The end of last month saw world leaders from the world’s seven largest economies according to the International Monetary Fund as well as the European Union meet in France for the 45th G7 Summit. The attendees included host Emmanuel Macron of France, Canada’s Justin Trudeau, Angela Merkel of Germany, Giuseppe Conte of Italy, Shinzō Abe of Japan, recently elected Boris Johnson representing the United Kingdom, the EU’s Donald Tusk and Jean-Claude Juncker, and, of course, US President Donald Trump. The objective of the summit in Biarritz was to discuss world trade and peaceful relations in the Middle East as it relates to assistance from the world’s major players.

Unfortunately, our very own Commander-in-Chief made the decision to skip important meetings, including those on the topic of climate change. One of the most prominent pictures from the days in France is of an empty chair, a chair that was supposed to be occupied by President Trump. In the context of these conferences of the world’s powers, Trump has put the US in the world spotlight for all the wrong reasons. As an economic powerhouse and the “leader of the free world,” absence from major policy discussion and world issue solutions is not the message we need to send.

Trump used meetings with leaders from India and Germany as an excuse for his limited availability during the day, but attendance by each of these leaders calls his alibi into question. Due to a widely held belief that the US economy is far superior to the other six, many saw his attendance as just “playing nice” or honoring the rest, yet what they have yet to see is the risks we face in not helping others. The more removed we become both through choice and burned bridges, the worse the world economy suffers. As the biggest player in the world economy, we too will gravely suffer. An article just before the summit published by the New York Times laid it out plainly, saying “a recession results when some widely held belief about the world turns out to be false. . . This time around, the belief in doubt is that the world will only become more stable and interconnected over time, and that trade, currency and diplomatic relationships can be counted upon.” Clearly, relations do not seem stable and few can count on strong trade with tariffs hurting our farmers and producers while Kim Jong-Un, Putin, and Xi Jinping control things to the east. However, we as a nation can help to stabilize the world economy preventing the worst, but we must be cooperative and responsible.

Furthermore, the summit, along with the recent onslaught of natural disasters, brings into mainstream discussion the rapid change of our climate, breaking the cycle of a slow shift between colder and warmer temperatures. Whereas the climate used to move like a slow pendulum, it now comes closer to a game of ping-pong with harsher storms and searing summers each year.

However, much of the current administration has shied away from combating climate change head-on. Agencies such as the Environmental Protection Agency have begun to roll back protections, leaving ecosystems in the US and the nations we support in danger. Furthermore, Trump has opted to use the next summit to prop up his own business interests that have suffered in the divisive political climate of 2019 by endorsing his own Trump National Doral Miami resort and golf course to host. Despite claims that he doesn’t care about the money since he’s losing billions as president, he continues to try to send leaders to Trump facilities. For instance, following the summit, Vice President Pence was encouraged to stay at the Trump resort in Ireland for meetings in Dublin despite the two locations being on opposite coasts. Furthermore, the argument that he is losing money as the president is deeply flawed. Not only does it rely on the assumption that his businesses would be booming under different circumstances, but it also unfairly implies he is making a sacrifice for the American people.

Overall, the G7 Summit was a poor showing for the United States. We displayed a lack of willingness to use our resources to advance the state of the world and be proactive in solving global issues. Furthermore, our representation proved more interested in their own concerns rather than any of international or even national significance. Let’s hope for a strong recovery to host a respectable summit next year.

On August 24th through the 26th, the 45th annual G7 took place. The G7, which stands for the Group of Seven, was hosted in southern France in the city of Biarritz. Leaders from France, Japan, Canada, Italy, United Kingdom, Germany, and the United States met to shape responses to urgent global issues such as fighting inequality and protecting biodiversity and climate. 

However, our president, Donald Trump is receiving loads of criticism from the media as they claim he was not a leader. “It may as well have been a G6 plus one” says Elise Labott from MSNBC. What is being forgotten are these 5 pros. 

1. China is coming back to the table and negotiating trade thanks to Trump’s tariffs. 

       2. US and Japan are negotiating a new trade deal on agriculture and beef which is great for American farmers.

       3. The UK wants a trade deal, but they have to wait for the Brexit deal to settle.

       4. The EU is facing huge political and economic problems. 

        5. The US has the strongest economy in the G7

Not only are all those five topics an advantage for the American economy and people, but it is being forgotten in the media that America has an economy the other leader’s would kill for as their countries are not stable. France is dealing with yellow vest protests; the United Kingdom is struggling with the Brexit drama  and Italy’s government is in chaos, and Germany is headed for a recession. 

On the topic of trade with China, our president was pragmatic in what he said, as he is willing to work with him, but not if it takes America to the status quo. Yet, the media is taking the word of the oppressive communist China government over our own president’s. 

Another topic of criticism the media is attacking Trump for is not meeting with other world leaders about climate change at the G7 conference. CNN criticized him for not being able to even put on a show and attend the meeting to be nice to the other world leaders. However, if anyone knows anything about our president, it is that he does not “put on a show” to please others as he has an agenda and is focused on accomplishing what will actually benefit the American people. 

New York Times’ Peter Baker, based the success of the G7 on the number of words said in the final statement. They compared Trump’s 264 word ending to Obama’s 14,623. However, what is being ignored is that Obama attended the G7 in 2016 when our economy was not as strong and we were running into problems with China, and it is ignored that Trump attended the G7 while the United States is thriving in unparalleled economic success.