President Trump has branded two of his best nemeses as an “embarrassment to the nation” after they criticized his administration during separate appearances at the Munich Security Conference.
During a gaggle with reporters on Air Force One, Trump was asked about California Governor Gavin Newsom and Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who he labelled as “incompetent.”
Newsom accused the president of ushering in an “age of authoritarianism,” during his remarks at the event.
“I watched AOC answering questions in Munich; this was not a good look for the United States,” Trump shot back on Air Force One. “I watched ‘Gavin Newscum’ answering questions in Genev-Munich.”
Trump seemed about to say that Newsom was in Geneva, having just answered a question about how the Swiss city was set to host peace talks between Russia and Ukraine.
“And this was a bad look for our country,” Trump continued. “These two persons are incompetent.
“At least Hillary was competent, she’s just Trump deranged,” he added, referring to former First Lady Hillary Clinton.
Trump’s response was not just limited to the press gaggle aboard Air Force One, though.
On Truth Social, the president also suggested that neither Ocasio-Cortez nor Newsom should criticize the United States while abroad. In doing so, he claimed they had “made fools of themselves.”
During that same post, he touted the diplomatic successes of Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
Trump was absent from the Munich Security Conference, the world’s largest gathering on international security policy.
For Ocasio-Cortez, it was her most high-profile trip overseas yet.
The 36-year-old New Yorker, widely thought to be weighing up a run for the White House, told The New York Times that focusing on her presidential prospects was “missing the point.”
“Global democracies are on fire the world over, and established parties are falling to right-wing populist movements,” she told the newspaper.
During her fiery speech at the conference, she claimed Trump was “looking to withdraw the United States from the entire world so that we can turn into an age of authoritarianism.”
However, she argued that the key to defeating politicians like Trump lay in addressing income inequality.
“I believe we’re seeing in economy across economy around the world, including the United States, that extreme levels of income inequality lead to social instability and drives in the sense in authoritarianism, right-wing populism and very dangerous domestic internal politics,” she advised attendees.
Newsom, who can also be considered weighing up a presidential run, took his personal swipe at Trump throughout the Munich Security Conference.
He claimed that Trump had allegedly tried to divide the United States’ allies however, in doing so, had united them.
“I believe Europe feels more united today than it has in some time,” Newsom mentioned to applause. “And perhaps maybe that is the one contribution of Donald Trump.”
Newsom additionally advised that Trump’s grip on energy was “temporary” and advised the United States’ allies in Europe that there was nonetheless hope for a revived transatlantic partnership.
“It’s not dead, it’s dormant,” Newsom added. “You may need to sleep with one eye open. It will take time, but it’s certainly not dead.”
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/trump-newsom-aoc-munich-security-conference-b2921851.html