I agree with all of that and it isn’t helpful. zero has created a situation that would be ridiculous if it wasn’t so serious .
But, except for Sarkozy, Euro leaders treated Bush rather poorly so I can’t say, except in Sarkozy’s case, that snubbing those leaders bothers me much on a personal level. Obviously, on a national security level, this is at best precarious and at worst downright dangerous.
Yes, I agree. When Bush went to Europe the first time, the only guy to treat him politely was Putin. And Tony Blair understood, even if his party and the British press did not, that the Special Relationship was too important to kick away. So he at least pretended to be polite.
But to be realistic, the Europeans have always treated us with envy and contempt. At the same time, they assumed that they were entitled to our admiration in return, so this must be a big shock to them.
In the long run, this might be a lesson to them, although regretably they may be past learning any such lessons. But as long as Obama remains in office, things will be increasingly difficult and cooperation will dwindle.