Der Spiegel is responding to the reports that Donald Trump said, in his private meetings that
We won’t go into the details and numbers of the BMW, VW, and Daimler plants across the south, or the thousands of local dealerships, providing good old American jobs. (If you buy a BMW from your local dealer, chances are that that car never set foot in Germany.) See Slate: www.slate.com/…
We also won’t spend time on the part of the Der Spiegel article, that said:
"The Germans are evil, very evil.” **or “bad, very bad.” “Die Deutschen sind böse, sehr böse” can be translated either way. Whatever it was that Trump said, he said it in English. Our sources are German. My guess would be that Trump said the Germans were “bad.” That would fit his vocabulary.
“Look at the millions of cars they sell in the US. We will stop that.”
We won’t go into the details and numbers of the BMW, VW, and Daimler plants across the south, or the thousands of local dealerships, providing good old American jobs. (If you buy a BMW from your local dealer, chances are that that car never set foot in Germany.) See Slate: www.slate.com/…
We also won’t spend time on the part of the Der Spiegel article, that said:
the EU side was horrified at the extent of the Americans' lack of awareness of trade policy. Apparently, it was unclear to the guests that the EU countries concluded trade agreements only jointly.www.spiegel.de/… [German]
As Quartz reported:
Chief economic adviser Gary Cohn, the former president of Goldman Sachs, seemed to think that there were different customs tariffs between the US and Germany than between the US and Belgium, according to Der Spiegel. (In fact, all euro-zone countries abide by the same tariff policy.)qz.com/… [English]
But what is most striking to me, is an article that was written last week, before Trump came to Europe, entitled, “It’s Time to Get Rid of Donald Trump.” [Or, “How will We be Rid of Trump?”] This is an editorial, filled with words like “laughingstock,” “danger,” “not fit,” “liar,” racist,” “cheat,” “joke of a man,” “immature boy.” And more where that came from.
What was most striking to me was the central paragraph, which addresses “an American tragedy for which there are five theoretical solutions”:
- 1. Trump resigns. Won’t happen.
- 2. Impeachment. Won’t happen “because of the Republican thirst for power.”
- 3. 25th Amendment. Cabinet removes Trump. Won’t happen.
- 4. Democrats take over both houses of Congress and impeach. 18 months away.
Fifth: the international community wakes up and finds a way to circumvent the White House and free itself of its dependence on the U.S. Unlike the preceding four options, the fifth doesn't directly solve the Trump problem, but it is nevertheless necessary - and possible.The perspective from Europe sees America as an unstable, unreliable partner. They need to be thinking about going it alone. Trump on one side, Putin on the other.
Trump made no firm commitment to NATO today. The Europeans need to figure out their path — without any leadership from America. That’s what the editorial sees.
“Crises, including those in Syria and Libya, are escalating, but no longer being discussed. And who should they be discussed with? Phone calls and emails to the U.S. State Department go unanswered. Nothing is regulated, nothing is stable and the trans-Atlantic relationship hardly exists anymore.”(Hell, they can’t even rely on the US not to shut our government down, for no good reason, later this summer.)
How does Germany’s #1 newsmagazine and #1 online magazine see us?
In real life, an immature boy sits on the throne of the most important country in the world. He could, at any time, issue a catastrophic order that would immediately be carried out. That is why the parents cannot afford to take their eyes off him even for a second. They cannot succumb to exhaustion because he is so taxing. They ultimately have to send him to his room - and return power to the grownups.No, they can’t get rid of Trump. (Neither, at this time, can we.) So they — and we — need to make a way to go, not relying on a man who should not be where he is.
“O would some power the Giftie gie us. To see ourselves as ithers see us!”
· BC in Illinois
I want to highlight what “RandomGuyFrom Germany” said, way down in the comments:
That I myself had no idea how many German cars were made and sold in America, is not a problem for anyone. That someone occupying the office of President doesn’t know what he is talking about — to the leaders of the European Union! — backs up why Der Spiegel says he has to go:
I want to highlight what “RandomGuyFrom Germany” said, way down in the comments:
German car makers sold 1.33 million cars in the US last year, which (a) hardly qualifies as “millions” and (b) is only around 7% marketshare.Trump is insulting and threatening an ally, based on nothing more than a vague notion in his head that everyone is driving a German car and that people should “Buy American.” (Like he does.)
They also produced 850,000 cars in the US, which they either sold here or exported.
That makes for roughly half a million cars, or ca. 3% of the market, which Germany wields as a weapon to bring down US economy.
That I myself had no idea how many German cars were made and sold in America, is not a problem for anyone. That someone occupying the office of President doesn’t know what he is talking about — to the leaders of the European Union! — backs up why Der Spiegel says he has to go:
Donald Trump is not fit to be president of the United States. He does not possess the requisite intellect and does not understand the significance of the office he holds nor the tasks associated with it. He doesn't read. He doesn't bother to peruse important files and intelligence reports and knows little about the issues that he has identified as his priorities. His decisions are capricious and they are delivered in the form of tyrannical decrees.Until he goes, we must resist.
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