The Washington Post obtained and published the transcripts of the first phone calls President Donald Trump made to Mexico's President Enrique Pena Nieto and Australia's Prime Minister malcolm turnbull. The calls took place on January 27 and 28, with much of the conversation revolving around the U.S.-Mexico border wall and immigration.
Trump urged public defiance of border wall to end
During his conversation with Enrique Peña Nieto, Donald Trump talked about how his promise to make Mexico pay for the border wall was a growing political issue for him that was negatively affecting him.
“It makes me look so bad and I have only been here for a week," was one of the many statements the president made.
To this end, he tried to pressure the Mexican President to stop publicly stating that the Mexican government would never pay for it. Trump told Nieto that he realized funding for the wall would have to come from other sources. However, Trump threatened to end all contact if he kept making uncooperative statements regarding the wall. He specifically said, “then I do not want to meet with you guys anymore because I cannot live with that.”
Trump's sour call with Turnbull on immigration
Donald Trump's call with Malcolm Turnbull the next day ended up becoming very bitter. Toward the end of their conversation, Trump stated: “I have had it” and “This is ridiculous.” They discussed an agreement that former President Barack Obama made with Australia to take in 1,250 refugees.
This, of course, would only be after they underwent strict security screenings by both the Australians and Americans. One thing Trump said that went viral on social media regarding the immigrants was that: “They are not going to be wonderful people who go on to work for the local mil people.”
The White House's response
The documents were produced by note-takers at the White House and showed an unfiltered glimpse of how President Trump conducts diplomacy with other world leaders.
The White House declined to comment on the report, saying that the transcripts have not yet been declassified.
An official familiar with Trump's conversation stated off the record that “The president is a tough negotiator. ” That official also stated that Trump has since met with both leaders in person and had constructive conversations.
The Washington Post, however, said that the documents showed that the notes were reviewed and classified by Lieutenant General Keith Kellogg Jr., the chief of staff for the National Security Council.
