Casablanca — The President-elect took to twitter on Monday night to express his thoughts on the United Nations.
Casablanca — The President-elect took to twitter on Monday night to express his thoughts on the United Nations.
The United Nations has such great potential but right now it is just a club for people to get together, talk and have a good time. So sad!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 26, 2016
Though not explicitly stated, the tweet most likely alludes to the Security Council’s December 23 resolution calling an end to illegal Israeli settlements. President-elect Trump was publicly against the United States abstaining from the vote, which is what allowed the resolution to pass.
As to the U.N., things will be different after Jan. 20th.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 23, 2016
The U.S. typically vetoes such resolutions as an act of alliance to Israel, and many believe President Obama’s decision to abstain from voting this year made a big statement to Israel about how illegal settlements could be preventing a two-state solution from happening.
Following the UN announcement on the resolution, President-elect Trump again took to social media to express his sentiments.
On December 24, Trump again tweeted about the resolution, saying:
The United Nations has such great potential but right now it is just a club for people to get together, talk and have a good time. So sad!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 26, 2016
Trump’s views on the UN are not singular. A Gallup survey circa February 2016 actually found that 54% of the population thinks it does a “bad job” at solving problems. Gallup’s study found that for the last 14 years, most Americans think the UN isn’t doing a good job.
According to the same Gallup data, however, the percentage of people who think the UN does a “good job” has been increasing since 2009, with most of that demographic being made up of Democrats and independents.
As for Trump’s views on the UN, it seems highly probable that the country’s foreign policy regarding the Middle East will shift come January.
