Donald Trump’s trip to Iraq was even more of a disaster than we thought

| 3:00 pm EST December 27, 2018
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Like a circus elephant improperly decorated with spangles and glitter, leaving crap everywhere he travels, Donald Trump left the White House to visit the troops in Iraq, leaving piles of said crap for others to deal with. Trump, like the elephant, was improperly adorned with a military jacket, and the title of “President.”

The crap left behind, to continue the metaphor, was a lie about a military pay raise, a violation of a long-standing military rule, a misguided worldview on the role of the military, and ongoing confusion about the role of the President overseas. The fake pay raise was a complete lie, right to the faces of the soldiers who know better. There was no salary hike beyond cost-of-living, in spite of the massive increase in the military budget. Liar that he is, he openly took credit for the biggest pay hike in ten years, yet again, showing a complete disconnect with the truth.

The visit was even called a violation of Iraqi Sovereignty by Iraqi lawmakers, who are demanding a withdrawal of the 5200 United States troops in Iraq. Trump says there is no current plan to remove the troops. Trump, probably scared to do so, failed to leave the military base to meet with any representatives from Iraq, causing yet another problem, as his failure to meet was called a violation of accepted diplomatic norms. A previously scheduled meeting with the prime minister of Iraq was cancelled and replaced with a phone call.

The role of the President overseas is not to use the stage as a public forum to air domestic issues like the government shut down, or to call the United States the “suckers of the world”. Refusing the go anywhere without turning it into a campaign rally, Trump signed red MAGA 2020 hats for the troops, which is a likely violation against troops engaging in political activities. The man is an embarrassment and is completely incapable of doing anything related to the role of being President, without making a bigger mess than before… just like the elephant.