Worries Over US Commitment to NATO Renewed after Trump Speech

Former US president and 2024 presidential hopeful Donald Trump attends a rally in Conway, South Carolina - AFP
Former US president and 2024 presidential hopeful Donald Trump attends a rally in Conway, South Carolina - AFP
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Worries Over US Commitment to NATO Renewed after Trump Speech

Former US president and 2024 presidential hopeful Donald Trump attends a rally in Conway, South Carolina - AFP
Former US president and 2024 presidential hopeful Donald Trump attends a rally in Conway, South Carolina - AFP

Donald Trump prompted stark warnings on Sunday that his remarks against NATO threatened the military alliance, after a campaign speech renewed doubts over the US commitment to the mutual defense treaty if the former president wins in November.

Speaking at a campaign rally in South Carolina on Saturday, Trump described what he said was a conversation with a fellow head of state at an unspecified NATO meeting.

"One of the presidents of a big country stood up and said, 'Well, sir, if we don't pay, and we're attacked by Russia, will you protect us?' I said, 'You didn't pay, you're delinquent?'"

"No, I would not protect you. In fact, I would encourage them to do whatever the hell they want."

Trump has regularly criticized allies of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization for not meeting a goal of spending at least two percent of GDP on defense.

"You got to pay. You got to pay your bills," Trump, who is almost certain to be the Republican nominee for the November presidential election, said Saturday.

Trump's remark comes after Senate Republicans on Wednesday rejected a bipartisan bill that would have included sorely needed funding for Ukraine, plus aid for ally Israel, along with reforms to address the US-Mexico border crisis, AFP reported.

The US Senate is now considering a foreign aid package that decouples the aid from the border issue entirely. It could see a key procedural vote on Sunday.

The $95 billion package includes funding for Israel and Taiwan, but the majority would go toward helping Ukraine rearm as it enters a third year of war since Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered a full-scale invasion.

The White House hit back at Trump's assertions, touting President Joe Biden's efforts to bolster alliances around the globe.

"Encouraging invasions of our closest allies by murderous regimes is appalling and unhinged," White House spokesman Andrew Bates said in a statement Saturday night.

NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg warned Sunday that "any suggestion that allies will not defend each other undermines all of our security, including that of the US."

European Council President Charles Michel also denounced the comments as "reckless," saying they can "serve only Putin's interest."

Republican Senator Marco Rubio, who has endorsed Trump for his party's nomination, defended the ex-president on Sunday as "telling a story" about something that happened in the past.

"He doesn't talk like a traditional politician," the Florida senator told CNN's "State of the Union."

"By the way, Donald Trump was president and he didn't pull us out of NATO. In fact, American troops were stationed throughout NATO" during his term, Rubio said.

Stoltenberg, for his part, said he expects that "regardless of who wins the presidential election the US will remain a strong and committed NATO ally."

At the South Carolina rally, Trump also needled Nikki Haley, his former UN ambassador, who is challenging him for the Republican nomination but badly trailing in the race.

Haley, when asked Sunday about Trump's NATO remarks, alleged her former boss was taking Putin's side.

"What bothers me about this is, don't take the side of a thug who kills his opponents. Don't take the side of someone who has gone in and invaded a country and half a million people have died or been wounded," Haley told CBS News' "Face the Nation."

She also defended her husband Michael Haley, who is on a military deployment in Africa, after Trump mocked his absence from the campaign trail.

"This isn't personal about me and Michael. This is what it says to every member who sacrifices for us," said the former South Carolina governor.

"We can't have someone that sits and mocks our men and women trying to protect America. It's a pattern of chaos," she said.



After Harris’ Loss, Angry Democrats Blame Her Boss, Biden

A hand fan depicting US Vice President Kamala Harris lays on a sidewalk in Washington, DC, on November 6, 2024. (AFP)
A hand fan depicting US Vice President Kamala Harris lays on a sidewalk in Washington, DC, on November 6, 2024. (AFP)
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After Harris’ Loss, Angry Democrats Blame Her Boss, Biden

A hand fan depicting US Vice President Kamala Harris lays on a sidewalk in Washington, DC, on November 6, 2024. (AFP)
A hand fan depicting US Vice President Kamala Harris lays on a sidewalk in Washington, DC, on November 6, 2024. (AFP)

Anger and soul-searching took hold of the Democratic Party early on Wednesday morning, after Vice President Kamala Harris suffered an election loss that left some party officials and voters dumbfounded.

Harris was the self-styled underdog against her Republican rival, Donald Trump, having joined the race barely three months ago, but the nature of her loss has some Democrats asking questions about the future of the party.

The sharpest criticism contained accusations that the party had lied to its supporters about President Joe Biden's mental fitness until a disastrous TV debate with Trump in June raised alarm bells and ultimately led to the president exiting the race.

One Democratic donor asked: "Why did Joe Biden hold on for as long as he did? He should have not concealed his (health) and dropped out a lot sooner."

Biden, 81, has said privately he thought he was the only Democrat who could beat Trump, and vowed publicly that he was fit to be president for another four years. When he dropped out of the race in July, he said he had decided it was "in the best interest of my party and the country for me to stand down."

Biden's announcement in April 2023 that he would run for reelection was greeted with skepticism by many Democrats, but likely potential challengers quickly agreed to join his campaign as advisers, rather than challenge him.

The party "needs a complete reboot," said hedge fund manager Bill Ackman, a longtime Democratic donor who endorsed Trump in 2024, on X. "The party lied to the American people about the cognitive health and fitness of the president," he said, and then didn't hold a primary to replace him.

The Harris campaign declined comment and the White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

WOMEN AND YOUNG VOTERS

The concerns ran deeper, though.

Two groups Harris was counting on to beat Trump -- increasingly diverse young voters, believed to be motivated by climate change, liberal values and her social media savvy, and women worried about shrinking abortion rights under a Republican -- moved in his direction instead.

Trump's overall share of voters under 45 was up two percentage points from 2020 as was his share of women voters, Edison Research exit poll data show. Trump also increased his support in many suburban areas, where Democrats thought they had made inroads.

The shift came even as the Harris campaign insisted that the race was close, and that she was picking up new voters.

One Democratic National Committee official said he was fielding angry text messages from party members late on Tuesday night. "They feel lied to by the campaign," the official said.

Trump's anti-immigration rhetoric also appeared to strike a chord with voters even in Democratic heartlands like Connecticut and Massachusetts, mirroring a trend seen in many liberal democracies where high housing and other costs have been blamed on newcomers.

Canada's Liberal Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, for example, cut immigration levels under criticism from the right, and Europe's far-right parties have vowed to toughen immigration rules, while peeling away votes from the center left.

Harris' defeat is the Democrats' second bitter loss to Trump over the past three elections. Hillary Clinton's 2016 defeat had paved the way for Biden to run.

A convicted felon, Trump's unorthodox economic proposals, including blanket tariffs on imports, will be costly for US consumers and businesses, economists say. His plans to deport millions of people who are in the country illegally would upend industries and communities.

Still Trump gained with Latino voters, and had easy wins in Georgia and North Carolina, states where Democrats thought they were competitive. Harris' whirlwind campaign, built around an inclusive vision of the United States and stronger fiscal support for families, had emphasized hope and positivity.

Biden and Harris' support of Israel during its assault on Gaza split the Democratic Party, with many progressive Democrats calling unsuccessfully for the US to curb its military aid to Israel. That cost votes among left-leaning Democrats.

Harris remained at her residence in Washington the entire evening while crowds waited outside her alma mater Howard University, where the campaign had set up a stage and a media center, anticipating days of vote-counting before a result.

As the results started to trickle in, her campaign co-chair Cedric Richmond took the stage to tell the dwindling crowds the race wasn't over yet. Hours later, it was.