Henry Kissinger Comments on Trump: ‘He Puts America First’-Mostly Fiction!
Summary of eRumor:
Former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger commented that president Trump is a “phenomenon that foreign countries haven’t seen before” and “Trump puts America and its people first.”
The Truth:
Henry Kissinger has commented on President Trump and his foreign policy on a number of occasions. And, while Kissinger has voiced optimism about Trump’s foreign policy potential, Kissinger has also voiced concerns about the president’s approach.
Glowing comments that Kissinger supposedly made about Trump can be traced back to a post that appeared at The Patriot Post blog site in January 2018. An opinion piece appearing there quotes Kissinger on Trump:
“Donald Trump is a phenomenon that foreign countries haven’t seen before. Liberals and all those who favored Clinton will never admit it. They will never admit that he is the one true leader. The man is doing changes like never before and does all of it for the sake of this nation’s people. After eight years of tyranny, we finally see a difference.
“Trump puts America and its people first. That is why people love him and this is why he will remain in charge for a long time. There is not a single thing wrong with him and people need to open their eyes.”
The first part of that comment actually came from Kissinger. When asked about Trump on “Face the Nation,” Kissinger said Trump was a “phenomenon that foreign countries haven’t seen before.” However, he did not say, “Liberals and all those who favored Clinton will never admit it. They will never admit that he is the one true leader.” In reality, Kissinger said it was “shocking” to many foreign leaders that Trump had come to power. He continued:
I believe he has the possibility of going down in history as a very considerable president. Because every country now has two things to contend with. No. 1, their perception that the previous president, the outgoing president, basically withdrew America from international politics. So they had to make their own assessments. And second, here is a new president who is asking a lot of unfamiliar questions. And because the combination … one could image that something remarkable and new emerges out of it.
Kissinger added, “I”m not saying it will, but it’s a remarkable opportunity.” So, before Trump was sworn into office, Kissinger voiced optimism about Trump’s foreign policy potential. And he’s also spoken publicly about Trump a number of times since.
In October 2017, Kissinger met with Trump at the White House. And he offered his most positive assessment of Trump in a March 2018 New York Times article:
“The president has his own original style, and it’s unlikely to be changed at this stage of his life. But it also is conducive to bringing forward opportunities like this Korean conversation. It is not what we traditionalists would have recommended in the first place. But I have to say, when I have thought it through, and how it could play out, it could restore a political initiative to us, and could compel a conversation with countries” otherwise disinclined.”
In the end, Kissinger has voiced optimism about Trump’s potential on the international stage. But he did not make comments about Trump “putting American first,” or about liberals being unable to accept him as the one true leader. For that reason, we’re calling this one “mostly fiction.”