During the course of the 2016 presidential campaign, an argument resurfaced repeatedly in Trump’s rhetoric that mirrored a complaint he made in 1987: The U. S. pays a disproportionate amount of the cost of NATO, and other nations aren’t paying their share.
Those flipping through The New York Times on Sept. 2,1987, would have come across an unusual full-page advertisement carrying a now-familiar signature. And a now-familiar message.
“For decades, Japan and other nations have been taking advantage of the United States,” it began. After arguing that Japan and the Middle East had abused U. S. support, the letter got to its point: “Make Japan, Saudi Arabia, and others pay for the protection we extend as allies. Let’s help our farmers, our sick, our homeless by taking from some of the greatest profit machines ever created — machines created and nurtured by us.”
“ ‘Tax’ these wealthy nations, not America,” it read. It was signed by Donald J. Trump.
During the course of the 2016 presidential campaign, that argument resurfaced repeatedly in Trump’s rhetoric — though the most significant offender had morphed from Japan to China. It was a feature of his skepticism about American participation in NATO as well — this idea that other NATO members were taking advantage of American generosity.
Despite repeated public assertions that the idea hadn’t come up, The New York Times reported Monday that Trump had spoken with staff about withdrawing from the coalition, which turns 70 this year. Trump reportedly had raised the idea at least in the abstract several times, with staff (including then-Defense Secretary Jim Mattis) working behind the scenes to assure American allies that the U.
