Trump Hasn't Followed Through On Plan To Withdraw US From WHO (arstechnica.com) 197
An anonymous reader quotes a report from Ars Technica: On May 29, President Trump said his administration would take immediate action to withdraw the U.S. from the World Health Organization. "Because they have failed to make the requested and greatly needed reforms, we will be today terminating our relationship with the World Health Organization, and redirecting those funds to other worldwide and deserving, urgent global public health needs," Trump said at the time, while criticizing the WHO's response to the coronavirus pandemic and claiming that "China has total control" over the United Nations agency.
But now, two weeks later, there's nothing to indicate that Trump has followed through on his plan. In an article yesterday titled "U.S. hasn't taken action to withdraw from WHO despite Trump pledge," The Hill wrote that "no steps toward a formal withdrawal have been taken," and that "a WHO spokesman told The Hill that the agency had received no formal notification that the United States would withdraw." Another article yesterday in Stat, a health news website, said that "none of the levers that would need to be pulled to follow through on [Trump's WHO] decision has been pulled." For example, the Trump administration has "not paid outstanding financial obligations to the WHO, a step that would be required before the United States could pull out under a joint resolution signed by Congress," the article said. These reports follow a Vanity Fair article published Monday that describes "the secret plan to unwithdraw from the WHO after Trump's 'bizarre,' 'ruinous' exit." The article continued:
"Now, Vanity Fair has learned, secret negotiations aimed at reversing Trump's decision have begun between [U.S.] Ambassador [Andrew] Bremberg and the WHO's director general, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. A phone call Saturday between the two men resulted in a possible framework agreement to restore the relationship, which the U.S. diplomatic corps views as essential to the global fight against coronavirus and myriad other public health issues.
"The framework would allow for both increased scrutiny of China's conduct and an independent review of the WHO's performance in the first six months of the outbreak. And discussions continue over whether the WHO would exert pressure on China to turn over original samples of the live virus and allow its scientists to be interviewed regarding the virus's origins. 'It's fair to say the US is not out of WHO, and negotiations are ongoing to address concerns and hopefully walk back from this decision,' said an official who participated in a call with G7 partners, an alliance of countries with advanced economies, where this information was shared."
But now, two weeks later, there's nothing to indicate that Trump has followed through on his plan. In an article yesterday titled "U.S. hasn't taken action to withdraw from WHO despite Trump pledge," The Hill wrote that "no steps toward a formal withdrawal have been taken," and that "a WHO spokesman told The Hill that the agency had received no formal notification that the United States would withdraw." Another article yesterday in Stat, a health news website, said that "none of the levers that would need to be pulled to follow through on [Trump's WHO] decision has been pulled." For example, the Trump administration has "not paid outstanding financial obligations to the WHO, a step that would be required before the United States could pull out under a joint resolution signed by Congress," the article said. These reports follow a Vanity Fair article published Monday that describes "the secret plan to unwithdraw from the WHO after Trump's 'bizarre,' 'ruinous' exit." The article continued:
"Now, Vanity Fair has learned, secret negotiations aimed at reversing Trump's decision have begun between [U.S.] Ambassador [Andrew] Bremberg and the WHO's director general, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. A phone call Saturday between the two men resulted in a possible framework agreement to restore the relationship, which the U.S. diplomatic corps views as essential to the global fight against coronavirus and myriad other public health issues.
"The framework would allow for both increased scrutiny of China's conduct and an independent review of the WHO's performance in the first six months of the outbreak. And discussions continue over whether the WHO would exert pressure on China to turn over original samples of the live virus and allow its scientists to be interviewed regarding the virus's origins. 'It's fair to say the US is not out of WHO, and negotiations are ongoing to address concerns and hopefully walk back from this decision,' said an official who participated in a call with G7 partners, an alliance of countries with advanced economies, where this information was shared."
Trump won anyway (Score:5, Insightful)
The framework would allow for both increased scrutiny of China's conduct and an independent review of the WHO's performance in the first six months of the outbreak.
You guys have really never understood haggling have you?
Re:Trump won anyway (Score:5, Insightful)
The framework would allow for both increased scrutiny of China's conduct and an independent review of the WHO's performance in the first six months of the outbreak.
You guys have really never understood haggling have you?
I get the impression here that Trump did damage and the rest of the administration is doing damage control and trying to improve things without him.
Re:Trump won anyway (Score:4, Insightful)
I'm not sure if you're talking about the WHO situation specifically or the American presidency since 2016 in general.
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Re:Trump won anyway (Score:5, Interesting)
I'm not sure what Trump has actually followed through on. He makes a lot of promises but has he ever kept any?
eg. What happened to the swamp draining?
Re:Trump won anyway (Score:4, Funny)
The swamp now has gaudy gold curtains. Isn't that so much better?
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eg. What happened to the swamp draining?
He did ... you just misunderstood which swamp he was talking about [gettyimages.co.uk].
Re:Trump won anyway (Score:4, Funny)
He only drained it just enough to find enough lizards for staffing purposes.
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"The Swamp" fought back and continues to fight back. I say I'm going to "drain the swamp". I show up with a bulldozer to dig out canals. The "Swamp Thing" rises up and smashes by bulldozer. I bring two more. The "Swamp Thing" divides in two and grows larger. Smashes my dozers again. Change of strategy. I now try dropping Agent Orange on the swamp. "Swamp Thing" thinks it's candy and divides (now 4). Shit, this is harder than I thought. OK, fuck it, let's dust off and nuke it from orbit. It's the only way t
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But that would imply that Trump is not the perfect negotiator that his fans claim he is!
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The framework would allow for both increased scrutiny of China's conduct and an independent review of the WHO's performance in the first six months of the outbreak.
You guys have really never understood haggling have you?
I get the impression here that Trump did damage and the rest of the administration is doing damage control and trying to improve things without him.
Indeed. The cave-man is being cut out of the loop because he is just not an asset in any way.
Re:Trump won anyway (Score:4, Insightful)
The framework would allow for both increased scrutiny of China's conduct and an independent review of the WHO's performance in the first six months of the outbreak.
You guys have really never understood haggling have you?
"Because they have failed to make the requested and greatly needed reforms, ...
Ya don't understand financial bullying, do ya?
Trump is all pissed because the WHO aren't aligning with his narrative. This isn't haggling over a price of a chicken. This our fucking health and way of life.
Trump is a liar, narcissist, fraud, criminal, and downright scumbag. But we have people who support him regardless of those facts. It IS a CULT.
Yes retarded asshole, Orange man bad!
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I suppose your approach would be to give them more money and apologize for pointing out their failings.
MY approach would be to talk to them instead of his authoritarian demands.
Now, stop pestering me you AC Cunt.
Re:Trump won anyway (Score:4, Interesting)
"Now, Vanity Fair has learned, secret negotiations aimed at reversing Trump's decision have begun between [U.S.] Ambassador [Andrew] Bremberg and the WHO's director general, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. A phone call Saturday between the two men resulted in a possible framework agreement to restore the relationship, which the U.S. diplomatic corps views as essential to the global fight against coronavirus and myriad other public health issues.
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What the article tells us is that the relationship was never actually terminated, so it can't be restored. It can only continue to not be terminated (or not.)
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He kind of cant just unilaterally pull out anyway.
The United States is in the WHO due to treaties it signed. And it stands to reason if ratifying a treaty requires 2/3 of senate to approve, so too muct it be for leaving the treaty.
It has to go to the Senate or its just useless words on paper
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I suppose your approach would be to give them more money and apologize for pointing out their failings.
MY approach would be to talk to them instead of his authoritarian demands.
You think that wasn't already happening over the last decade?
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Just like Taiwan tried to talk to the WHO. That worked out real well.
Re: Trump won anyway (Score:2)
Totally fake news. Trump just gave the real reason he did it in a tweet, Google it.
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I have to say, you're not really the Way Smarter Than Us than i was promised.
Comment removed (Score:5, Insightful)
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Accountability is not something that large international organisations like WHO do in any meaningful fashion, because most of the nation states in the world don't do accountability well if at all.
Western world is a massive exception to this rule, and even we are not exactly good at it.
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No one who writes for Vanity Fair has ever bought a used car, apparently.
Customer: This price is just too high. It should be $2,000 less.
Salesman: Ok, let me go ask my boss.
Salesman exits the room. Muffled words are heard through the door, getting louder and angrier. Lots of yelling. Someone throws a coffee mug, which shatters. Something heavy (a filing cabinet?) is tipped over with a crash that shakes the room. The salesman comes back in.
Salesman: I can't do $2,000 - my boss would kill me. I can get
Re:Trump won anyway (Score:5, Funny)
This is like Trump trying to repair the used car. The mechanic says it needs an oil change. Trump say "screw it, that costs too much, you can keep the car!" Then as he's walking home he wonders where he can find a car because his legs are getting tired.
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I'd compare it more to the way the price drops about 10% when you stand up and start turning towards the door.
(really; try it).
If you're going to haggle, start with a hard line, not a compromise.
hawk
Re:Trump won anyway (Score:5, Informative)
The framework would allow for both increased scrutiny of China's conduct and an independent review of the WHO's performance in the first six months of the outbreak.
You guys have really never understood haggling have you?
From all I can see, the only thing the US's colossal mishandling of this pandemic is doing internationally is that it's turning the country into a laughing stock and making China more popular than ever. Which is remarkable, considering the fact that the virus originated in China. Trying to shift blame for all those domestic f*ckups to the WHO isn't helping either. You try and spin that into a victory for Trump.
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No, Trump shot his mouth off, and now that he's been briefed on the ramifications, he's allowed the adults to clean up after another temper tantrum. Next up will be his gift to his minder Putin and removing troops from Germany.
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This is Trump's modus operandi and has been for decades.
Throw public temper tantrums, make toothless threats, make others clean up his messes while blaming it on them, refuse to pay debts, and lie, lie, lie. Yep, that's how he became so successful that he drove a series of companies into bankruptcy. (What kind of frelling moron can bankrupt a damn **CASINO** in Atlantic City?) The "Great Negotiator" indeed.
Oh, and we're still waiting for any sort of evidence that WHO is actually making any sweeping changes.
Re: Trump won anyway (Score:2)
Trump is not a great businessman.
I like the billionaires that don't have bankruptcies.
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/d... [cbsnews.com]
Re:Trump won anyway (Score:4, Insightful)
This is Trump's modus operandi and has been for decades
Yeah, Trump has been playing three-dimensional chess through five decades and seven bankruptcies. We know it already.
What happened to nuclear disarmament in North Korea btw.? Does Trump have anything to show in return for publicly shaking hands with the world's most brutal dictator and hanging the American flag alongside the North Korean one? What happened to the agreement with Putin in Helsinki. Oh right, no American except Trump was present in the room, so I guess we have to ask the Russian FSB about that one. :D
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North Korea never actually had a long range strike capacity. Only someone who genuinely does not understand anything about rocketry would claim otherwise.
An absurd percentage of their rockets blew up on the pad or in ascent. Their guidance systems were actually inferior to those used in the V2, and about a third of them went wildly off course. The furthest any of them ever reached would barely make it to the Aleutian Islands, and that was with no payload. They had no reentry vehicle, nor the capability
Exactly. Lie after lie after lie (Score:2)
and yet some people actually believe him occasionally. Unbelievable.
Title grammar (Score:5, Insightful)
Re: Title grammar (Score:2)
This is the editing we get on Saturday morning. Did you want to wait until Beau was fully awake to read this article?
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as comparing on weekday editification
hawk
Re:Title grammar (Score:5, Funny)
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But clearly Trump wrote this headline.
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Did they not get the memo? (Score:2)
a WHO spokesman told The Hill that the agency had received no formal notification that the United States would withdraw
The President already made the official announcement. Did the WHO spokesman expect a personal notification to himself? And the administrator does not report every single thing they do to the press. So I'm sure things have been undergoing certain steps, just not seen that's all.
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What a child cries is NOT official. There's bureaucracy needed to fulfill: the real world is not a child's play.
So, sorry if you thought otherwise: what Trump barks normal people laughs at.
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Re: Did they not get the memo? (Score:2)
Do you also think you can declare bankruptcy by simply shouting out "I declare bankruptcy!" like Michael Scott? These types of agreements have formal plans and procedures for leaving; you can't just declare it and be done.
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There was an official tweet! With hashtags as seals! It doesn't get more official than that! These international agencies need to toss out their vellum and get with the times!
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whoosh.mp3
Oso poker (Score:2)
It's probably fair to say the President has has his share of distractions over the last two weeks,
but tread carefully,
since he doesn't seem to respond well to being poked by the press.
Re: Oso poker (Score:2)
the best thing about that was that Trump tried to get OAN to run a bogus, clearly biased poll showing him leading big in Florida and they couldn't even do that, it showed him tied at best.
Baby had a Temper Tantrum (Score:2)
So the Baby had a Temper Tantrum, and after he went to bed the adults had a serious discussion. This is how everything works around the Trump. He has Temper Tantrums which everyone ignores, then the adults get to talk.
Re:Baby had a Temper Tantrum (Score:4, Insightful)
I doubt there are any adults left around him at this point.
Probably he just forgot about it the next day and, since he didn't actually tell anyone to carry it out, that was that. Let's just not mention WHO out lide for a while.
Secret negotiations (Score:3)
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I went to Vanity Faire once, just a bunch of cosplay wannabes and mead.
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ahh yes.
The birds and the beasts are there.
The elephant sneezed, and . . .
oh, wait; wrong Faire . . . :)
hawk
Huh (Score:3, Insightful)
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It's generally better to do that with the person you're negotiating with, not just tweet it somewhere.
This was not a negotiation, it was a distraction from his failure to actually accomplish the mission WRT COVID.
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The fact that it didn't seem to add much pressure and President Tweety tweets bluster all the time.
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He hasn't got anything yet.
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Huh. It's almost as though he put out a really strong initial position and then used it to negotiate for what he really wanted. I've heard of such things.
A unicorn? I mean it sounds like he wants a unicorn. He's trying to "negotiate" directly with the WHO to get them to do something that goes against their charter as set by the UN and as signed by America.
In other news, I want to negotiate with you a rise in my paycheck. I mean we'll leave my boss, my company, and those people who pay me out of it, I want to negotiate this with you. How about it?
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Actually there is no initial position. There is Trump being honest. What everyone seems to forget is that Trump explicitly said is the W.H.O. would be replaced with an American version with that same money.
It really would not be hard to do better than the WHO considering that there is 900 million dollars to work with.
All the Trump haters should note that the WHO declared a pandemic on March 11. Shortly after Pelosi told everyone to visit Chinatown and Cuomo told everyone to come to New York and "take in a s
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Americans can set up as many organizations as they want. As long as they're not recognized by other countries, they'll be in charge of monitoring seasonal flu progression through the 50 states, and nothing else.
Smart or dumb, it's what he does - always has (Score:3, Insightful)
Whether you think it's a dumb approach or a smart one, that's been Trump's approach for at least 35-40 years. He starts by taking a fairly extreme position and then negotiates from there. Particularly, cancelling any negotiations that started before he came along and starting over if he thinks he can get a better deal.
For a recent example that you surely witnessed, see NAFTA. Many people would have started with "I want to change some things with NAFTA.". Then they would give up some things in order to get
Re:Smart or dumb, it's what he does - always has (Score:4, Informative)
Yeah, that's a great negotiating tactic, just ask any of the business partners that his various bankruptcies have left in the lurch.
Re:Smart or dumb, it's what he does (Score:3)
Yes, but put yourself in the mind of Trump. He doesn't care about the bankruptcies, because he never viewed it as his problem. As Trump explained in his book Think Big and Kick Ass in Business and in Life, Trump wrote: "I figured it was the banks’ problem, not mine. What the hell did I care? I actually told one bank, ‘I told you you shouldn’t have loaned me that money’.”
Trump is a narcissist; he only thinks about himself, never anyone or anything else. The deal itself gives
He thinks he should be PRESIDENT (Score:2)
> Trump is a narcissist
I read an interesting book by a guy who worked closely with four presidents. He said the perception the public gets of each president is a caricature of the man. They had many things in common, he wrote, with the public getting a greatly exaggerated image of their differences.
He wrote that all of them had the same two obvious personality traits. All are narcissists, so arrogant that they think they should be president, and they even think that most people will recognize that fact
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Rump doesn't have so much a team as a herd of fawning sycophants. Not a recipe for success.
Re:Smart or dumb, it's what he does (Score:5, Funny)
Yes, but put yourself in the mind of Trump.
No thanks, I'm claustrophobic.
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If I only had mod points
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Don't forget many of his later deals that were total flops. He thinks his name is valuable, so he offers to be a partner by allowing others to use his name but won't put up any money. Later it flops because it turns out the name isn't valuable. He likes making deals but he hates doing the work once the deal is over - like making sure the casino doesn't fail due to mismanagement, or that his college provides a good value for students who send in the money, or that people actually buy his steaks.
How about keeping quiet? (Score:5, Insightful)
Many of Trump's dumbest ideas have died by just stealing the relevant papers from his desk and not telling him. At some point he simply forgot. If everyone please just stop mentioning the WHO for a couple weeks, Trump will have forgotten all about it. And we can move on.
So how about a nice round of STFU?
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SubjectIsSubject (Score:2)
IMPEACH!!!!
It is all a blame game anyway (Score:5, Interesting)
As far as the warning goes anyway, long after the 23rd January warning the US gov did diddly squat and the president kept his "this is nothing it will go away alone" stupid idea. A difference of a few day will have done nothing as the US gov did nothing. But you know what ? The US gov NEED to have to blame somebody , and China is their best bet to blame for their own incompetence. Don't get me wrong I think china is bad , authoritative, kill prisoner for organs, and is all horrible all around, but the blame on US inaction is on US gov alone.
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I well remember all the US press saying that closing the borders in Jan was racist, the Dem judge who blocked restrictions, the insults that any attempt was anti-science or moronic...
But back to the CCP. The outbreak was well underway in December, satellite photos of hospital parking lots and search requests for covid symptoms indicate Oct/Nov as the likely start o
they do it for the same reason other do it (Score:2)
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As said they have no pwoer to enforce. What if they recognize Taiwan and china says "i am out "? The country from which 3 of the latest big pulmonary virus came out ? Do you think we will better off ? No we will worst off.
So, if I understand you correctly, you're saying the WHO recognises and submits to countries with the most force? Sounds like you're in agreement with Trump's approach to them.
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Abuse of moderation, only fifty cents!
Welcome to slashdot, where China rules.
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Don't goad his idiocy. (Score:4, Funny)
He has a memory like a sieve, ffs don't goad him into following through on an act of gross stupidity that he has forgotten about.
Maybe, perhaps... (Score:2)
For example, the Trump administration has "not paid outstanding financial obligations to the WHO, a step that would be required before the United States could pull out under a joint resolution signed by Congress," the article said.
Maybe he finds the idea of throwing more money at the WHO so that we may leave the organization a bit repugnant? Just a thought.
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Repugnant or not, if you don't fulfill your financial obligations, you will be perceived as being untrustworthy. Of course, Trump is already considered to be unworthy of trust by intelligent people due to not meeting his financial obligations (like paying contractors, or delivering value of goods for money spent) and the United States is already considered the same, in no small part due to electing Trump POTUS.
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You're confused, who funds the bulk of the WHO? The USA has the rights to call the shots or defund the thing, we paid for it.
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Having the right to do a thing is one thing. Having the right to have a low opinion of doing a thing is another. Both can be valid at once because people are free to disagree, at least in theory. Last I checked that was still supposedly true here in uhhhhmerikkka.
Well the WHO is now ruined (Score:2)
Trump is negotiating a change in the WHO which makes them question official government metrics without prejudice into yet another organisation that pushes the USA's agenda.
Congratulations guys, *now* the WHO is a political organisation.
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that pushes the USA's agenda.
What exactly is that agenda?
question official government metrics without prejudice
Sounds like this is NOT what they were doing [cnn.com]. And Trump would like some more transparency. That's an agenda I can live with.
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He doesn't want transparency, that's precisely what he doesn't want, look at his administration. He wants the WHO to blow smoke up America's ass to make him look good.
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making the WHO into the culprit for his own failure
Of course Trump should have been reading China's reports to the WHO and picking out subtle errors based on his vast knowledge in the area of epidemiology. But he was sidetracked by having to fight off the Pelosi gang at the time all this was coming to a head.
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As early as November 2019 the National Center [for] Medical Intelligence
So tell me again what WHO does that we don't do for ourselves.
Shame Trump had the House of Representatives' knees on his neck during that time.
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Art of the Deal (Score:2)
You go in and make a lowball offer (no more funds). Te other side counters with theirs (give us money but we will throw in some more goodies for you). Eventually you meet in the middle. It's not the way all the self important bureaucrats in such organizations like to be dealt with. They'd rather get their huge egos stroked rather than have their feelings hurt by adversarial negotiations. But that's part of the reason we elected Trump.
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So, this behavior was known before hand and you still elected him for president? The long term damage is going to be insane. And the fun part, it's going to be get worse in the next 4 years as neither candidate seems to be able to tie their own shoelaces anymore.
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The long term damage is going to be insane.
If your career goal is to find some cozy little niche as a lifelong bureaucrat, yes. Having elected officials that even consider the option of dumping your ass and finding another solution just makes me smile.
not gonna lose any sleep (Score:3, Interesting)
If this guy was earnest, hard-working, intelligent and competent, he wouldn't have the capability to execute on even 1% of the crap that spews out of him. As he is for real? I'll be surprised if he makes good on a single announcement between now and when he leaves office. His end-goal is the image. Actually getting things done is way down on his list of priorities. Doesn't even make his top 10.
Joke of an article (Score:2)
If the WHO thinks that Trump is going to pull out of the WHO and then write them a big fat check just so they will confirm it then they are as dumb as the people who wrote the headline.
Re:No one should be surprised (Score:5, Insightful)
Remember, Trump is playing a complicated game of chess, not one where you think ahead 5 moves but one where you think ahead 5 seconds. So a thought enters his head, he blurts out "WHO is owned by China, we're pulling out, stat!" Then 5 seconds later his staff who are huddled in a tiny closet off the West Wing are heard to say "WTF?"
Seriously, Trump is winging it! He does not think these things through, he does not discuss with his advisors as a whole first, though he likely has those.with specific agendas whispering into his hear. His actual advisors are fake news sites, like OANN or Breitbart. He just makes up the shit on the spur of the moment, his press conferences have some notes on a 3x5 cards that he forgot to bring with him, and his rallies are 100% stream of consciousness that are more rambling than James Joyce after trying weed for the first time. And then... there's invariably one fan who says "wow, what a genius, he's got the lamestream media scrambling to understand him again!"
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Trump is a populist. It's all about the announcement, not the undertaking.
Promises made, promises kept, comrades!
What promise are you talking about. Trump never promised he was going to defund the WHO. He did threaten to in order to spark some changes. Very different things, its not that complicated.
Trump wants the WHO to cater to his narrative. That is all. And he is using financing to bully them. That is all. Trump is a fucking criminal.
Now, I have the courage to post under my user name but you fucking cunts are too cowardly to do so.
Re:No one should be surprised (Score:4, Informative)
“Because they have failed to make the requested and greatly needed reforms, we will be today terminating our relationship with the World Health Organization and redirecting those funds to other worldwide and deserving urgent global public health needs."
https://www.reuters.com/articl... [reuters.com]
You and your gaslight can fuck right off now.
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hiring an editor
What do you expect when all Slashdot can afford to pay is beens.
Re: Also... (Score:2)
Oh the irony