — everything, you’re going to go through a process.”

His answer to racial disparity and urban poverty is to create jobs. But how? “Economic zones,” “incentives” and improving the “spirit” of inner-city residents. “You have to start by giving them hope and giving them spirit, and that has not taken place,” Mr. Trump said. How would he push back against Chinese expansionism in the South China Sea? “We have to be unpredictable,” Mr. Trump said. “We’re totally predictable. And predictable is bad.”

An empty policy basket makes almost impossible the kind of substantive debate on which democracies depend. And while it is true that ambiguity sometimes can be useful in diplomacy, a lack of clarity also can be dangerous, enticing rivals to be aggressive and allies to seek new friends.


The latter risk does not seem to worry Mr. Trump: He describes the fundamental U.S. alliances that have helped keep the peace for the past half-century as essentially obsolete. “NATO is costing us a fortune,” he said. “I think NATO as a concept is good, but it is not as good as it was when it first evolved.” He asked why Japan and South Korea, which already pay a substantial share of the costs of U.S. bases, don’t pay 100 percent. We asked: Does the United States gain nothing by a forward presence to help maintain the peace? “Personally, I don’t think so,” Mr. Trump said. It might have made sense when we were “a very powerful, very wealthy country,” but “we’re a poor country now.”

Given Mr. Trump’s belief that we don’t treat him fairly, we invite readers to read the full transcript or listen to the audio recording of our conversation, both of which we’ve posted online . He answered questions about violence at his rallies, voting rights for the District of Columbia (he would favor a vote in the House but not statehood), promoting democracy overseas and the seemliness of trading insults and threatening critics. His defense of the latter was telling: “I mean, actually I think it is presidential because it is winning.” Which suggests one more difference between us: our definition of what is presidential.

[One Girl In All The World]

They linked the audio as well:

www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post-partisan/wp/2016/03/21/a-transcript-of-donald-trumps-meeting-with-the-washington-post-editorial-board/?tid=a_inl

ETA: It's actually kind of interesting to listen to, at least 10 minutes in. Not saying I'm buying what I'm selling, but he sounds much more politician and less side-show Drumpf.

[WanderingWinoZ]

This was such a big deal in the debate....I'm glad it's finally coming out .

But as to the content....just wowzers. He's even more unprepared and ill-informed than he comes off normally & has zero knowledge/solutions to prepare him to be POTUS

[karinothing]

I like that he pointed out the difference between airports here and in Qatar. I mean I am sure if we used slave labor, we could have awesome airports too! Oh, and that he talk about having no money for education? Whose fault is that? Which governors keep gutting education budgets? Oh, and jobs being the answer? I mean DC is moving a lot of jobs into the city. Guess what? Those jobs aren't going to people in SE Washington

[miniroller]

I really am not surprised; though I am disgusted at his supporters who continue to ignore his blatant unpreparedness & ignorance. I don't understand.

He doesn't have a reason to learn! His people like him just how he is, & he therefore, of course, sees no reason to admit fault/ weakness (which is surely how he'd classify expanding one's knowledge bank ) by gathering information.
UGH!!!!! What has happened to my country?!?

[mrsukyankee]

When the biggest candidate out there touts ignorance as a positive, then you know the US has a serious problem.

[aurora]

"We have to be unpredictable,” Mr. Trump said. “We’re totally predictable. And predictable is bad.”

This does seem to be a theme with him.

[insominac]

I feel sorry for whoever had to transcribe that rambling, fragmenty (my own word), incomplete sentence mess. I hope s/he got paid time and a half and got a 10 minute shoulder rub.

[Gato]

Mar 21, 2016 20:40:02 GMT -5 One Girl In All The World said:

We asked: Does the United States gain nothing by a forward presence to help maintain the peace? “Personally, I don’t think so,” Mr. Trump said. It might have made sense when we were “a very powerful, very wealthy country,” but “we’re a poor country now.”

This statement stood out for me.  We're a poor country?  WTF? Do his followers actually believe that?

All the stuff about pulling out of NATO is interesting to me because while I was at the gym this morning, I saw Hillary being interviewed on the Today show and GMA.  She repeatedly emphasized how important it was to stand with our allies and to keep NATO strong.  She interviewed directly after they interviewed Trump.  It was actually pretty enjoyable to watch because she kept responding to "Mr. Trump says this..." with answers that began, "Well, this just shows how little he understands about terrorism or foreign policy."  She sounded strong and highly informed, and I realized that listening to Hillary is good motivation for me during workouts.

Depressingly, Trump had defended waterboarding and said he'd expand torture practices. (wilted)

[heyjude]

theslot.jezebel.com/donald-trump-sexually-harassed-a-washington-post-editor-1766197101

[karinothing]

Mar 22, 2016 10:33:27 GMT -5 @littlemoxie said:

Mar 22, 2016 5:32:47 GMT -5 karinothing said:

I like that he pointed out the difference between airports here and in Qatar. I mean I am sure if we used slave labor, we could have awesome airports too! Oh, and that he talk about having no money for education? Whose fault is that? Which governors keep gutting education budgets? Oh, and jobs being the answer? I mean DC is moving a lot of jobs into the city. Guess what? Those jobs aren't going to people in SE Washington

Oh, come on.  Singapore, Germany and Japan have better airports, too.  Surely you're not implying that the only way a country can have nice airports is to use slave labor, right?  The US doesn't give a shit about infrastructure because we'd have to pay for it - that's the issue.

No, I just thought that his example was an odd one.

[OscarQ]

Mar 22, 2016 4:43:14 GMT -5 WanderingWinoZ said:

This was such a big deal in the debate....I'm glad it's finally coming out .

But as to the content....just wowzers. He's even more unprepared and ill-informed than he comes off normally & has zero knowledge/solutions to prepare him to be POTUS

I thought the interview they wanted released was with the NYT, not WP.

[smock]

Mar 22, 2016 10:31:06 GMT -5 heyjude said:

theslot.jezebel.com/donald-trump-sexually-harassed-a-washington-post-editor-1766197101

Well that's gross. What a sleezebag.

[isabel]

Mar 22, 2016 10:30:15 GMT -5 Gato said:

Mar 21, 2016 20:40:02 GMT -5 One Girl In All The World said:

We asked: Does the United States gain nothing by a forward presence to help maintain the peace? “Personally, I don’t think so,” Mr. Trump said. It might have made sense when we were “a very powerful, very wealthy country,” but “we’re a poor country now.”

This statement stood out for me.  We're a poor country?  WTF? Do his followers actually believe that?
]

[

You know they do. His followers believe the country is going down the drain, that Obama has spent too much on healthcare and other social reforms, and that America is destitute because of it.

The denial is strong.

[juliej]

I plan to buy everyone a shirt.

cottonbureau.com/products/donald-dump

[TR]

Mar 22, 2016 11:10:02 GMT -5 isabel said:

Mar 22, 2016 10:30:15 GMT -5 Gato said:

This statement stood out for me.  We're a poor country?  WTF? Do his followers actually believe that?
]

[

You know they do. His followers believe the country is going down the drain, that Obama has spent too much on healthcare and other social reforms, and that America is destitute because of it.

The denial is strong.

My mom thinks the country and our economy is going to implode. IMPLODE.

[debatethis]

Mar 22, 2016 11:04:26 GMT -5 jenny1980 said:

God, everything he says sounds so moronic and simple.

Nice building! Jobs good! Muslims bad. I have terrific, terrific people. Just great. The marble is great. Very high end. What time is it?

Jesus.

At the risk of sounding like an elitist asshole, I fully believe this is a calculated maneuver dedicated to appealing to his base. Trump might be a gross misogynistic blowhard but he is conniving and knows how to work an audience. Speaking "intellectually" to them isn't the way to go. It's the same reason why blog posts about INGREDIENTS in vaccines garner more support than actual medical journals with real science...and why we're even in a place politically where Dwayne Elizondo Mountain Dew Herbert Camacho personified could feasibly be our next President. 

[simpsongal]

I have no idea what he'll say about Hilary. No doubt he'll attack her appearance....
He tends to insult and compliment opponents, I'm morbidly curious to see which things he embraces in her and which ones he doesn't.

[WanderingWinoZ]

Mar 22, 2016 10:46:09 GMT -5 OscarQ said:

Mar 22, 2016 4:43:14 GMT -5 WanderingWinoZ said:

This was such a big deal in the debate....I'm glad it's finally coming out .

But as to the content....just wowzers. He's even more unprepared and ill-informed than he comes off normally & has zero knowledge/solutions to prepare him to be POTUS

I thought the interview they wanted released was with the NYT, not WP.

Whoops- you are probably correct. I'm for releasing all of them to document his crazycakes

[WanderingWinoZ]

Mar 22, 2016 11:04:26 GMT -5 jenny1980 said:

God, everything he says sounds so moronic and simple.

Nice building! Jobs good! Muslims bad. I have terrific, terrific people. Just great. The marble is great. Very high end. What time is it?

Jesus.

this should have really been in the thread about his advisers or consultants, but I can't shake the similarities of Trump & Palin speak

[aurora]

Mar 22, 2016 10:31:06 GMT -5 heyjude said:

theslot.jezebel.com/donald-trump-sexually-harassed-a-washington-post-editor-1766197101

In this article, Trump says "Uh, I am the least racist person that you will ever meet."

And the scary thing is, I think he likely even believes that.

[DesertMoon]

Calm down ladies don't worry. He has a very good brain.