President Trump’s response to NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte’s earlier Wednesday characterization of the commander in chief as “daddy” had Secretary of State Marco Rubio giggle till he bawled.
The U.S.’s role in mediating a fragile truce between Israel and Iran was discussed by Trump during their bilateral meeting in The Hague, Netherlands. He compared the two nations to “two kids in a school yard” who “fight like hell” for a short while before “it’s easier to stop them.”
In response, Rutte said, “Then daddy has to sometimes use strong language.”
As he boarded Marine One on Tuesday, Trump swore at reporters outside the White House, describing Israel and Iran as countries that “have been fighting so long and so hard that they don’t know what the f— they’re doing.”
When a reporter from Sky News pressed Trump about the comment during a following news conference on Wednesday, Rubio went into hysterics.
Trump was informed by the reporter that Rutte is not his buddy. He addressed you as “daddy.”
The newscaster probed further, asking, “Do you regard your NATO allies as kind of children?”
As a result of Trump’s playful response, Rubio began to grin and smile with him. No, I think he has feelings for me. Perhaps he has feelings for me. I will inform you if he does not. I will return and deal a heavy blow to him. Is that so?” “Jokingly,” Trump said.
“Indeed so. So he accomplished it. “Very romantic,” Trump chimed in about Rutte. “‘Daddy, You’re my daddy.'”
Even when Rubio was laughing, the reporter kept going in a more serious tone.
“Do you regard your NATO allies, though, as kind of like children?” inquired her.
On Wednesday, NATO heads of state pledged that by 2035, member nations will pay 5% of GDP yearly for defense and security commitments.
“You’re clearly grateful for that,” the journalist remarked. “But do you hope that actually they’re going to be able to defend themselves, defend Europe on their own?”
“I think they’ll need help a little bit at the beginning, and I think they’ll be able to,” he added. This is a watershed moment for NATO, and I believe they will never forget it. You have no idea how monumental this day was.
The president said, “It’s been sort of an amazing day for a lot of reasons, but also for that,” alluding to the fact that the more significant contributions had been in the works for decades. Trump insisted it was impossible prior to his arrival.
In the future, do you believe they will be able to accomplish it without you?” the reporter said. Do you think they could extend it to further states?
“I mean, you have to ask Mark,” Trump stated as he ended the news conference. Spain is the only NATO member that has refused to increase its defense contribution, as the president has previously pointed out.
