The New York Times Finally Has "Fresh Doubts" About Trump's Diplomacy
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Fifteen months into the worst presidency in American history, the New York Times has finally acknowledged that Donald Trump’s war with Iran has “tested the limits of his unorthodox diplomatic style,” and raised “fresh doubt about his freestyle tactics.”  While the Times prides itself on reporting “All the News That is Fit to Print,” it has spent more than a year downplaying the unfit personnel appointed to national security positions, the policies that have seriously damaged relations with key allies, and the destruction of any responsible national security process.

Photograph by Nathaniel St. Clair

Fifteen months into the worst presidency in American history, the New York Times has finally acknowledged that Donald Trump’s war with Iran has “tested the limits of his unorthodox diplomatic style,” and raised “fresh doubt about his freestyle tactics.” While the Times prides itself on reporting “All the News That is Fit to Print,” it has spent more than a year downplaying the unfit personnel appointed to national security positions, the policies that have seriously damaged relations with key allies, and the destruction of any responsible national security process.

Even before Trump’s inauguration in January 2025, it was obvious that men and women were being appointed to key national security positions they were not fit to occupy. While former senator Marco Rubio might have appeared qualified, he has used his positions as secretary of state and national security adviser to strengthen Trump’s campaign to deport activist foreign students studying at American universities. Since his appointment, the Department of State has played no role in key diplomatic matters.

Nearly all of our key international issues have been managed, indeed mismanaged, by two billionaire real estate operatives, Steve Wytkoff and Jared Kushner, who have earned the United States no credibility or respect in the global community. Vice President J.D. Vance has defended the work of Wytkoff and Kushner, explaining that it “turns out a lot of diplomacy boils down to a simple skill: don’t be an idiot.” Rubio contends that he is unbothered by the heavy diplomatic responsibilities of Wytkoff and Kushner because “they check in with him regularly.” Rubio doesn’t mention that the two tycoons are negotiating business deals as they travel!

When national security adviser Michael Waltz added a journalist to a private and sensitive internet chat that discussed U.S. military strikes against the Houthi rebels in Yemen, he was soon replaced by Rubio. Rubio proved he could run the National Security Council (in addition to the Department of State) into the ground in no time. Half the staff members of the NSC were quickly dispatched because a right-wing conspiracist, Laura Loomer, warned Trump that they were not loyal to the president. The State Department and the National Security Council, our most important national security entities, have played no role in deciding or even implementing policy regarding the war with Iran, the war between Russia and Ukraine, and the war between Israel and Palestine.

Meanwhile, several dozen U.S. embassies remain with no ambassador at the helm, including five nations that are involved in the war with Iran. Key ambassadorial positions have been vacant since January 2025 in Europe (including Germany), South America (including Brazil), the Pacific (including South Korea), the Middle East (Egypt and Iraq), Southwest Asia (Pakistan), and even Russia. A convicted felon, Charles Kushner, is the ambassador to France; a Christian evangelist (Mike Huckabee) is ambassador to Israel; and two right-wing propagandists have ambassadorial posts in Belgium and Poland.

The U.S. Institute of Peace, a peace-building institution, was established by the Congress in 1984 to prevent, mitigate, and resolve violent conflicts abroad. It was taken over by the Trump administration in February 2025, when four congressionally created organizations were eliminated. Several months later, it was reopened and renamed the Trump Institute of Peace. It was ludicrous for Donald Trump to rename the Kennedy Center in his honor; it was even more ludicrous for Donald Trump, a warmonger, to place his name on the Institute of Peace.

Trump used the Institute of Peace to launch the Board of Peace, which was supposed to advance the redevelopment of Gaza. It has done nothing. Meanwhile, Israel violates the so-called cease fire in Gaza, and steps up the violence against Palestinians on the West Bank. Israeli occupation of southern Lebanon and southern Syria has drawn no reaction from Trump’s national security team.

The worst example of Trump’s lack of control over U.S. foreign policy is the abandonment of arms control and disarmament. The tragic demise of the New START Treaty in February left the United States and Russia without any bureaucratic path for continuing the control over strategic weapons that have marked U.S. policy for the past 60 years. In view of the difficulty and complexity of disarmament negotiations, it isn’t possible to imagine anyone in the Trump aviary handling any of the key issues.

Finally, Trump is currently discussing turning the White House Treaty Room, historically a meeting place for diplomats and statesman, into a guest bedroom “with an en-suite bath.” The Treaty Room is one of the most historic rooms in the White House. The peace protocol for the Spanish-American War was signed there in 1898, the partial test ban treaty was signed there in 1963. It seems fitting that it will now be used for Trump’s financial backers.

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