President Donald Trump gave his first speech to the United Nations on Monday morning, during a panel on reforming the organization. Given that Trump?s ?America First? view of foreign policy takes a pretty dim view of international organizations, and given the president?s well-known penchant for saying whatever he thinks at the time, there was real fear that this address would go off the rails.
When the president started by talking about Trump Tower?s proximity to the UN building in New York ? ?I actually saw great potential right across the street? ? it seemed like things those fears might end up being vindicated. But they weren?t. Trump?s brief address was about as boring as you?d expect a speech on UN budgeting and personnel procedures to be. Even the strongest criticisms of the UN in the speech were snoozers.
?In recent years, the United Nations has not reached its full potential because of bureaucracy and mismanagement,? Trump said. ?We encourage the secretary general to fully use his authority to cut through the bureaucracy, reform outdated systems, and make firm decisions to advance the UN?s core mission.?
Trump also gave the kind of boilerplate praise for the UN that you?d expect from any president.
?The United Nations was founded on truly noble goals,? he said. ?The United Nations has helped advance these goals in so many ways: feeding the hungry, providing disaster relief, and empowering women and girls in many societies all across the world.?
While the line about gender equality rings a bit more hollow than it would with another president, it?s clear that when you watch the speech (embedded below) that it was remarkably inoffensive by Trump standards. The biggest gaffe was mispronouncing UN Secretary General António Guterres?s last name (the correct Portuguese pronunciation is ?goo-terr-esh;? Trump pronounces it ?gutter-ez?)
Also read