“Washington is a bit hysterical,” Gerard Araud said. “People are so appalled by the behavior of the president that they listen a bit too much to their guts instead of really listening to the brain.”
Araud, who was named France’s U.S. ambassador in September 2014, is a figure Washington won’t soon forget — an openly gay diplomat who threw memorable parties, disdains political correctness and loves Tintin comics.
Barack Obama, Araud said, was the “ultimate bureaucrat.” The Democratic president was famed for his attention to detail and reliance on meetings, briefings and other processes to help him make decisions.The Republican, who came to the White House from the world of real estate, pays little attention to bureaucracy or process, Araud said. Even if his underlings try to establish some sort of process “it’s not relevant” because Trump will simply ignore it, Araud said.
Araud said that just days before Trump announced the U.S. was quitting the Iran nuclear deal — a move France implored him not to make — White House officials assured him that no decision was imminent because there had been no serious meetings about it.The envoy dismissed the idea that Trump will ever act in a more traditional way.
The book may also tackle some harsh realities, such as the fact that, for all of Araud’s charm, France has had little luck convincing Trump to abandon positions contrary to France’s interests.the youthful Macron very much — have yielded little. On issues like trade, climate change and the Iran nuclear deal, the countries remain far apart.
“I wouldn’t say that there are no clouds,” Araud said. “But the relationship is, I should say, is excellent on the military side, and globally, I should say, is totally in the average relationship that President Trump has with major European powers.”
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