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That tweet should have stated his entire quote instead of making it sound like it’s just Trump bluster they are shrugging off. It isn’t. “We really want to understand his thinking.” Good. You won’t. “He’s under indecent pressure from the EU and NATO. He’s going to give offensive weapons to Ukraine at the expense of the Western Tax payer.” Yes. And thanks for your concern. It sounds like you aren’t thrilled about this to actually pull that card. Maybe these are cards Trump didn’t want to play and you didn’t think he would. Putin’s puppet everyone.

This is a right vs left thing and there’s not much of a chance you can sway anyone on this topic. The left is more globalist/status concerned than the right. They may have thought Biden was embarrassing on the global stage but pretended it didn’t exist or defended it because they appreciated that he was respectful of other countries and, in return, on the surface, other countries respected us. The right wants to re-establish America as the, singular, power in the world while also demanding other countries pick up the slack and stop asking us to subsidize their Defense and/or tap into our market without paying their dues. When Trump gets called “daddy” by the NATO Secretary and forces every country, minus Spain, to level up.. The Right declares “America is back”.. and they don’t care if other nations burn effigies of Trump or we get more criticism from citizens of other countries. The tariff thing is interesting because it’s a traditionally Democrat protectionist view that Trump holds, which in turn has garnered criticism from Democrats and praise from Republicans .. in part, because politics is now sport and people, aside from a core issue or two, don’t actually hold rigid views on most topics. Due to all of this, there are two distinctly different opinions of what “being respected abroad” actually means.

Most American's couldn't tell you the name of the Prime Minister of Canada, the major import/exports, the political structure, political parties, the make up of their parliament, the GDP, contributions to NATO, the largest city, ethnic makeup, history of indigenous people, their approach to immigration, or who Tim Horton was. Liekwise, most Canadians likely know very little about the US and how everything operates. That's not apathy, or indifference, it's just that most people live their lives on a local level. Certainly, most would hope for the best for our neighbors to the north, and I certainly do. Like many in WNY, I spent many summers across the bridge with Canadian family members, travelled and camped in Ontario, and got the obligatory car tossing on the way to a concert in Toronto one year at the PB. We'll get through it, we always do.

NEW: NYT’s Lulu Garcia-Navarro *repeatedly* asks NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte anti-Trump questions — he doesn’t bite🚨 RUTTE: "Let's face what is happening: There were 7 or 8 countries in Europe not at 2%. So now it’s 5% — a new benchmark." "Do we really think that we would have been able last week in The Hague to agree to that 5% if Trump would not have been reelected as President of the United States?" "So I think when somebody deserves praise, that praise should be given. And President Trump deserves all the praise." "Because without his leadership, without him being reelected President of the United States, the 2% this year and the 5% in 2035 — we would never, ever, ever have been able to achieve agreement on this."

You’re right about one thing: civil conversation is good. But let’s not pretend you’re just offering a benign “opinion” here. You’re framing Canada as somehow taking advantage of the US - despite the US being the one who unilaterally tore up trade deals, started tariff wars, and spends more on defense not out of charity, but to maintain global influence. The US-Canada relationship is one of the most balanced and mutually beneficial on earth. Our trade is near perfectly reciprocal. Canadian tourists and part-time residents who typically pour $20+ billion into the US economy every year - especially in places like Florida, Arizona, and yes, Western New York. To act like Canada is freeloading is both factually wrong and rooted in a tired, MAGA-style grievance narrative that refuses to recognize the reality of international partnerships. And on NATO: the 2% guideline isn’t a bill it’s a goal. Canada fights, bleeds, and dies alongside US troops in every major conflict. They’ve been there from Normandy to Kandahar. So, spare me the selective outrage. You’re entitled to your opinions, but not to misrepresentations dressed up as concern. The irony is you moved to a state that’s now overwhelmed because of the very policies MAGA types cheer - low taxes, weak planning, and deregulated sprawl - and now you want to blame “outsiders” instead of looking inward. That’s not logic. That’s deflection. And finally, yes - your random response to me came after I praised Canadians for being good people to the US LGBTQ community. That clearly struck a nerve, probably because the party you support has spent years telling you to hate those people. Talk about lacking intellect and maturity.

I grew up in Buffalo, and yes, I remember them being good people. I haven't lived there since I joined the army in 91, and stayed in Middle Tennessee when I retired in 14, so I can't speak first hand as to the economic impact on Western New York, nor is it my concern. More my concern is the year over year influx of people moving down here at a greater rate than our infrastructure and first responders can keep up with. It's logical to a degree that the WNY economy may take a hit, it's also logical that Canadians living close to the border who regularly did thier shopping in WNY will continue to do so because its still cheaper and its human nature to want to spend less, especially if they're struggling to make ends meet, ideals be damned. As I said, and you agree with according to your first paragraph, I don't fault Canada for prioritizing healthcare over NATO, nor did I say anything derogatory about the people who live in Canada. You obviously disagree with my opinion that the relationship between Canada and the US is not balanced, that's okay, I still talk to you in a civil manner. Calling me ignorant and pathetic because I don't share your view is no way to change my mind, it only shows you lack intellect and maturity.

Canada has a sizable and affluent economy, but it’s still just one-thirteenth the size of the US. To meet NATO’s 2% threshold, Canada would need to increase its defense spending by roughly US $15.7 billion annually - no small lift for a country of 41 million. And before Trump started threatening to make them the 51st state, how much do you think Canadians were spending in the U.S. each year? Now ask yourself how much they’ll be spending over the next 3.5 years. Do you think WNY will take a hit if Canadians stop coming over to spend money? Regardless, none of this changes the fact that Canadians are good neighbors and good people. Anyone trashing the country or its people is just showing how ignorant and absolutely pathetic they really are.

Their own politician (I don't recall her name) said they don't have enough money to meet thier NATO financial requirements and fund thier free Healthcare system, and they prioritized Healthcare. I don't fault them for that, I don't think any reasonable person would. No, I don't believe we get enough in return from Canada for the security we provide them.

"When we recently went overseas to the NATO summit, I had senior staff in foreign governments come up to me and ask me how he achieved the 'Trump miracle' on his border, and could that be replicated in their countries?" "For individuals who don't work in this space, to have zero successful illegal entries in an entire month should be an IMPOSSIBLE achievement. There's a 2,000 mile border with one of the poorest countries in the world, and you have open travel from 150 countries into Central America and South America." "There are 2 billion people in the world that would economically benefit from illegally coming to the United States." "And through the deployment of the military, through the deployment of novel legal and diplomatic tools, through the building of physical infrastructure, through the empowering of ICE and Border Patrol, and the entire federal law enforcement apparatus, President Trump achieved absolute border security." "And now, once this legislation is passed, he will be able to make that with those resources permanent."

@JDHillFan What are you rolling your eyes at? Military missions are gambles, maybe they work, maybe they don't. In 1999 Yugoslav forces tricked NATO into bombing fake targets. Deception is a major part of war

As an aside, Trump labelled CNN, MSNBC & the NYT 'scum' during his presser with the NATO chief - you have to love the way he stands up for his guys and his nation. I wish Australia had a leader like him, but alas we have a useless woke arsehole.

Yeah, the two previous “big boys” were really listened to by any of them… And are you joking about NATO? Who do you think got them to pledge more money? Do you think it just happened on its own? 🙄

Your right …Putin taunts him…fires offensives before phone calls…Netanyahu ignores him NATO pledged it….Trump complimented them….how do you get that he “got” them to do it? Talk about TDS dt is a small small child in a big boy job

Not even remotely true. And even less true after Trump got NATO to pledge an additional $4 billion.

i’m sure he does. Not gonna happen. But we know the sites to monitor going forward. and didn’t know a better place to put this, but Trump just got almost all of the NATO countries to spend 5% of their GDP. That’s $400 billion more. So much for trying to destroy it.

NO ! Volodymyr Zelensky Demands $40 Billion in Annual Budget Support for Ukraine This is madness. Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy sends a twitter message as if he’s ordering coffee from the guy down the street, telling NATO members not to forget to send him his $40 billion in “budgetary support.” Budgetary support means we pay for the operational cost of Ukraine government, including govt payrolls, pensions, healthcare services, welfare and social services for the people in Ukraine. (snip) The crazy thing is, unless Trump stops it, our congress will give it to him. And even if Trump tries to stop it, congress will demand the payment as part of their appropriations process. As if we don’t have important priorities here at home Maybe it’s just me, but the in-your-face hubris of it is, well, just off-the-charts. https://theconservativetreehouse.com/blog/2025/06/21/volodymyr-zelensky-demands-40-billion-in-annual-budget-support-for-ukraine/

And NATO.

Russia attacked NATO, when?

Exactly, but thanks in large part to U.S. and NATO resolve.

Agreed. Which is why I've never understood both of these propositions are not clearly in America's best interests: 1. Iran is run by a theocratic regime committed to the destruction of Israel and the establishment of of new caliphate, such that allowing it to acquire a nuclear weapon is a threat to the region and, in turn, to the United States and global security. 2. Russia is run by a dictator who has openly and repeatedly stated his desire to reconstitute - by any means necessary - the former Russian/Soviet Empire, such that contesting Russian aggression, particularly in Europe, is a threat to NATO, to the United States, and to global security. I see no reasonable argument to the contrary, nor do I see any way to find (1) is true while denying that (2) is true.

What?? Ukraine is “essentially” NATO?? Um. No. Israel is our ally. Iran is a legit global threat especially to the West. Lost. You people are lost.

Israel attacks Iran, with our significant financial and military support but against our wishes- stay out. Russia attacked Europe and essentially NATO- we support Ukraine, Europe and NATO Europe is (waS OUR ALLY) Russia is (was) our enemy. What's so difficult? didn't some maga here post something derogatory about neo cons?

Summarized - 25 years of Neo con Uni party foreign policy led to Iran today. That one act did more to set back non-proliferation than potentially any single event in modern history, and yet we are told by the same neocons who designed, demanded, and executed it to trust them when it comes to Iran policy. Iraq showed that American intelligence was not to be believed, Libya showed that America and NATO were not to be trusted, and Afghanistan showed that America was not to be feared. These are the fruits of neocon American foreign policy over the last quarter-century. If you want the next twenty-five years to look any different, you’d be well advised to do the opposite of whatever the neocons demand. And right now, they’re demanding war with Iran.

@BillsFanNC VPN really running on high today. Biden did quite a bit - record job growth, infrastructure bill, lower prescription drug prices, and led NATO through a global crisis. But sure, let’s pretend he was just napping the whole time.

Frightened, no. Maybe you should read the small print in the big beautiful bill. Nov 26 is on jeopardy. War against NATO because of Greenland and Canada is real. Trade with Russia is close.. I want to be wrong, but I am not. Watch this trade judicial thing. By next week those judges will be household names, ridiculed , threatened. There is no organization left in government to stop him....no impeachment, no arrest capability, no judge, no congress, no rule of law.