Pundits are enraged that former President Trump wants NATO allies to meet obligations. Here’s what he said during a weekend campaign rally:
I did the same thing with NATO. I got them to pay up. NATO was busted until I came along. I said, “Everybody’s going to pay.”
They said, “Well, if we don’t pay, are you still going to protect us.”
I said, “Absolutely not.” They couldn’t believe the answer. And everybody … you never saw more money pour in.
The [NATO] secretary general [Jens] Stoltenberg … said, “All these presidents came in. They’d make a speech; they’d leave. And that was it. And they all owed money, and they wouldn’t pay it.”
I came in, I made a speech, and I said, “You gotta pay up.”
One of the presidents of the big countries stood up, said: “Well, sir, if we don’t pay, and we’re attacked by Russia, will you protect us?”
I said, “You didn’t pay? You’re delinquent?”
He said, “Yes, let’s say that happened.”
“No, I would not protect you. In fact, I would encourage them to do whatever the hell they want. You gotta pay. You’ve got to pay your bills.”
And the money came flowing in.
His remarks left Republican presidential contender Nikki Haley aghast. She posted on X: “NATO has been a 75-year success story. There hasn’t been war in the region because of NATO. It is a massive mistake for Donald Trump to side with a thug like Putin over our allies and it will put troops in harm’s way.”
Former NATO Commander General Wesley Clark said it was more than a mistake. He told CNN anchor John Berman, “You can’t put enough adjectives on this to describe how treasonous such a comment is.”
Podcaster Viva Frei posted on X: “I don’t understand what is so controversial about what Trump said. If purported members of NATO are not financially contributing to NATO, then NATO ceases to exist as a pure matter of fact.”
In the interview with Jake Tapper of CNN posted there, Republican Senator Marco Rubio defended the former president. He pointed out that when Trump was in office, he did not pull the United States out of NATO. Rubio also mentioned that many presidents have complained about some NATO members “not doing enough.” He said Trump stands out because he forced their involvement.
“Look, Donald Trump is not a member of the Council on Foreign Relations. He doesn’t talk like a traditional politician,” said Rubio. “What he’s basically saying is that NATO was broke or busted until he took over because people weren’t paying their dues. And then he told the story about how he used leverage to get people to step up to the plate.”
NATO records confirm that many members have not met mutually agreed upon goals. Statistia compiled NATO data regarding member defense expenditures. The results, illustrated in this graphic, are remarkable.
“The concept that NATO countries should spend 2 percent of their GDP on defense was debuted in 2014 and by 2024, members of the military alliance should technically have ‘moved towards’ or beyond this goal,” notes Statista. “According to data released as of July 1, the number of NATO countries which have reached or exceeded the spending level was only 11 out of 30 members with armed forces.”
