intervention

Thursday November 2, 2017

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Thursday November 2, 2017

World sees Trump as a weakened president

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If you think it’s only Americans who are watching the news of a criminal indictment and a guilty plea of Trump campaign officials in the Russia probe, think again. Not only is the entire world following the dramatic developments, but world leaders, in particular, are keeping a close eye on a case that weakens President Donald Trump domestically — and has the potential to bring an early end to his presidency. 

 

March 7, 2017

There’s never a good time for a president to see former aides indicted, but Monday’s events — the indictment and arrest of two campaign officials, including the former Trump presidential campaign chairman Paul Manafort, and a guilty plea by foreign policy adviser George Papadopoulos, who admitted to communicating with people he believed to be linked to the Kremlin to get “dirt” on Hillary Clinton and arrange a meeting between Putin and Trump — came just a few days before Trump is scheduled to leave on a major trip to Asia. The timing could hardly be worse.

 

December 20, 2016

The stunning events made front page news from Chile to the Czech Republic. And there is no question that China’s President Xi Jinping, now more powerful than ever, is being closely briefed on the case. So is North Korea’s leader Kim Jong Un, as well as Iran’s supreme leader and others.

 
How will this investigation, which experts agree is only in its early stages, affect Trump’s ability to conduct business on behalf of the United States and the American people? It erodes his standing and his perceived power — and hence America’s, and it makes him less able to persuade others to align with Washington. In addition, it has the potential to cast doubts on his motives as he tackles international crises.
 

December 17, 2016

When global figures see an embattled President, they will see a wounded President. Trump has deliberately tried to make himself unpredictable, even frightening, to America’s adversaries. That fear element will now be magnified. Global (and domestic) audiences will wonder how his decision-making may be affected by his political troubles. (Continued: CNN) 

 
 

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Wednesday April 22, 2015

Wednesday April 22, 2015Editorial cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Wednesday April 22, 2015

Pull comes to push as the EU wrestles with the migrant crisis

Last week, 400 or more, many of them women and children sheltering below deck, perished in a capsize off Libya. On Sunday, as many as 900 more lost in a single shipwreck. And on Monday, as the contingent agonized over what to do now, came heartbreaking shoreline-view footage of a sinking off the coast of Greek island of Rhodes. Mercifully, most made it ashore. Some did not, reportedly including a four-year-old boy.

Europe’s bad bet now is expected to be reversed quickly by the EU, which will meet Thursday in crisis mode, when it is expected to redouble formal search-and-rescue operations. Its efforts will be joined by a raft of aid groups attempting to bring global resources to bear.

“The world needs to react with the conviction with which it eliminated piracy off the coast of Somalia a few years ago,” said William Lacy Swing, director-general of the International Organization for Migrants (IOM).

“All of us, especially the EU and the world’s powers can no longer sit on the sidelines watching while this tragedy unfolds in slow motion and well over 1,500 have drowned since the beginning of January.”

But as the crisis deepened, agencies involved in the broader effort reminded us Europe is far from alone in this. Canada, let us not forget, was more than a little involved in Libya and now, more than a little involved in the madness that is Syria. (Source: Toronto Star)

Letter to the Editor

A picture is indeed worth a thousand words.
Spectator cartoonist Graeme MacKay has a powerful message. Canadian foreign aid should be used to help refugees, not bomb them! I hope someone sends a copy of Wednesday’s Spectator to Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s office.
Hughena Matheson, Burlington