Trump Slams Obama Administration On US-Philippine Relations
- 6 years ago
President Trump took aim at the previous administration in connection to the U.S.-Philippine relations.
President Trump on Tuesday talked about improved relations between the U.S. and the Philippines while slamming the Obama administration for its dealings with the Asian nation.
"As you know, we were having a lot of problems with the Philippines," Trump told reporters in Manila. "The relationship with the past administration was horrible, to use a nice word. I would say 'horrible' is putting it mildly."
"You know what happened. Many of you were there, and you never got to land," he continued. "The plane came close but it didn't land."
While he didn't provide specifics on the point of reference for that comment, it appears to be linked to President Obama's September 2016 trip to Laos, where he was scheduled to speak with Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte.
If that is the case, Trump was incorrect in the assertion, as the plane did, indeed, touch down.
The Hill reports that Obama canceled the meeting after Duterte called him the equivalent of a "son of a b****."
That comment followed the then-U.S. president's criticism of Duterte's anti-narcotics campaign, which has claimed thousands of lives.
Bloomberg notes that while White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders says Trump did broach that topic, "Duterte's spokesman disputed that account, adding that Trump 'appeared sympathetic' when the Philippine president explained about the country's drug problems."
President Trump on Tuesday talked about improved relations between the U.S. and the Philippines while slamming the Obama administration for its dealings with the Asian nation.
"As you know, we were having a lot of problems with the Philippines," Trump told reporters in Manila. "The relationship with the past administration was horrible, to use a nice word. I would say 'horrible' is putting it mildly."
"You know what happened. Many of you were there, and you never got to land," he continued. "The plane came close but it didn't land."
While he didn't provide specifics on the point of reference for that comment, it appears to be linked to President Obama's September 2016 trip to Laos, where he was scheduled to speak with Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte.
If that is the case, Trump was incorrect in the assertion, as the plane did, indeed, touch down.
The Hill reports that Obama canceled the meeting after Duterte called him the equivalent of a "son of a b****."
That comment followed the then-U.S. president's criticism of Duterte's anti-narcotics campaign, which has claimed thousands of lives.
Bloomberg notes that while White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders says Trump did broach that topic, "Duterte's spokesman disputed that account, adding that Trump 'appeared sympathetic' when the Philippine president explained about the country's drug problems."