Source:
https://scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3111675/tribute-donald-trump Comment
A tribute to Donald Trump
- His presidency may have been dismal, but there are a few things he got right, such as betting on a Covid-19 vaccine developed ‘at warp speed’ and helping to secure Arab diplomatic recognition for Israel
US President Donald Trump departs after speaking about the 2020 US presidential election results in a press briefing at the White House in Washington, November 5, 2020. Photo: Reuters
Even a broken clock gets the time right twice a day. As the dismal administration of Donald Trump draws to a close, it’s only fair he gets some recognition for a few big things he got right, or almost right.
One is his insistence on getting a workable vaccine at an unprecedented speed for Covid-19, and he almost had it before the US presidential election.
It will benefit not only Americans, but also people around the world. This is not to excuse him for the disastrous mess he has made in practically all other aspects of his handling of the pandemic.
I have been a supporter of Palestinian statehood my entire adult life. In college, I even donated money to the Palestine Liberation Organisation and attended rallies in Washington. But, judging by American diplomatic standards, Trump has done well in helping to secure formal recognition for Israel, from the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain.
And this week, the Israeli press reported a not too covert meeting between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. If true, that would be a historic first. Perhaps it may not be long before formal diplomatic relations follow.
If all these developments had been achieved under any other president, the entire mainstream liberal press in the United States would be uncorking champagne.
After all, US foreign policy in the Middle East is practically run out of Israel. With Trump and Netanyahu, both of them anathema to the US liberal press, the achievements of both men have been underplayed.
What’s even more annoying for US liberals is, without doubt, that Trump’s much despised son-in-law Jared Kushner may have played a role in those developments. The man knew nothing about the Middle East when Trump handed him the portfolio, but he and the Saudi crown prince are reportedly best pals.
Kushner’s prediction that the scandal over the prince’s role in the murder of US-based Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi would blow over and his pal would remain in power proved accurate, however repugnant that outcome has been.
Trump’s initial instinct in launching a trade war without going all hostile on China was right. A trade war between two superpowers may be contained; an all-out conflict will have unintended consequences. Unfortunately, that created an opening for ideologues in Washington to start a new cold war and Western crusade against China.