Trump lashes out at Malcolm Turnbull after China comments
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The news: US President Donald Trump has taken to his social media platform Truth Social to slam Malcolm Turnbull, after the former Australian prime minister suggested that Trump's tariff policies are "bad for business" and will see countries prefer to deal with China than the US.
"Malcolm Turnbull, the former Prime Minister of Australia who was always leading that wonderful country from “behind,” never understood what was going on in China, nor did he have the capacity to do so," Trump posted. "I always thought he was a weak and ineffective leader and, obviously, Australian’s agreed with me!!!"
The context: The post followed an interview with Turnbull on Bloomberg Television this morning. Turnbull — who served as prime minister from 2015 until 2018, overlapping with Trump's first presidential term — said Trump's behaviour in his second term would be viewed as an "advantage" for China President Xi Jinping.
"President Xi will aim to be the exact opposite of Trump," Turnbull said. "Where Trump is chaotic, he will be consistent. Where Trump is rude and abusive, he’ll be respectful. Where Trump is erratic, he will be consistent."
He noted that countries would consequently "find China a more attractive partner" when compared with the US.
"Trump seems to have a view that America can prosper at the expense of everyone else, but that’s not going to work," Turnbull said.
The sources: Bloomberg, Truth Social
