NYT Trump Interview

Party bosses aren’t sure they can control him, why dark forces want him stopped, going all-out to undermine his campaign. As president, he might halt buying oil from Saudi Arabia and other Arab states unless they commit ground forces to help wage US wars or “substantially reimburse” Washington for its regional combat operations, he said.

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“If Saudi Arabia was without the cloak of American protection, I don’t think it would be around,” he claimed. He believes Washington shouldn’t be responsible for protecting its allies. He’s open to Japan and South Korea developing nuclear weapons and other deterrents for protection against North Korea and China posing no regional threat.

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He’s willing to withdraw US forces from both countries if they don’t substantially contribute more financially to maintaining them in their countries. He calls America a diluted power. He’d bargain economically with other nations to restore its global preeminence.

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He blasted the Iran nuclear deal, saying Washington should have “walked away a few times.” His worldview is “America first,” saying “(w)e will not be ripped off anymore. We’re going to be friendly with everybody, but we’re not going to be taken advantage of by anybody.” He believes US intervention abroad caused more problems than solutions, notably in the Middle East, saying:

“Every bad decision that you could make in the Middle East was made.” If Obama and Bush “just (went) to the beach and enjoyed the ocean and the sun, we would’ve been much better off…than all of this tremendous death, destruction, and…monetary loss. It’s just incredible.”

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He’s open to an alternative organization to NATO, focusing on counterterrorism, calling the Alliance “obsolete.”  He believes the best way to counter China’s control over its sovereign Nansha Islands and surrounding waters is by threatening its access to US markets.

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Beijing could retaliate in response. Trade wars benefit no one. He’s not “isolationist,” he maintains. He’s for “America first,” saying he “like(s) the expression.” He questioned the benefit of America’s empire of bases for national security, stressed what he called the importance of “unpredictability” for a US leader, saying he doesn’t want allies or adversaries to know what he’s thinking.

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He supports “a two-state solution on Israel. But the Palestinian Authority has to recognize (its) right to exist as a Jewish state.” He expressed no support for the rights of its 20% Arab population, ignored Israel’s control over 60% of West Bank land, claiming Jerusalem as its exclusive capital, maintaining militarized harshness, committed to conflict, not peace.

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A Trump presidency would differ from tradition largely in style, not longstanding fixed policies. Powerful interests controlling America assure continuity.

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The NYTimes interview can be found here.