Trump: Happy Memorial Day?
President Trump might’ve been able to take a bow after he went to Japan, without managing to make a mess of things.
Problem is, he made several messes of things.
For instance, just before he left Japan on his way back home, he stopped at a U.S. military base.
“I have to wish you all a very Happy Memorial Day,” he told the assembled American troops.
Mr. Trump seems to be confused about the reason why there’s a Memorial Day.
That it’s not meant to be festive.
Nobody puts on party hats and places wrapped gifts under a Memorial Day tree.
It’s a very somber day, set aside to honor those Americans who sacrificed their lives in defense of our country.
Nobody, except Donald Trump, publicly wishes people a “Happy Memorial Day.”
But, by the time he wished the American troops a “Happy Memorial Day,” he’d already committed an even worse indiscretion.
He went to a Japanese military installation, and he wished the Japanese troops aboard the destroyer J.S. Kaga a (you’re not going to believe this) “Happy Memorial Day,” too.
Yep!
He really did that.
It was the same Japanese military that caused hundreds of thousands of American casualties during WWII, which serve as one of the prime reasons there is a Memorial Day.
This can probably go unsaid, but there’s nothing to be gained by sharing well-wishes for such a sacred American occasion with the Japanese.
I’m surprised he didn’t say, “You folks did a heck-of-a job at Pearl Harbor.”
But even before those obvious misunderstandings about the nature of Memorial Day, he engaged in some mighty odd behavior during his trip to Japan.
It’s certainly not the first time he’s gone outside of the country and raised the collective eyebrows of anybody who pays even the slightest attention to foreign policy.
There was that bizarre joint news conference in Helsinki in July of last year, in which Trump took the word of Russian President Vladimir Putin over his own justice department regarding Russia’s meddling in the 2016 election.
“People came to me. Dan Coates (Director of National Intelligence) came to me, and some say they think it’s Russia. President Putin, he just said it’s not Russia. I don’t see why it would be,” Trump said while standing just arms-length away from Putin.
That was a sorry spectacle seen around the world.
Trump had taken sides against his own government in favor of his country’s most serious rival.
So, few people should be surprised when Trump winds up and throws off-the-cuff nonsense while standing in front of reporters on foreign soil.
That’s exactly what happened in Japan.
Not just his Memorial Day flubs, but far more serious ones.
The issue is North Korea’s steadfast resistance to getting rid of its nuclear arsenal.
They’ve recently conducted missile tests, which causes our ally, Japan, to be quite concerned.
Japan is only 650 miles away from North Korea. It’s certainly within the range of a nuclear attack.
Besides, John Bolton, the US national security adviser, has already claimed the missile tests are a violation of a UN Security Council resolution.
But Trump, who claims to be in love with North Korea’s leader, Kim Jong Un, doesn’t seem to care what the United Nations, John Bolton or Japan thinks.
“My people think that it could have been a violation, as you know. I view it differently. I view it as a man, perhaps he wants to get attention – and perhaps he’s not. Who knows? It doesn’t matter,” he told reporters with Japan’s Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe, standing next to him.
Well, it does matter.
It also matters that he stood on foreign soil and he launched a political attack against former vice president Joe Biden.
That’s a long-held no-no.
Kim Jong Un had called Mr. Biden a “fool of low IQ.”
Trump told reporters, “He probably is, based on his record. I think I agree with him on that.”
We have a president who curiously sides with our nation’s enemies.
He has no shame.
Edward A. Owens is a multi-Emmy Award winner, former reporter, and anchor for Entertainment Tonight and 20-year TV news veteran. E-mail him at freedoms@bellatlantic.net.