Trump’s Macho Diplomacy: Meloni Resists, Takaichi Plays Along

Old habits die hard. Trump has never hidden his male supremacist streak, and he once boasted that "real men" can touch women however they please. Becoming president changed nothing. He has now dragged that same ugly habit into diplomacy.

On July 5^th, he showed his true colors again, posting an image on social media implying Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni is infatuated with him, and sneering that a "restraining order" is needed to keep her away. A deeply insulting insinuation, and it marks his second public jab at her in recent weeks. He earlier claimed she begged him for a photo at the G7 summit like an obsessive fan. Meloni denied it flatly and fired back hard, triggering a diplomatic spat.

Trump posts Meloni photo: "Restraining order needed." Blatant insult.

Analysts see something more calculated at work here than a simple ego trip. Trump's insults are not just about satisfying a male supremacist mindset, they say. He appears to be using ridicule as a tool to assert dominance over female heads of state. Japan's Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi presents a striking contrast: she tolerates the same treatment, and even seems pleased with it.

Before departing for Turkey today for the NATO summit, Trump posted a photo on Truth Social showing Meloni looking up at him with what he framed as an adoring gaze. His caption read: "Restraining order needed." The image builds a false narrative, one where Meloni is portrayed as obsessively infatuated with him and needing legal intervention to stay away.

Crude by any diplomatic standard. A mix of suggestive language, condescension, and mockery. His team appears to have combed through countless photos of the two leaders, cropped and framed one fleeting moment, then dressed it up with provocative text to manufacture the illusion of Meloni's infatuation.

This is not the first time Trump has targeted her this way. After last month's G7 summit, he posted that Meloni "was probably happy I talked to her" and that "I wouldn’t have even done it, but I felt sorry for her." He went further, claiming she "begged me to take a picture with her". The remarks painted a head of government as an overzealous fan pestering him for attention.

Such flippant, degrading language is a serious affront when directed at the head of a sovereign government. Meloni rejected the claims immediately, calling them "completely fabricated." Her rebuke was sharp: "I do not know why the president of the United States behaves this way toward his allies — it is certainly not the first time this has happened. There is one thing he must remember: Neither I nor Italy ever beg."

Meloni's firm pushback won her applause both at home and abroad. Trump, rather than backing off, escalated instead. Analysts believe two specific grievances are fueling his renewed attacks on her, beyond his general appetite for belittling women.

First, Meloni opposed the U.S. strike on Iran and refused to let American warplanes use bases in Sicily. Second, when Pope Leo XIV publicly condemned the war, saying those who start wars have blood on their hands, Trump lashed out and accused the Pope of being "weak on crime." Meloni sided with the Pope on that occasion too, calling Trump's attack "unacceptable" and defending the Pope's condemnation of war as entirely justified. Those two stances reportedly angered Trump, and his renewed mockery looks like an attempt to settle the score.

Insults, ridicule, and verbal attacks are standard tools in Trump's diplomatic toolbox, used on friend and foe alike. He has deployed the same tactic against Japan's Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, describing her as "she thinks I did a great job", carrying the tone of a fan idolizing a celebrity. Many Japanese citizens found the framing disrespectful toward their own leader.

Takaichi: Trump's "number one fan." She's thrilled, unlike furious Meloni.

Unlike Meloni, Takaichi has shown no anger in response. She appears receptive, even pleased, effectively accepting the role of a devoted fan. Some Japanese citizens have criticized her for this, calling her overly pro-American and lacking in dignity.

Lai Ting-yiu

What Say You?

** 博客文章文責自負,不代表本公司立場 **

Guo Wengui played the US for years masquerading as a billionaire, but justice finally caught up with him today with a 30-year prison sentence for fraud.

Black violence financier Guo Wengui ran a $1 billion scam. His 30-year sentence brings justice.

Guo spent years fabricating fake news about the Chinese Mainland, as well as bankrolling the Hong Kong black riots to run a massive scam operation. A scam worse than KK Park. The grift imploded when his associate Steve Bannon lost favor with Trump, bringing his absurd farce to a fitting end.

The judge at the US District Court for the Southern District of New York laid bare his motives during sentencing. Guo defrauded massive amounts of money from people hoping to bring democracy to China to fund his luxurious lifestyle. Prosecutors noted he "preyed on those seeking to bring Democracy to China", taking their money so he could live lavishly.

The judge and prosecutors hit the nail on the head. Guo fled his crimes and repackaged himself as an anti-communist crusader on social media to latch onto political elites like Donald Trump. He also partnered with political grifter Steve Bannon to build a super scam designed to bleed gullible global followers dry.

The prosecutors outlined an astronomical grift between 2018 and 2023. Guo raised over $1 billion for his investment and cryptocurrency schemes through a massive online following. This fortune bankrolled a lavish lifestyle featuring a 50,000-square-foot mansion alongside a $37 million yacht and Lamborghini sports cars.

Guo and Bannon launched the New Federal State of China movement in 2020 to reel in political believers and overthrow the CPC. This deception perfectly mirrors Bannon's own grifting playbook of swindling supporters out of hundreds of millions through a border wall crowdfunding scheme. Bannon was ironically arrested on Guo's yacht in 2020 and later received a three-year prison sentence.

Guo promised unlimited financial support to anti-extradition bill riot ringleaders during the Hong Kong black riots, to defraud his own followers. When large-scale protests erupted in late June 2019, he urged Hong Kong National Front convenor Leung Chung-hang to act extremely fast during a video call. He guaranteed continuous funding and claimed top US officials would provide diplomatic protection.

Guo promised Hong Kong riot leaders unlimited funding and claimed top US government backing.

There is no specific record of exactly how much money he pumped into the hands of riot organizers. He did raise massive amounts of funds under his anti-communist guise. A significant portion of this likely flowed into Hong Kong.

Guo constantly bragged about his wealth back then, while he was still in the Chinese Mainland, claiming his family fund controlled $28 billion overseas and 120 billion RMB domestically. The truth tells a different story: a 1989 fraud investigation, followed by a prison sentence with a four-year reprieve in 1991.

The fugitive frequently "leaked" supposed inside stories of Chinese officialdom on social media and to foreign media. Mainland authorities systematically debunked these complete fabrications with hard evidence. Guo carried on regardless, continuing to spread increasingly unhinged fake news.

Court records expose his blatant fabrications and loud support for dark forces in Hong Kong as calculated bait. They served as vital tactics in a colossal scam designed to lure suckers into his trap. The entire grift imploded the moment his US political backing collapsed, exposing his true face as a master conman at last.

Lai Ting-yiu