The really sad thing is that no country will ever trust the US again.

[Kablooie]

The US has been the gold standard for reliability and trust within the international community.
We weren't perfect but our underlying standards were essentially genuine and could be relied on in the long run.

Republicans, by electing Trump, have broken that guarantee and shown that America's underlying soul can degenerate into a corrupt sewer of self serving criminality and deception at a moment's notice.
If Congress had acted by impeaching Trump once the criminality was exposed, America would still retain it's honor by showing that it has a self correcting mechanism to fix things that go wrong. But since Republicans fully support this new, dirty America, they have shown the world that we can embrace corruption and will do nothing to eliminate it.

Even an exceptionally honorable leader such as Obama will not be trusted when his successor can casually trash all his sincere and hard fought promises and make fools of those who put their trust in America.

America's standing in the world is gone and there is no way to ever get it back.

Thank you Republicans and Fox News for enabling this imbecile who has shown the world that we are fully capable of eliminating our greatest strength forever.

[SHRED]

1. Why should they

We engage in illegal wars.
We torture families and children.
We sexually exploit children in concentration camps.
We don't hold anyone accountable.
And we are letting Trump run over us.

[sandensea]

12. There is a caveat though:

What you often hear overseas, or from those born overseas, is that the biggest problem with the U.S. is Republican presidents.

Not that there aren't controversies here and there when a Democrat is in office.

But since Reagan, anyway, that generalized sense of foreboding over the abusive use of U.S. power, is mostly felt when the GOPee gets one of their own in the Oval Office.

Dubya was probably the worst, as far as worldwide sentiment toward the U.S. (not that he gives a shit).

[JI7]

2. this is not true. most of the world outside the US is more aware of the US than many here are

they will trust most if not all of the democrats who are running for president right now.

they know the republican party is a backwards party that is trying to keep us down.

[trev]

4. I think you're right.

The world understands that the Bushes and Trumps do not exemplify our nation. They loved Obama, and no doubt are praying that we can install another such honest President. Let's do it. Let's make their dreams come true.

[Kablooie]

5. But there's no guarantee that treaties and promises will last longer than the current administration

The value of treaties is in all parties honoring them in the long term.
Now Trump has shown that value can totally change every 4 years.

[JI7]

6. that has always been the case. the world even wanted W Bush gone. They gave OBama a fucking NObel

Peace prize for winning the election and finally having someone sane the world can deal with .

[wasupaloopa]

3. A lot depends on who we elect is in 2020. I also think that if we elect Dem

Obama will help us get our friends back.

Of course they will forever feel that we could elect another trump.

[Kablooie]

7. That's the point. No matter how trustworthy an administration is....

in 4 years a new administration could reject everything that had been agreed upon.

Just like the new Supreme Court that is talking about overthrowing established precedent because the have a different opinion.
It will make the law capricious and untrustworthy, just like everything else.

[democratisphere]

8. Unfortunately the US has become one of the most corrupt countries in the entire world.

The US is being run by a bunch of psychopaths without a conscience.

[TreasonousBastard]

9. It may not be as bad as all that...

Before WWII nobody really trusted us anyway. And after the war a lot of them were happy to give us a shot at leadership, since none of them were all that good at it.

But, Pax Romana, Pax Britannica, Pax Americana... and all the rest of them were temporary and constantly had little revolts within and large attacks from outside. Eventually, they have to weaken and yield to pressure. And fail.

Everyone out there is well aware of our history, as we are of theirs. If we can get along with Germany after what an insane leader did, they can't point fingers at us. Same with Japan-- before they attacked us they had invaded Korea and China in horrific fashion. Everyone knows what warlords can do-- and are watching for when they are deposed.

For good reason loyalties are flexible to some extent. Who remembers when France and Germany were in an almost constant state of war? And England was constantly sticking its nose in? Talleyrand and his shifting alliances?

I talk to too much. The more things change, the more they stay the same.

[delisen]

10. Of course other countries will trust us again. It is up to us to deal with

our current situation and then re-build the trust.

Let's remember that the international community emerged from the horrors of World War II and learned to trust Italy, Germany, and Japan again. At present Germany under Angel Merkel, is the leader of the free world. Let's be thankful that they haven't fallen for the "charismatic leader" bs as they did in the 1930s and 1940s when they literally destroyed themselves with a delusion of a thousand year reich that crumbled quickly into a decade and a half death cult.

One of the things standing in our way is our shrinking from being honest about how we have gotten into our current situation.

Let's stop pretending that there was nothing we could have done do to avoid totalitarianism or that we are not engaged in a modern war that relies not upon guns, bullets, and bombs but instead uses psychology, computers, and the tools of intelligence and propaganda.

Let's stop underestimating our adversaries. They are not stupid, they are anti-democracy. They know what they want and they are advancing their own self-interest.

It is up to us to use our brains. We did not get to where we are today, overnight. It has been building for decades.

There was no Wisconsin blue wall that suddenly collapsed in 2016. Let's not believe the propaganda. Scott Walker was first elected governor in 2010. He survived a recall vote and then was re-elected as governor 4 year after.

The rust belt did not suddenly go rusty overnight. In fact, Michael Moore chronicled the sorry mess l of Flint Michigan and its short-sighted misplaced faith in General Motors in 1989. Youngstown Ohio was poverty-stricken even earlier.

JFK, in 1960, ran on a plan to lift Appalachia-including West Virginia-out of hardcore poverty.

Our first bizarre presidential election were the previously reliable polls failed us was in 2000 not 2016. Was al gore just a bad candidate-no he was a great candidate. We were defeated not by the vote in Florida but by the vote mis-counters.

There is no magic 2020 candidate coming to play savior. We need to be our own savior.

[Thekaspervote]

11. Agree!

[diane in sf]

13. They will not trust us until we stop letting the Republicans steal elections.

Neither of the bush elections was honest, tRump’s was stolen, and a number of the recent Senate races are pretty suspect. Until we have honest elections, and end bribery by war pushing oil and arms oligarchs, we will not be trusted or respected.