Trump’s Retreat From Populism

The Trump administration is in full retreat from its array of right-wing populist promises.

Instead of scrapping NAFTA, they are merely looking for minor adjustments. Instead of showing China who’s boss, they have retreated on Taiwan, and are promising a far more favorable stance on trade in exchange for whatever help China might offer on North Korea — while telegraphing that they know help is bound to be limited.

.. Most dramatically, Trump reversed the overwhelming thrust of his campaign with respect to foreign policy, ordering an attack on Syria and welcoming Montenegro into NATO, saying that the Atlantic alliance is “no longer obsolete.”

.. Most dramatically, Trump reversed the overwhelming thrust of his campaign with respect to foreign policy, ordering an attack on Syria and welcoming Montenegro into NATO, saying that the Atlantic alliance is “no longer obsolete.”

Faced with any difficult problem, he chooses the easiest way out, which in politics will mean appeasing whoever presents the most current threat.

The Trump Turn

President Trump’s growing engagement with former corporate executives in his White House—and business leaders outside of it—helped shape this week’s reversals on several positions that defined his campaign. We report that unlike in the early weeks of his presidency, when his senior staff consisted of a close-knit group of former campaign aides, Mr. Trump has sided recently with a wing of his administration that espouses economic and foreign policies much more in line with the Washington establishment’s traditional view. We look at several of Mr. Trump’s shifts, from the U.S. Export-Import Bank to NATO.

Donald Trump Gets Rare Bipartisan Backing for Syria Strike

WASHINGTON—For the first time since his inauguration, Donald Trump is being treated like a conventional president.

.. “In the short run, this will clearly benefit him politically,” said Karl Rove, the top political aide to President George W. Bush. “It will cause people to look at him differently, and it will cause our adversaries to see us differently.”

.. Democrats who have stridently opposed Mr. Trump’s agenda praised the airstrikes.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York called it “the right thing to do.” Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California called the military response “a limited, and I think an important strike, and it accomplished its purpose and sent a message.”

 .. Large numbers of Republicans have reversed their position on congressional approval for Syrian airstrikes since then-President Barack Obama weighed attacking the country in 2013.At the time, Republicans such as then-House Speaker John Boehner  insisted Mr. Obama lay out a fuller plan for action in Syria before launching airstrikes after the Assad regime carried out a suspected chemical attack in Damascus. Scores of Republicans said they would oppose an authorization for the use of military force. No vote was taken.

.. Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch also praised Mr. Trump’s action, though in 2013 he said he had “strong reservations” about authorizing force against Syria.

.. Mr. Rove said Mr. Trump would lose any newfound political goodwill if he didn’t articulate his foreign-policy philosophy “within days.”

.. “He told us he would be the president of America, not ‘the world,’ ” Ann Coulter wrote on Twitter.

.. Sen. Rand Paul (R., Ky.) said the airstrikes are “illegal, and they’re unconstitutional.” Rep. Barbara Lee (D., Calif.), the lone member of Congress to vote against the post-9/11 authorization to use force against Afghanistan, said the airstrikes represent “a dangerous military escalation into the Syrian civil war and are without legal justification.”

.. “It makes people question: If a photo of an incident that has occurred in another nation causes the president to drop 50 or more cruise missiles, is that a real well thought-out strategy, or is this an emotional reaction?”