Thank You Very Much, Mr. Vice President. Now We Know.

 

We should probably be grateful for the recent European visits of Vice President  J.D.Vance and Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth. Probably not grateful in the way they sought, but grateful nonetheless. These visits demonstrated clearly for anyone with eyes and ears the profound, wilful, arrogant ignorance of the Trump administration to anything outside the continental boundaries of the United States.

It’s not just that they know nothing and have absolutely no appreciation of other cultures. They’re very proud of that ignorance – swaggering around like the new sheriff in town demanding that everyone follow ‘my way or the highway.’ I can just hear many former allies saying quietly that they’ll choose the highway, thank you,  as they hit the speed dial button for Chinese President Xi Jinping. They may not really like China, but they appreciate that the Chinese president is much smarter than Trump and plays a long game.

Vice President J.D. Vance lecturing

There is a response I dearly wish some European leader would give Trump and his smug billionaire minions. It goes something like this.

‘I want to thank Vice President Vance for his comments – his lecture about our supposed inadequacies in fostering welfare and democracy in our communities. We are well aware of the dark pages of our history, both on our own continent and in other countries. But, unlike you, we have learned something from those tragedies. We have learned the hard way that national reconciliation and doing our best to provide a decent standard of living, health care, and a retirement free from fear for all our citizens – not just the top 1% -- are worth every financial sacrifice we make. Do we always succeed? Certainly not. There are still too many people that fall through the cracks. Did I mention health care? Of course, the United States has brilliant physicians and hospitals. Pity that so many millions of your citizens have no access to that brilliance. But let’s not be picky. You think we aren’t democratic enough, that we somehow suppress voices and opinions that don’t fit the prevailing narrative. Pity you don’t speak a foreign language. Then you might see for yourself that debate across the political spectrum is alive and well. Furthermore, unlike you, we have bitter experience of what happens when you cosy up to demagogues and hate merchants. Perhaps it’s our diversity you don’t appreciate. We know all too well what happens when the vicious myth of religious, national or ethnic purity drives out all compassion and reason. That didn’t turn out well. Pity you don’t see the parallel when mobs stormed your beautiful capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. So yes, forgive us if we take the bitter lessons of history and limit the spread of that hate before it gets out of control. Again, thank you for your lecture. It was most illuminating. Don’t get me wrong. We love and appreciate America – even if that love and appreciation are unrequited. But, again unlike you, we take a long view. This too shall pass.

Trump has also shown that it is much more dangerous to be a friend of the United States than an enemy. You might have thought Greece was a long-time friend of the United States, military ally in NATO, with close ties to the many thousands of Greek Americans who proudly demonstrate their loyalty to both the United States and the land of their ancestors. You also might have thought this type of relationship would deserve serious, knowledgeable representation on the ambassadorial level. Unfortunately, under Trump you would be wrong. Completely wrong. While Greece’s contentious neighbour across the Aegean, Turkey, gets an ambassador of substance – maybe not a diplomat but at least an accomplished businessman – Greece is stuck with one of Donald Trump Junior’s cast-off girlfriends. OK. Maybe Kimberly Guilfoyle is an embarrassment to still have hovering in the background as Don Jr. declares his new undying love for a Florida society maven. But what a slap in the face for Greece. I mean, why Greece? Surely, making her special envoy to Greenland would have served the same purpose. What a brutal demonstration of just how far down the pecking order a proud nation has slipped. I am only surprised that leading Greek politicians don’t have the courage, the pride to exercise the country’s right to refuse this appointment.

Καλώς ήρθατε στην Ελλάδα κυρία Γκιλφόιλ

Guilfoyle’s nomination hearing should be interesting. In theory, this hearing is a chance for senators to examine a nominee’s qualifications and suitability for the position. After all, the ambassador is the public face of the United States. Occasionally the Senate has rejected a nominee. But given the Senate’s supine behaviour in the recent cabinet hearings I don’t expect much. Other than being a one-time TV ‘personality’ on a right-wing network it’s hard to find anything Guilfoyle did to qualify for this job. Perhaps the rumour that she was runner-up in the world Botox championship counts. But that has not been confirmed. She’s going to have fun with those heels on the Acropolis.