Trump Cabinet members actions and issues: on Foreign Policy
Mike Pompeo:
Chinese Communist Party is enmeshed in our society
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo tried to rally the European Union against China during a trip to Czechia, where he proclaimed that "[t]he CCP is already enmeshed in our economies, in our politics, in our societies in ways the Soviet Union never was."
Referencing the Chinese Communist Party, rather than "Chinese people" more generally is one effective way to dodge accusations of racial bias. But the point is clear as day: The enemy is already within our ranks and its face is yellow.
Source: Current Affairs magazine on Trump Cabinet
Oct 31, 2020
Mike Pompeo:
Chinese Communist Party co-opted World Health Organization
"When you have an incident in your country that could potentially lead to a pandemic, you have an obligation to report that and to allow others to come in and help you be transparent about it. The Chinese Communist Party chose differently. They co-opted
Source: CNBC's coverage of 2020 Trump Cabinet
Jul 21, 2020
Mike Pompeo:
Benghazi was "worse, in some ways, than Watergate"
For a man acknowledged to be highly intelligent, Mike Pompeo has a long history of talking nonsense. As a greenhorn House member, brought to Congress by the Tea Party wave of 2010, he made his name by pushing conspiracy theories about Hillary Clinton.
He claimed, without evidence, that she was complicit in the murder of four Americans at an outpost in Benghazi, Libya, to a degree that was "worse, in some ways, than Watergate."
Source: The Economist newsmagazine on Trump Cabinet
May 16, 2020
Mike Pompeo:
America First; treat the world with some skepticism
His articulation of an America First foreign policy that engages with the world consistently but skeptically is a fair stab at making Trumpism coherent. Mr. Pompeo, contrary to the impression he sometimes gives, is a serious grown-up, who has at
least grudging respect from many in the foreign-policy establishment. His basic vision, of a confident America working with allies, is pretty standard foreign policy, suggests Leon Panetta, a former Democratic cia director and defense secretary.
Source: The Economist newsmagazine on Trump Cabinet
May 16, 2020
Mike Pompeo:
Claims MIT snubbed him due to their China ties
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo lashed out at officials at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology for allegedly refusing to host him so as not to offend Communist China and thus keep their Chinese interests intact. While speaking at the Georgia
Institute of Technology, Pompeo accused the Chinese Communist Party of "poisoning" the nation's university system and said U.S. schools were censoring anti-Beijing dissent because they're "hooked on Chinese Communist Party cash."
Source: The New American on Trump Cabinet
May 6, 2020
Mike Pompeo:
Prevented G7 statement by insisting on using "Wuhan virus"
Members of the G7--the U.S. and its six closest allies--did meet to write a joint statement. But even that tepid project ended in ludicrous rancor when the American secretary of state, Mike Pompeo, insisted on using the expression "Wuhan virus"
and the others gave up in disgust. Not only is the president talking nonsense, not only is America absent, but the nation's top diplomat is a caricature of a tough guy--someone who throws around insults in the absence of any capacity to influence events.
Source: The Atlantic magazine on Trump Cabinet
May 3, 2020
Donald Trump:
Protect human rights in Hong Kong against China
China reacted furiously to President Donald Trump's signing of two bills on Hong Kong human rights and said the US will bear the unspecified consequences. A foreign ministry statement repeated heated condemnations of the laws and said China will
counteract. It said all the people of Hong Kong & China oppose the move.Trump signed the bills, which were approved by near unanimous consent in the House and Senate, even as he expressed some concerns about complicating the effort to work out a
trade deal with China. "I signed these bills out of respect for President Xi, China, and the people of Hong Kong," Trump said. "They are being enacted in the hope that Leaders and Representatives of China & Hong Kong will be able to amicably settle
their differences leading to long term peace & prosperity for all."
"We have to stand with Hong Kong," Trump said in an interview on "Fox & Friends." He continued: "But I'm also standing with President Xi. He's a friend of mine. He's an incredible guy.
Source: Idaho Statesman coverage of Trump Cabinet
Nov 27, 2019
Donald Trump:
Recognize 1967 Israel's annexation of Golan Heights
Senior Israeli officials stated that the Trump administration is planning to formally recognise Israel's authority over the occupied Golan Heights after decades of non-recognition by the US and others. [Trump issued a formal proclamation on March 25].
The Golan Heights were captured by Israel during the Six Day War in 1967 from the Syrian army, which used the strategic high ground overlooking Galilee to launch attacks on Israeli territory.
Since then, the area has been recognised as highly strategic in maintaining Israel's dominance over the Syrian border.Israel administered the Heights through military law until 1981, in the same
way in which it administered the West Bank and Gaza Strip, before the Menachem Begin government directly applied Israeli law and effectively annexed the territory to the Israeli state.
Source: Middle East Monitor on Trump Cabinet, "Golan Heights"
Mar 21, 2019
Daniel Coats:
China's goal is global superiority, including militarily
China's actions reflect a long-term strategy to achieve global superiority. Beijing's global ambition continues to restrict the personal freedoms of its citizens, while strictly enforcing obedience to Chinese leadership, with very few remaining checks
on President Xi's power.In its efforts to diminish US influence and extend its own economic, political, and military reach, Beijing will seek to tout a distinctly Chinese fusion of strong-man autocracy and a form of western style capitalism as a
development model and implicit alternative to democratic values and institutions. These efforts will include the use of its intelligence and influence apparatus to shape international views and gain advantages over its competitors--including the
United States.
As part of this trend, we anticipate China will attempt to further solidify and increase its control within its immediate sphere of influence in the South China Sea and its global presence farther abroad.
Source: Annual Threat Assessment by DNI (Trump Cabinet report)
Jan 29, 2019
Daniel Coats:
China grows by investment; Russia by misdirection
China's pursuit of intellectual property, sensitive research and development plans, and US Person data, remains a significant threat to the US government and private sector.China's military capabilities and reach will continue to grow as it invests
heavily in developing and fielding advanced weapons, and Beijing will use its military clout to expand its footprint and complement its broadening political and economic influence, as we've seen with its one-belt one-road initiative.
Whereas with China, we must be concerned about the methodical and long-term efforts to capitalize on its past decade of a growing economy and to match, or overtake
our superior global capabilities, Russia's approach relies on misdirection and obfuscation as it seeks to destabilize and diminish our standing in the world.
Source: Annual Threat Assessment by DNI (Trump Cabinet report)
Jan 29, 2019
Nikki Haley:
Helped broker U.N. sanctions on North Korea
According to former national security adviser H.R. McMaster, Haley played a "central role" in brokering the U.N. sanctions on North Korea. "She has what we call strategic
empathy," he says. "She's able to take problems from the perspective of others and then frame these problems from their perspective. What she was particularly adept at doing was convincing others why it was in their interest to join us."
Source: The Washington Examiner on Trump Cabinet
Dec 13, 2018
Nikki Haley:
Obama was wrong to abstain on Cuba's anti-US resolution
She is disdainful of where the United States was at the end of Obama's tenure. "For example, right before I came in, there was a Cuban-sponsored anti-American resolution."
That would be the evergreen condemnation of the U.S. embargo of Cuba. In the fall of 2016, when the vote came up, "The United States abstained," Haley recounts, "It blamed America for all of Cuba's problems, and we just... abstained."
Source: The Washington Examiner on Trump Cabinet
Dec 13, 2018
Daniel Coats:
Criticizes government censorship & social controls in China
Coats criticized the Chinese government for ratcheting up social controls and surveillance within its own borders. He did not mention Google by name, but the company's capitulation to Chinese censorship mandates has been in the news this month.
One senior Google research scientist resigned in protest after the company agreed to remove content about human rights, free speech and political protest on a Chinese version of its search engine.
Since Xi Jinping took power as general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party in 2012, China has abandoned its previous strategy of "hiding its strengths and biding its time,"
Coats said. The government's crackdown on dissidents, as well as racial and religious minorities, has worried international human rights organizations this year.
Source: Charleston Post and Courier on 2018 Trump Cabinet
Sep 25, 2018
Daniel Coats:
China holds 1M Muslims in "patriotic re-education" camps
Coats referred to reports that the Chinese government is holding as many as 1 million ethnic-minority Muslims in internment camps in the country's northwest for "patriotic re-education," requiring them to reject their ethnic identities and religious
beliefs. "Chinese officials in the Muslim northwest have instituted high-tech surveillance measures, including the collection of DNA & other bio-data throughout the region, with Chinese technology companies at the forefront of these actions," Coats said.
Source: Charleston Post and Courier on 2018 Trump Cabinet
Sep 25, 2018
Nikki Haley:
Time to show people reasons to support the U.N.
This is a moment of great responsibility for those who believe in peace and security through international cooperation. Countries all over the world are turning inward. People are questioning the value of interactions with other nations and with
international institutions. Some of those questions are good ones and long overdue, but there's also a danger. Hanging in the balance is the very relevance of the United Nations. This is a time, in short, to show the people reasons to support the U.N.
The Human Rights Council is so corrupt. Countries get on it to protect themselves, to make sure that the fingers never pointed at them instead of actually looking at what we need to be doing around the world. When you've got bad actors that actually
sit on the Human Rights Council, it makes you call into question what we're trying to do. I don't think the Human Rights Council has been effective. I'm trying to find value in the Human Rights Council. If I find it, I'll let you know.
Source: Council on Foreign Relations on Trump Cabinet
Mar 29, 2017
Nikki Haley:
US is world's conscience; participation in UN reflects that
I came to the U.N. with the goal of showing the American people value for our investment in this institution. And when I say value, I'm not primarily talking about budgets. I'm talking about making the U.N. an effective tool on behalf of our values. The
United States is the moral conscience of the world. We will not walk away from this role, but we will insist that our participation in the U.N. honor and reflect this role.
The fact is, peace and security cannot be achieved in isolation from human rights. In case after case, human rights abuses are not the byproduct of conflict; they are the cause of conflict, or they are the fuel that feeds the conflict. Desperate people
subject to humiliation and abuse will inevitably resort to violence. People who are robbed of their humanity and dignity will inevitably want revenge. They are also vulnerable to manipulation or coercion by extremist groups.
Source: Council on Foreign Relations on Trump Cabinet
Mar 29, 2017
Nikki Haley:
We will deal fairly with people who are fair to us
At the U.S. Mission, we're all about changing the culture and bringing positive energy to the United Nations. We've put accountability front and center. I have no tolerance for unmet promises and inaction. We demand that of ourselves and we expect it of
others. We're also having the backs of our allies, and we're not afraid to call out the governments that don't have our backs. We will deal fairly with the people who are fair with us. If not, all bets are off.
Source: Council on Foreign Relations on Trump Cabinet
Mar 29, 2017
Page last updated: Dec 03, 2021