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FAR FROM THE minds of Americans at present, you would imagine, is their relationship with Ireland.
It’s sure to be on our minds though. So how is our Government planning to deal with President-elect Trump.
The Government has just issued an official statement on the election, with the Taoiseach offering Trump his “sincere congratulations” on his success.
“Ireland and the United States have enjoyed a very close and warm relationship for many generations and I am confident that under his leadership our bilateral relations will continue to prosper,” he said.
Also, we think today of Hillary Clinton, a friend to Ireland who fought such a tough campaign.We are all acutely conscious of the particular responsibility of the United States for leadership and engagement across the globe in our endeavours to address shared challenges. I look forward to working with the new administration in the time ahead in the cause of international peace and security.
Kenny says that the Government intends “to work closely with the new administration and newly elected United States Congress to pursue comprehensive immigration reform, an issue that is so important to tens of thousands of Irish people who are making a major contribution to America”.
The Government looks forward to working closely with our new colleagues in the White House. In the meantime, the Government will continue to engage actively and constructively with the administration of President Obama, until he completes his term on 20 January.
“There will be no change!
Junior minister and Independent Alliance TD Finian McGrath meanwhile earlier also spoke briefly on the matter.
“”Well, I’m a democrat, I accept the will of the American people, I have never agreed with Trump, but we have to accept that this is what’s happened and that’s it,” he told TheJournal.ie.
Regarding Trump’s administration and its relationship with Ireland McGrath said:
“The Irish Government will be very pragmatic – there will be no change in the relationship between the Americans and us.”
And if there is, well then we’ll cross that hurdle when we come to it.
Other members of the Oireachtas have kept their counsel for the most part this morning, with two notable exceptions: Sinn Féin leader Gerry Adams and independent TD Michael Healy Rae.
“The people of the USA have spoken. Donald Trump has been elected. I congratulate him,” said Adams.
The onus is on the President Elect to represent all the people of the USA and to play a positive and progressive role in world affairs.
The Irish peace process has consistently had the support of both Republican and Democratic administrations on Capitol Hill over the last two decades.
We must ensure that support will continue with the new administration through the next four years.
Healy Rae was a little more contemplative. “We are where we are,” he said of Trump’s victory.
“It is time to congratulate him and to work in conjunction with him for the betterment of society.”
I would hope that President-Elect Trump will value the Irish people for what we are. I wish him well in his endeavours.
“Racist and dangerous”
Way back in May, Enda Kenny was asked about the campaign of Donald Trump, which was bouncing from controversial statement to controversial statement as Trump navigated the Republican primary process.
Under questioning from Fianna Fail’s Micheál Martin and the AAA-PBP’s Richard Boyd Barrett Kenny said:
“If Donald Trump’s comments are racist and dangerous – which they are – there is an alternative to vote for.”
The decision of who would be the next president of the US is a “matter for the American people” he said adding:
The world will have to deal with their decision.
Kenny would not be drawn at the time as to whether or not the Government would continue to allow the US Army the use of Shannon as a stopover for military flights.
During the same Dáil debate Micheál Martin described some of what had been articulated by Trump up to that point as “worrying”. Just last month Martin meanwhile said that Trump’s ascendance to the political top table in the US as “a sad reflection of where we are”.
Last month, Kenny was also drawn briefly to the topic of the US election at a briefing saying the race had been “unedifying in many respects”.
“Obviously the President of the United States is the most powerful political person on the planet and clearly there are implications of a global nature as regards who occupies the White House,” he said at the time.
It’s already clear what the polls say, what the people say will be decided when they vote on the eighth.
He can scarcely have known how right he was.
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Keir Starmer says Joe Biden is so delighted he is the new Prime Minister, not only did he phone up to congratulate him on Friday, he did it three times on Saturday and five times on Sunday.
@Stephen Gaffney: the Democrats and the democrat biased media have lied for the last 4 years about Joe’s cognitive decline. It finally got to the point where it was absolutely undeniable during the debate and now they are scrambling to have him removed. Less than a month ago The Journal put out an article about “Cheap Fakes” trying to make out it was a Republican conspiracy to make Biden look bad. Do they not realise we can see through their biased opinions and have lost faith in their reporting!
@John K: White House also put out a statement saying he doesn’t have Parkinson’s. He is not taking medication for Parkinson’s. And he’s not receiving any treatment for Parkinson’s.
Not one mention of that severe onset of dementia.
@Stephen Gaffney: judge Martin Nolan at it again in the above article he is some work
@Bernard Connolly: What kind of world does he live in?
@John K: The Journal has almost become predictable at this stage
@Stephen Gaffney: The comment of the week goes to your Mr Gaffney :-)
@Terry Molloy: you(typo)
@Stephen Gaffney: American voters will have a cruel choice between a barely functional Biden and a diabolically felonious Trump …
Whichever of these 2 chaps they choose, the future looks bleak for the next 4 years …
Unless one or both of them drop out and the voters can choose more suitable, younger candidates for the POTUS & VP
@Bernard Connolly: Appalling sentencing as per usual. He needs to be removed and investigated himself as it’s always the same. These vile creatures must jump for joy when they get him judging their cases. Should be automatic minimum sentencing for these types of crimes. A suspended sentence is just shocking.
@John K: and everything that comes out of the lying treacherous sex offender fraudster orange thing is lies and projection
@Jose mourinho: If Trump wins the war in Ukraine will be over. Simple as that. Don’t care what people think of him or what he did / didn’t do.
Also, I know you got sacked from Roma but getting on the journal comments is a bit mental.
Donald Trump is brilliant. Everyone knows he’s brilliant. No one can deny it.
@Pól Pot: Not ashamed to use this nickname? You probably have no clue what it means.
@Alex: If you knew anything about geography, you’d understand that Trump is the only hope for a free and brave global economy.
@Pól Pot: I seem to remember his trade war with China didn’t go well..or his promise to make Mexico pay for.border wall and take back car manufacturing jobs from there too.
@Sean: If you knew anything about ornithology, you’d understand that the bald eagle is infact a sea eagle (Haliaeetus species) that commonly occurs inland along rivers and large lakes.
@Pól Pot: I thought that you’d be more interested in the northern lapwing (vanellus vanellus) since it is our national bird.
Want to try sport or history next?
@Sean: Neither. I’m simply happy that Donald has descended to the Mount of Olives as a prelude to His earthly reign.
@Pól Pot: the only olives trump knows about is in the oil he uses in his tan and hair colour
@Sean: Billions and billions of blue blistering barnacles! Blasphemy! Apostate! Pestilential pachyderm!
@Sean: He didn’t even know where Mexico was, when asked to point it out on a map.
Biden has already made his decision. He has said that he does not intend dropping out. Somebody should inform Pelosi of his decision.
@Nodon: big big mistake. If he won’t go, he should be pushed.
@Nodon: Someone should inform Joe he’s Trump’s best asset in the election campaign.
See Nolan is at it again. Another suspended sentence.
@Gary Mullen: i just read that report, how on earth is nolan allowed to continue wit with these suspend sentences.
@Gary Mullen: idiot….hasn’t a f*&&^%clue
Four More Wars!
Smashing through his campaign like a freight train, just like they knocked Bernie Sanders out with Hillary….. and look how well that worked out. I love watching the car crash politics of an American election year. Need more popcorn n beer
With Nato announcing that they are sending fighter jets to Ukraine expect emergency wartime conditions to be announced by the end of the year in the West, especially with the launch of Central bank currencies at the end of the year, which will facilitate the inevitable rationing quite easily, which will then be held onto after the emergency ends to limit every citizens carbon footprint….like clockwork…..so don’t expect there to be another one of those swell presidential elections this year.
@Dere: You forgot to mention the Illuminati, or is it 5G or vaccinies, I can’t keep up!
@Papa Smut: nah, just the military industrial complex and its partner in crime the financial industry, ya know the one President Eisenhower so fervently warmed the Anerican public about in his farewell presidential speech as the greatest threat to America…..but yeah, it’s just a conspiracy tinfoil hat thing.
Since he has been in power, he has work very hard to earn billions selling ammunitions and arms, as they were humiliated in Afghanistan and lost billions of weapons and vehicles. He has worked very hard not to help for peace but to create more conflicts. He is living in a cold war time and everyone not like him is a communist.
Trump has for him that he never went to war.
Good auld Martin.
@Jp Cleary: I wonder if any of those images were of his kids what would happen
My god are we and the world in for a horrendous time if its trump. My god sure the Democrats have someone they can put foreward to at least make a fight of it. Trump did and will destroy America and the world. Oh my god. Such an evil holligan.
@John Flanagan: I think people forget just how incompetent Trump is. Admittedly with the almost daily stream of d-e-b-a-s-e-d stream of consciousness he issues, it’s hard to remember everything grossly deficient about him.
@John Flanagan: Little over dramatic? Now I’m not his biggest fan but when “did” trump destroy the world?.
@John John: Trump recently had a meeting with oil executives in which he proposed to them favourable economic policy in return for campaign funding. Trump is in thrall to the corporations too.
He has made his decision but has forgotten what it was.
Biden paved the way for Trump. What a legacy.
@087 bed: Comment straight from Orwell Road standard narrative. Why would we get to vote on this?
Maybe you should concentrate on your own fascist president who for some reason has no opposition. I wonder why
@Fr. Fintan Stack: So anyone talking sense or fact is Russian, Good grief you are slow.
If your lucky enough to have a grand parent and if people and organisations consistently abused them , I know what I would do , I would turn the narrative back on the lying treacherous sex offender fraudster orange thing, and the epistine files
@Robert Halvey: The Epistinians shall be freed back unto their rightful lands.
@Robert Halvey: what the actual F are you talking about?
@Ger Whelan: all iam saying lad is Biden old and has slowed done a bit . But you and yours ignore the lying treacherous sex offender fraudster orange things old aswell
@087 bed: Ukraine cannot join NATO while it’s still at war with Russia. NATO allowing Ukraine to join while it’s at war is NATO declaring war on Russia which won’t happen. So you can stop crying.
The headline is 5 words too long
Stick to acting George!
Clooney up to his neck in it. Oddball.
Take the fifth Joe.
Biden has got to be the greatest president of all time!!!!!
@Peter Brown:… Lol
Who said to Putin – Wait till after the election. I will have more flexibility?
I appreciate the ‘O Brother, Where Art Thou’ reference in the Clooney sub-headline.
Donald will betray everyone. He has nothing left to lose. He’s all in. I do believe him when he said he would be dictator for a day, it’s all it would take to subdue the USA with the military on his side.
Come to Jesus, Joe!
I just read the headline and I knew it Nolan
I would vote for a dead joe before I would use my spit to save the lying treacherous sex offender fraudster orange thing from dehydration
have your say