For those of us in the U.S., nothing in politics is really quite shocking anymore. This past year has been a long series of daily reminders that, for some reason, diplomacy doesn’t exactly look the same as it used to…
A new account has been released detailing the phone call that took place between American president Donald Trump and former French president François Hollande two days after Trump won the presidential election. To call the conversation bizarre would be euphemistic. After calling Hollande, “a great president, a great leader, a great man,” Trump went on to say, “I love France, I love French people, I love your country, I love Paris, I love your wine,” before being cut off. When Hollande attempted to move onto more serious topics such as terrorism and the Paris climate accord, Trump responded with characteristic onomatopoeia and indifference. (Quite the different tone from the man with a friend named Jim who says Paris just isn’t the same).
In his opening monologue on The Late Show, talk show host Stephen Colbert mocks Trump’s professed “love” of all things French, especially compared to certain statements Trump made about the country during the campaign… But alas. If only Trump’s idea of loving all things French included the Paris Climate Accord.
