Trump's The Good, the Bad and the Ugly: Today's News for April 20th

First, the good from Trump:

CNN:

China criticizes North Korea, praises US on nuclear issue

China may be getting fed up with continued nuclear bluster from long-time ally North Korea and tilting toward the United States.

A day after North Korea's Vice Foreign Minister said Pyongyang would test missiles weekly and use nuclear weapons if threatened, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman said Beijing was "gravely concerned" about North Korea's recent nuclear and missile activities.

In the same press conference, spokesman Lu Kang praised recent US statements on the North Korean issue.

"American officials did make some positive and constructive remarks... such as using whatever peaceful means possible to resolve the (Korean) Peninsula nuclear issue. This represents a general direction that we believe is correct and should be adhered to," Lu said.

Whoa.

Trump has done what presidents for DECADES have been unable to do: Get China on our side over North Korea.

This isn't over, but this is a huge step in the right direction.

But all is not good in Trump-land. There is some bad too:

Newsweek:

WHY IS TRUMP SENDING MORE U.S. TROOPS TO SOMALIA?

There is a phrase in journalism, called "burying the lede". It occurs when the main part of the story gets buried deep within it. In the case of this story about Somalia, the answer to the headline question comes in the fifth paragraph:

Things are quite different in Somalia now from the time of the so-called Black Hawk Down incident, when the country had been plunged into civil war after overthrowing its strongman leader Siad Barre in 1991. The country has a recently-elected federal government, led by a dual U.S.-Somali national who has thrown down the gauntlet to Al-Shabab, an extremist militant group with ties to Al-Qaeda. Yet some of the same scourges that roiled Somalia in the early 1990s—including a harrowing drought that is threatening to escalate into famine; clan rivalries; and the instability caused by frequent bombings in the capital—remain.

A "dual U.S.-Somali national" is leading a "recently-elected federal government" in Somalia? The U.S. is propping up the government via rigged elections and military force. Feel free to explain what vital U.S. interest is being served in Somalia, because it isn't obvious. The war on terror? We have fought that for 16 years, with far more failure than success.

Now on to the ugly part of Trump:

Mother Jones:

Donald Trump Has a Conflict of Interest in Turkey. Just Ask Donald Trump.

Several media outlets have slammed President Donald Trump for congratulating Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on winning a referendum that will bolster his autocratic power and weaken that nation's democracy. International observers say the referendum took place on an "unlevel playing field" and voting irregularities raise questions about the outcome. A brief White House summary of Trump's call to Erdogan did not reference any such concerns. Ultimately, if the referendum stands, Turkey will shift from a parliamentary government to one largely controlled by the president—though many of the changes strengthening the president's powers won't take place until after the next election in 2019. (It's worth noting that before Erdogan became president, the role of this office was primarily ceremonial.)

And there's also another troubling layer to this story: Trump's business ties to Turkey create a conflict of interest. That's according to Trump himself. As Mother Jones reported in November, Trump mentioned his Turkey-related conflicts in 2015 during a conversation with Steve Bannon, who was then the executive chairman of Breitbart News. (Bannon would go on to become Trump's chief strategist.)

On Bannon's radio show, Breitbart News Daily, Trump said on December 1, 2015, "I have a little conflict of interest 'cause I have a major, major building in Istanbul. It's a tremendously successful job. It's called Trump Towers—two towers, instead of one, not the usual one, it's two."

Trump was speaking truthfully. He had a vested interest in smooth relations with Ankara. And he owed Erdogan a solid. In 2012, Erdogan presided over the opening ceremony for the Trump Towers. (At the time, Erdogan was prime minister—a role the recently passed referendum would eliminate).

Trump gets the bear for this one: