May 24, 2017
By: Linda Case Gibbons
The pageantry was unmistakable. White robed cavalry guards, astride their horses, escorting the black limousine. The Saudi and American flags snapping in the 110 degree desert wind.
And the presence of the frail, 81-year-old Saudi King Salman, who was insistent on presiding over every aspect of the elaborate festivities that had been prepared.
To welcome President Donald Trump.
It was a scene repeated in Israel. Israeli President Rivlin, Prime Minister Netanyahu, and the entire Israeli cabinet stood on the tarmac in Tel Aviv to welcome Air Force One.
"I am glad to see you, my friend," an emotional Netanyahu said.
The pageantry was unmistakable. The contrast in cultures undeniable. And the expertise of the new president remarkable.
But it was the faces of the people that one remembers.
The Saudis. The Israelis. Their faces turned toward him, their hands reaching for his. It was as if they had been holding their breath for eight years. It was as if they finally felt heard, and now felt hopeful.
It was a clear contrast in leadership.
The Chinese government did not welcome President Barack Obama in this way. He had to exit from the rear door of Air Force One without the traditional red carpet.
And the Castro brothers couldn't be bothered to greet Obama, even if he had "liberated" Cuba. In fact they demanded reparations for the ills Cuba had suffered.
But The New York Times didn't focus on the Obama Snubs in their past coverage, just as they didn't focus on the Trump Successes during his nine-day, five country trip.
The vipers in the press and media who are intent on destroying this presidency, cared little about the pageantry unfolding during Trump's historic trip.
Two crackerjack New York Times reporters, reporting on the Saudi leg of the trip, made frequent references to Obama, what he would have done, could have done, or wanted to do, peppering the article with anti-Trump comments, the "scandal and chaos engulfing this administration," and Trump's "known intolerance of Muslims."
But there was little research, and little history. At one point the pair simply stated that in Saudi Arabia, "Trump got a medal."
It was the Collar of Abdulaziz al Saud, the highest civilian honor.
Liberals and the media realized that this was an important trip for the president and decided to play it down.
Because he was doing so well.
Meanwhile, back at The Swamp, it was business as usual.
Nancy Pelosi led a Democratic rally that featured the resounding slogan, "F*** Trump!" And the FCC found the filthy-mouthed Stephen Colbert blameless for maligning a sitting president.
Democrats talked about their Democratic "Russian Scandal," and the appointment of a special counsel to investigate the crime that never was, with evidence that can't be found.
Trump should have fired them all. From the top to the bottom. Flushed them out. And Comey should have been sent packing on January 20.
As far as Special Counsel Robert Mueller, we've heard it all before. Then it was about James Comey, the guy who ended up fronting for Hillary Clinton.
"He's well respected," they said. "He's above reproach." And, for Mueller, "He has nothing to prove." Really?
"Mueller is different," we're told. "He'll follow the thread of the non-Russian-collusion controversy wherever it leads him."
Do you believe it will lead him to Hillary Clinton and her uranium deal with Russia? Obama's open mic comments to Russian President Medvedev? Or John Podesta's ties with that country? Or will it be a "narrow" thread, that only leads to Donald Trump?
Mueller is a friend of James Comey. And a mentor. That could present a conflict of interest.
The former prosecutor and head of the FBI served under Presidents Obama and Bush. That's the Dark State Obama, and the Bush that hates Donald Trump. Yes, that Bush.
That could present a conflict of interest.
It's too bad Obama was the type of president the Chinese liked to snub, when he represented the United States. But he was.
And it's too bad Obama believed he had the right to apologize for us, the American people, when he represented the United States while abroad. Because he didn't.
But we're darn happy that during President Trump's first international trip, symbolically visiting countries of Muslim, Jewish and Catholic faiths, that he was called "The Leader of the Strongest Tribe."
By people who know strength when they see it. By people who matter. Not The New York Times.
Hold the line, America.