The idea of Donald Trump as commander in chief troubles former Defense Secretary Robert Gates.
“One of the things that worries me … is that he doesn’t appear to listen to people,” Gates said Sunday morning on ABC’s “This Week.” “He believes that he has all the answers, that he’s the smartest man in the room.”
Gates said that unlike presidents Ronald Reagan, Jimmy Carter, George W. Bush and Barack Obama, most of whom Gates served in various government positions, Trump would not not be willing to take the advice of experienced foreign policy and national security experts.
Gates faulted foreign policy talking points Trump uses frequently at campaign rallies, including Trump’s suggestion he would give China the cold shoulder over trade policy.
“How do you walk away from China, a country that holds $1 trillion in U.S. treasuries and with which we have a half a trillion dollars in trade every year?” Gates asked. “And at the same time say we’re going to launch a trade war against them at the same time we’re asking them to pressure North Korea?”
Last week, Trump delivered a national security speech in Washington, laying out partial plan under the slogan: “America First.” Gates was not impressed.
“Based on the speech, you’d have somebody who doesn’t understand the difference between a business negotiation and a negotiation with sovereign powers,” Gates said.
He said the billionaire businessman doesn’t grasp international relations.
But, the former defense secretary did agree with Trump’s discontent with the nation’s allies not doing enough to contribute to NATO in order to take the majority of the burden off of the United States.
“The allies ought to be doing more,” Gates said. “But how do you get them there when you’re dealing with 28 sovereign countries? And nobody argued harder for them to do more than I did. But how do you actually get these countries, many of which weak governments, to agree to things that are very difficult?”
