The Squiz

Former PM Kevin Rudd is in Donald Trump’s sights… In an interview with former Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage that aired on Sky News last night, the former American president was asked what he thought about our former national leader/Australia’s current ambassador to the US. Trump’s response: “I heard he was a little bit nasty. I hear he’s not the brightest bulb. But I don’t know much about him.” The exchange has sparked concerns about how their disagreement could impact US-Oz relations. 

Why so unkind?

There’s a bit of background to this… Rudd has said some things about Trump in the past. He’s called him “nuts”, “the most destructive president in history”, and “a traitor to the West”. And then there’s Trump and Farage… They go way back, and this is the third interview the presidential hopeful has done with right-wing broadcaster GB News. The issue is that Trump has a good chance of regaining the top job in November, and analysts say this could make it difficult for Rudd to advance Oz’s interests in Washington. Despite the tough character assessment, the Albanese Government insists Rudd will stay on. Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong said Rudd is “excellent” and “even [Coalition leader Peter] Dutton” backs him”. As a side note, if the government has a change of heart on leaving Rudd there, Nationals Senator Matt Canavan is also from Queensland and he’s here to help…

What else did Trump talk about?

A lot – including a false claim that the US funds “90 to 100%” of NATO (note: it’s closer to 70%), but he did reassure member states of the European/North American security pact that he would not pull out if they pay their “fair share”. On the Russian front, Trump said he “got along with Putin great” and would continue negotiating with him. Trump has previously claimed he’d end the Ukraine war within 24 hours… And it wasn’t all international politics… Trump also weighed in on the Princess Kate photo editing saga, saying it “shouldn’t be a big deal” and suggested Prince Harry could be kicked out of the US if he did lie about previous drug use on his visa application. Hang onto your hat…