Italy s Meloni Erupts At Trump Over His Obvious Lie Who Then Doubles Down

I am frankly stunned. I don't know why the President of the United States behaves this way with his own allies. I love to end the week on some guilt-free drama. So, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Maloney is not very happy with Donald Trump as she is claiming that he completely made up an interaction that they had. Which, are you sure? Donald Trump lying about an interaction he had with somebody? No way. Can't be. So, first, let's just acknowledge this is somebody who came in as a far-right leader, was seen at the time as somebody who would be essentially upholding the Trump way of doing things, but for Europe, and I'm not saying that she isn't doing that, but I am saying that she's... I'm trying to find a way to frame this where I'm not making her sound good because it doesn't mean her politics are great, but we are talking about somebody who, even she is annoyed with Donald Trump. Somebody who you would expect to be politically aligned with Chief Dumbass in the White House. But, this gets to what happened at the G7. So, this interaction was caught on tape here. As Wu-Tang is for the children, great name, writes here, this doesn't look like someone that was begging Trump for anything. It looks much more like a typical Italian mom yelling at her child for doing something dumb. So, yeah, it doesn't look like she's happy. But, Trump was apparently asked about their conversation, what they talked about, and here is what he said. So, this was to the Italian press, which has been dubbed over. I guess the original version is not publicly available, but as the Guardian writes here, referring to Maloney during a brief interview with Italian's LA7, a dubbed version of which was broadcast by the Italian TV network on Friday, Trump said, quote, she's probably happy I talked to her. I didn't have to talk to her. She begged me to take a picture with her. She wanted a picture with me so badly. I wouldn't have taken it, but I felt sorry for her. If I have ever heard bullshit, it is this. This definitely did not happen. He's clearly full of ----. He's said things like this before about other interactions he's had. Of course he's lying. The remarks, as the Guardian writes here, provoked a fury in Italy and words of solidarity for Maloney from across the political spectrum with Italy's foreign minister, Antonio Tajani, saying he had cancelled a trip to the US next week. So, this is really irking people, this obvious lie that Trump made. And Maloney herself came out to deny this. So, this was translated here by Scott Robertson. Here is what she said. I can't say I am used to seeing other world leaders speak this clearly in rebuke of Donald Trump. So, in case you didn't want to read that, let me just quickly read her quote here, where she stated, so certain things deserve an immediate response. Donald Trump's statements are completely made up. I am frankly stunned. You're stunned really that Trump lies? I don't know why the president of the United States behaves this way with his own allies. It's not first time this has happened. After all, I can only say it's a shame he doesn't show the same determination with the enemies of the West, with the enemies of the United States, with the leaders of whom instead he proves to be much more accommodating. But he must remember one thing, Italy and I never beg. Now, we have gotten to a point where Trump's approval numbers are so low. He is so unpopular with his own country. Midterms coming up, his party is expected to get decimated. I think other world leaders are feeling a little more, maybe freed up a little bit, a little unchained, a little more willing to say what is actually on their minds in a way that they hadn't previously. Now, Trump came back, believe it or not. So, I'm going to get to that. I'm also going to get to where a lot of this tension stems from, because it actually goes back a couple months. But Ron Flakowski, writing here on Twitter, Italian undersecretary and it is unclear whether out of intent or ineptitude Trump is wrecking the historic relations between the US and Europe. With his inappropriate outbursts, he managed no easy feat to make the US unpopular across the entire continent. And I mean, that goes for Canada as well. I'm sure that goes for Mexico. That goes for much of the world at this point, unless you live in Israel. And even now, after the Iran deal, it appears, or at least the beginning of an Iran deal, it appears that Israelis are beginning to turn on him as well. So, we are in a situation where I just think people are feeling a little more free to say what they actually feel. So, Trump responded. NBC News here. Later during a phone call with NBC News, Trump doubled down on his claim that Maloney has begged for a picture together. That's true, he said. She wasn't there for us. Changing the subject immediately. She was a big fan, but I don't want her as a fan because she was not there along with the NATO group having to do with the strait. So, clearly there's something else behind this. The fact that you change the topic immediately to your war in Iran. Trump has complained that NATO allies did not offer help to American forces after the war began. But it even goes deeper than that. I mean, ultimately, it gets down to this. Earlier this year, Maloney criticized Trump after he lashed out at Pope Leo over the pontiff's condemnation of the Iran war. That's what this actually stems from. That she came out to say, I am defending the Pope and I'm criticizing Trump. And he freaked out. So, this was during a time, back in April, Pope Leo says he has no fear after Trump labels him weak and terrible in feud over Iran war. So ridiculous. Leo said something very just sane and normal, especially for the Pope, said that the world was being, quote, ravaged by a handful of tyrants and blasted leaders who spend billions on wars. How is this controversial in any way at all? It also doesn't even mention Trump, even though I think it's clearly he's one of the people involved there, you know, him and Netanyahu. But Maloney came out to criticize Trump saying, quote, the Pope is the head of the Catholic Church and it is right and normal for him to call for peace and to condemn all forms of war. Yeah. I mean, the most obvious statement in the world. But that was enough for Trump to freak out as he decries Italy's Maloney for siding with the Pope and not supporting the Iran war. So stupid. I thought she had courage, Trump said in an interview. I was wrong. Give me a ******* break. You got me here defending Maloney. I mean, we're not down a good timeline. But it's just so insane that even far right leaders have had enough of this bullshit. So this gets to the Iran war, which I'm going to touch on briefly here. As Guardian writes, this is from Simon Jenkins, Trump thinks he is his freshly signed ceasefire deal is victory. It is for Iran. Now, I don't like this. I want to be clear, this framing on this article isn't even necessarily negative. It's just pointing out that this is a better deal for Iran than it was for the JCPOA under Obama's Iran deal. So going on to say he is offering Tehran's military regime a 300 billion dollar rebuilding fund, an end to economic sanctions and a promise not to interfere in its internal affairs, which like good. I don't you know, there's Chuck Schumer's out there as the leader of the Democratic Party, at least the Senate leader, criticizing the deal and saying that we need to vote on this. Shut the **** up. The war is over for now. Let it be the idea that you're going to as the Democrats, you're going to try and blow it up to what continue a war with Iran. Are you out of your ******* mind? Let let Trump lose this deal. It doesn't ******* matter. End it. So I am I'm quite I mean, quite pleasantly surprised that Trump actually folded the way he did. And we are on a better path because of it.