Speaking Monday in Youngstown, Ohio, the Republican presidential nominee outlined national security policies that included “extreme vetting” for would-be immigrants, including for those who would reject what he described as American values of tolerance. He said destroying the terror group would be the centerpiece of his foreign policy and he would partner with any countries that share that goal – specifically singling out Russian Federation as a nation the USA could have a better relationship with.
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“In addition to screening out all members of the sympathizers of terrorist groups, we must also screen out anyone who have hostile attitudes toward our country or its principles or who believe that Sharia law should supplant American law”, said Trump.
Instead, Trump repeated the untruths that he opposed both the Iraq War and intervention in Libya from the beginning, reversed his position on USA involvement with North Atlantic Treaty Organisation and called for – rather than his previously proposed “complete shutdown” of Muslims entering the country – new screening procedures for immigrants seeking entry to the United States.
A subdued Mr Trump, delivering what his campaign billed as a major speech on terrorism in Youngstown, Ohio, on Monday, invoked comparisons to the Cold War era in arguing that the U.S. must wage an unrelenting ideological fight if it is to defeat the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS).
At Youngstown State University in Youngstown, Ohio, Trump, the Republican presidential nominee, highlighted America’s threats-and criticized the architects of its current foreign policy-before revealing the tenets of his foreign policy plan.
He also blamed President Barack Obama for tolerating the rise of the extremist group and undermined his Democratic rival Hillary Clinton as incapable of launching the war on terrorism. It is time to put in place a new selection test adapted to the threats we face today, “said the Republican candidate for the White House”.
Biden called Trump’s views “dangerous” and “un-American”.
“The threat to their life has gone up a couple clicks”, Biden said.
He also challenged Clinton’s fitness to be president, declaring she lacks the “mental and physical stamina” to take on the Islamic State.
However, one of the most interesting parts of Trump’s discourse was mentioning that Russian Federation is one of his top potential allies in the fight against ISIS. He vowed to partner with any country that shares his goal of defeating the extremist group, regardless of other strategic disagreements, and named Russian Federation as a nation he would like to improve relations with.
Russian Federation and the US have been discussing greater coordination in Syria, where ISIS is part of a volatile mix of groups fighting for power.
Trump’s nod to abandoning “nation building” and criticizing the Iraq War could nearly be seen as an olive branch to the anti-war left and Libertarians, whose largest objections to a Hillary Clinton presidency is their belief that she would continue a “war hawk” approach to foreign policy that would continue to keep American troops overseas and in danger, as well as pour money into destabilizing and often unwinnable military endeavors.
Trump, for example, is on record supporting the war in Iraq, the ouster of the Mubarak government in Egypt, and the USA military offensive in Libya.
Trump also said he would temporarily suspend all immigration from countries where the State Department and the Department of Homeland Security conclude that adequate screening is not possible and he suggested a sharp reduction in the number of visitors from the Middle East.
Trump first announced his call for banning Muslims past year during the GOP primary. Under Trump’s plan, citizens from countries with a history of terror will be banned but it is not clear which nations.
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“As soon as I take office, I will ask the State Department and the Department of Homeland Security to identify a list of regions where inadequate screening can not take place”.
