The spectacle of the president of the United States defying the collective will and the sensibilities of foreign leaders sums up everything many Americans both love and hate about Donald Trump. President Trump's blowing up the G-7 Summit last weekend horrified all of his usual critics, while his refusal to be influenced by Germany's Angela Merkel and his picking of a fight with his host, Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau, will only further endear him to his base.
But there was more at play in Trump's tantrum than just the usual dialogue of the deaf about his unorthodox style and predilection for doing things that offend the educated classes. The president's bristling hostility to his counterparts on display in Quebec brought into focus a troubling question about what his “America First” foreign policy really means.
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