Trump orders freeze on all U.S. security aid to Pakistan

It's the sort of common-sense question most Americans would ask, but most professional diplomats and political types would say should never be contemplated: What exactly are we getting for this money? You know which one Trump thinks like, and by now we should be getting used to the idea that when he tweets he's thinking about doing something bold, he very well might follow through - and quickly. First it was the UN, now it's Pakistan:

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The argument against this will be that we only help terrorists when we withhold money meant to fight terrorists. But the problem would appear to be that the Pakistanis aren't actually using the money for that purpose like they're supposed to, or at least they're not doing so to the satisfaction of the United States. Unlike the threat to cut off the Palestinian Authority - which as of now remains a mere threat - this one does seem to be more designed as an incentive to change behavior. Pakistan is a heavily Islamic country, and there are factions there that put pressure on the government to handle terrorists with kid gloves. But Pakistan, which you might remember is a nuclear power, still struggles to be taken seriously as global player in a geopolitical sense. It is not good news for the Pakistanis if the United States is withholding aid and calling it out for dragging its feet on terrorism. As for Trump, he continues to show that what other presidents would only talk about, he will actually do. Ironically, this is one of the things that drives the political class crazy. They actually think it's rational behavior to talk endlessly about things you should do, but never do them on the grounds that it would "destablize" things or whatever. The result is the problems fester for generations while everyone is afraid to make the changes that might address them. And this may be one of the ways the political class has screwed itself in its attitude toward Trump. A more conventional president might be afraid of upsetting people by making bold audacious moves. Trump can look out and see that they all hate him anyway, so he might as well do what he wants to do. Are you sure he's the one who's stupid?

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