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Friday 20 OctOber 2017
Bush condemns Trump-era American politics in speech Tillerson is off to

By STEVE PEOPLES Mideast, Asia with
eye on Iran, Iraq
Associated Press
NEW YORK (AP) — Former By MATTHEW LEE
President George W. Bush AP Diplomatic Writer
on Thursday denounced WASHINGTON (AP) — Sec-
bigotry in Trump-era Ameri- retary of State Rex Tillerson
can politics, warning that heads to the Middle East,
the rise of “nativism,” iso- South Asia and Europe this
lationism and conspiracy week on a diplomatic mis-
theories have clouded the sion focused on conflicts in
nation’s true identity. Iraq and Syria and blunt-
The comments, delivered ing Iranian influence in the
at a New York City con- region, the State Depart-
ference hosted by the ment said Thursday.
George W. Bush Institute, Tillerson departs on Friday
amounted to an indirect for travel to Saudi Arabia,
critique from a former Re- Qatar, Pakistan and India
publican president who before returning home
has remained largely silent through Switzerland on
during President Donald Oct. 27, the department
Trump’s unlikely rise to pow- said in a statement.
er. The 43rd president did In Riyadh, Tillerson will ex-
not name Trump on Thurs- plore ways of improving
day, but he attacked some relations between Saudi
of the principles that define Former U.S. President George W. Bush speaks at a forum sponsored by the George W. Bush Institute Arabia and Iraq by par-
the 45th president’s politi- in New York, Thursday, Oct. 19, 2017. ticipating in the first meet-
cal brand. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig) ing of the two countries’
“We’ve seen nationalism able to conspiracy theories cluding cyberattacks, dis- publicly defied Trump, in- new coordination council,
distorted into nativism, for- and outright fabrication.” information and financial cluding Republican Sens. it said. That effort, which
gotten the dynamism that “We need to recall and re- influence, should never be John McCain, who deliv- U.S. officials say Tillerson
immigration has always cover our own identity,” he downplayed or tolerated,” ered a similar speech this has pushed for months, is
brought to America,” Bush continued. “To renew our Bush said. week. Sen. Bob Corker, the aimed reducing Iran’s in-
said. “We see a fading country, we only need to Trump has expressed skep- Tennessee Republican who creasing influence in Iraq
confidence in the value remember our values.” ticism of Russia’s involve- has announced he’s retir- by encouraging Baghdad
of free markets and inter- Asked about the speech, ment. A special prosecu- ing, has denounced what to align more closely with
national trade, forgetting Trump said he hadn’t seen tor is currently investigat- he termed the “adult day Riyadh.
that conflict, instability and it. ing whether Trump and his care center” of the Trump Saudi-Iraqi ties have been
poverty follow in the wake The comment about iden- campaign associates coor- White House. strained for decades dat-
of protectionism. We’ve tity was one of several that dinated with Moscow in the But during the Bush event, ing back to Saddam Hus-
seen the return of isola- warned of what Bush de- effort to sway the election. a current Trump administra- sein’s rule and more re-
tion sentiments, forgetting scribed as troubling politi- Bush is the brother of 2016 tion official also broke with cently over Iran, Sunni-led
that American security is cal trends. presidential hopeful Jeb Trump’s dismissive tone on Saudi Arabia’s chief nem-
directly threatened by the Bush noted Russia’s med- Bush, the former Florida Russian interference. Nikki esis, which has been play-
chaos and despair of dis- dling in the 2016 election governor nicknamed, be- Haley, Trump’s chief envoy ing a larger role in predom-
tant places.” and declared that “the littled and ultimately van- to the United Nations, cast inantly Shia Iraq, including
“We’ve seen our discourse Russian government has quished by Trump during Russia’s efforts to influence in the controversy over the
degraded by casual cruel- made a project of turning the race for the Republican the 2016 election as “war- Iraqi Kurds recent indepen-
ty,” he continued. “Bigotry Americans against each nomination. He joins a slow- fare” and efforts to “sow dence referendum.
seems emboldened. Our other.” ly growing list of prominent chaos” in elections across Tillerson will also meet Sau-
politics seems more vulner- “Foreign aggressions, in- Republicans who have the world. q di officials to discuss their
ongoing military campaign
against Iranian-backed
CIA head: rebels in Yemen and the
crisis between the Gulf
North Korea to perfect nuclear capabilities in months Arab states and Qatar.
Tillerson has since June
By DEB RIECHMANN national security forum in he said. “We are at a time “We all want to resolve this been attempting to medi-
Associated Press Washington. where the president has without” resorting to mili- ate the dispute between
WASHINGTON (AP) — CIA But he said there’s a dif- concluded that we need a tary activity, the CIA chief the traditional U.S. partners
Director Mike Pompeo said ference between having global effort to ensure Kim said, but added President in the Gulf, two of which
Thursday that North Korea the ability to fire a single Jong Un doesn’t have that Donald Trump is prepared host major U.S. military bas-
is months away from per- nuclear missile and the ca- capacity,” Pompeo told to use force if necessary to es.
fecting its nuclear weap- pability of producing large the forum, organized by ensure Kim “doesn’t have In Pakistan and India, Til-
ons capabilities. amounts of fissile material the Foundation for Defense the capacity to hold Amer- lerson will reaffirm the
“They are close enough and developing an arsenal of Democracies think tank. ica at risk.” Trump administration’s
now in their capabilities of such weapons. He said China has done North Korea has accelerat- South Asia strategy, which
that from a U.S. policy per- Pompeo said intelligence more than expected to ed its weapons tests. In July, leans heavily on counter-
spective we ought to be- on North Korea is imper- reduce trade with its way- it twice launched a long- terrorism efforts in Afghani-
have as if we are on the fect, and “when you’re ward ally but can do more. range missile that could stan and Pakistan but also
cusp of them achieving” now talking about months, Beijing has also communi- potentially reach the U.S. identifies India as one of
their objective of being our capacity to understand cated around the world it mainland. In September, it four democratic anchors in
able to strike the United that at a detailed level is is intent on helping the U.S. conducted its most power- the greater Indian-Pacific
States, Pompeo told a in some sense irrelevant,” resolve the issue. ful atomic explosion yet.q Ocean region. q