While the State Department and the National Security Council might have been surprised President Trump invited Filipino strongman Rodrigo Duterte to the White House, I am not at all.
Trump and Duterte are two of a kind. He has long admired leaders who "get things done" and someone who kills criminals (even if such a thing can never be proven) earns high marks in Trump's book. If Trump is comfortable with Putin killing journalists and Erdogan quelling a coup then why wouldn't Trump admire Duterte? After all, Duterte is a man who has bragged of killing people, wishing he had raped a murdered Australian missionary worker and has no qualms about "corrupt journalists" being assassinated. I'm sure Trump loves that last one. After all, it wasn't so long ago that Trump referred to the media as "enemies of the American people."
Sometimes America has to align itself with leaders who are less than savory. Indeed, we had a long standing alliance with the notorious Ferdinand Marcos. But let us not roll out the red carpet and publicly condone their behavior. Unfortunately, Trump sees America in his own image. The only virtue is strength even if that strength is gained at the expense of innocent people.
At this point, Duterte won't commit to accepting Trump's invitation. But Duterte is every bit as mercurial as Trump. So don't be surprised if he changes his mind and Trump honors him with a state dinner.
It is worth noting that Duterte's campaign of terror in the name of ridding The Philippines of drugs has claimed the lives of innocent children. One can only hope that Ivanka Trump will intercede on behalf of the beautiful babies of The Philippines as she did with the beautiful babies of Syria.
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