I think Trump has several traits that may make him particularly (if not for great reasons) well suited to make progress with most of the key players in the Middle East:
* his transactional outlook generally
* he doesn’t care at all about human rights
* he doesn’t care much if at all about democracy or freedom other than the freedom of some to be rich
* he doesn’t care at all about conflicts or interest or ethics — and has made it clear he and his family are open for business / bribes
* he cares a great deal about fossil fuel — its impact on gas prices but also as a bizarrely vocal opponent of green energy
* his Administration has already announced they do not intend to enforce laws against bribery in foreign countries by U.S. businesses
* his newfound love of crypto and alternative currency schemes, which are very popular with folks trying to evade U.S. controls on dollar transactions
* his love of being lavished with praise, pomp and circumstance
* his love of strong men leaders in a region dominated by them
* Putin’s need to re-establish Russian influence in the Middle East
* he seems to have no grudges about 9/11
* he has a somewhat fraught relationship with Netanyahu
None of that (except maybe the last bullet) is good for his domestic policies in the United States or for Palestinians, political dissidents or other vulnerable people in the Middle East. But it may make him an effective (if very gullible / easily manipulated) broker among the royalty and strongmen of the Middle East.
I think all of this is really interesting to consider and may ultimately even prove correct. As I’ve said several times, I’d love for nothing more than to be able to witness President Trump being able to solve some of the most vexing international challenges that have plagued decades of presidential administrations across both parties. I can very easily square my personal dislike for Trump with my desire for him, and for our country, to succeed.
My concern is that, while much of what you outline above may be true, ultimately the problem is that all of those Middle Eastern leaders may be vile, evil, despicable men- but they’re all extremely intelligent and extremely well-versed on the historical and cultural nuances that innervate the region. They’ll always have a sizable and significant advantage over ANY U.S. president because of that. But we don’t have just ANY U.S. president at the helm right now. We don’t have the calm, intelligent demeanor of a Barack Obama, or the folksy affable nature of a George W. Bush, or the smooth charm of a Bill Clinton, or the foreign policy expertise and brilliance of George HW Bush, or the bonafide toughness of Ronald Reagan.
We have Donald Trump, the least intelligent, the most easily manipulated, the most erratically tempered, the most incurious, and the most foreign policy ignorant POTUS in U.S. history. And he’s surrounded by staffers in his administration who may be even less intelligent than he is. I’m sure this is just my TDS flaring up, but my concern is that we are bringing a grape to a gun fight.
And since I know the above may trigger the inevitable “but Biden!” from our conservative friends here, I’ll even go as far as to concede that I highly doubt that any of the ME leaders took Biden seriously, either, by the end.
