In an ABC News interview that aired on Tuesday morning, Hillary Clinton revealed that she would not be accepting Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto’s recent meeting invitation. The Democratic presidential nominee told David Muir she would not be visiting the country after Donald Trump’s visit, which she deemed a “diplomatic incident.”
Trump’s recent trip to Mexico was mired in controversy even before he touched down south of the border. One of his major campaign promises has been to build his Wall to keep out illegal immigrants, so his trip was a bit of a head scratcher. The situation became even more confusing after he guaranteed Mexico would be funding the wall, which Nieto quickly denied. It’s almost like we have a global game of telephone going on. Clinton believes that Trump didn’t break any new ground in his negotiations for the proposed wall and said he basically choked:
“He came out saying one thing and the Mexican president contradicted him almost immediately. He didn’t raise it, so he did choke. He didn’t know how to even communicate effectively with a head of state. And I think that’s a pretty clear outcome from that trip.”
Clinton went on to say that she declined Nieto’s invitation for a meeting, saying she wants to focus on domestic affairs at the moment. Clinton’s VP choice, Tim Kaine, then added how Trump’s recent trip was a “rookie mistake” and a reflection on his lack of foreign affairs experience:
“If you’re gonna cave when you’re with an ally, and Mexico’s an ally, what are you gonna do when you’re with an adversary? You shouldn’t leave the safety of America and our diplomacy in the hands of a rookie who, on his one visit with a foreign leader, has already created kind of an international embarrassment for us.”
This presidential campaign continues to be worthy of a reality television show. With the presidential debates only a few weeks away, these back and forth encounters will surely grow more interesting as time continues.
