Gifts and Gaffes on Trump's Excellent Adventure

Overseas trips are great opportunities for U.S. presidents to distinguish themselves -- think John F. Kennedy’s “Ich bin ein Berliner” -- or to do quite the opposite: Remember Ronald Reagan’s unfortunate speech at a German cemetery containing graves of Waffen SS troops? As with anything involving Donald Trump, many were worried about the latter during his nine-day trip to Saudi Arabia, Israel, Belgium and Italy. So far, he hasn’t gotten ill in the company of any prime ministers.

But beyond the photo-ops and handshakes, what has Trump done to establish himself as a global leader or to improve the standing of the U.S. in the Middle East and Europe? For some answers, I talked with Hal Brands, the Henry A. Kissinger Distinguished Professor at the Henry A. Kissinger Center for Global Affairs at Johns Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International Studies. Brands is also a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments, and the author of four books on international policy, most recently “Making the Unipolar Moment: U.S. Foreign Policy and the Rise of the Post-Cold War Order.” Here is an edited transcript of our discussion.

TH: Many Americans were holding their breath about whether Trump would commit any massive faux pas, or maybe over-promise his hosts in an effort to impress them. The consensus seems to be he avoided unforced errors. Do you agree?