Trump Inspires Confusion at NATO and Anger in London
*By Alisha Haridasani*
President Trump on Thursday wrapped the NATO summit, leaving behind a trail of confusion, and landed in London where he faces chaos and anger.
The president, despite hurling [criticism](https://cheddar.com/videos/trump-wastes-no-time-attacking-allies-at-nato-summit-in-brussels) at the military alliance for days, reaffirmed American commitment to the organization.
“I believe in NATO,” he said in an press conference in Brussels. He then went on to proclaim that NATO members had agreed to increasing their defense spending.
Moments later, though, French president Emmanuel Macron disputed Trump’s claims, saying all 29 members had re-committed to the previous spending target of 2 percent of their GDP.
The confusion was further compounded by Trump's reported behavior in private meetings with NATO leaders, where he was characteristically combative and threatened to pull out of the alliance unless members met their 2 percent targets by January.
Trump is now in London to meet with Prime Minister Theresa May in what is his first visit to the British capital since becoming president.
May was the first foreign leader to visit Trump at the White House in 2017 and invited him to visit her country in an attempt to solidify the decades-long 'special relationship' between the UK and the U.S.
Trump, however, soured that relationship many times. He slammed London Mayor Sadiq Khan for mishandling the aftermath of the June terror attack in the British capital. Trump also controversially retweeted a video from a far-right British party, a move that drew the ire of many Britons.
All of these incidents added pressure on May to revoke her invitation to Trump. Instead, what had been an state visit was downgraded to a working visit, which means the Queen does not officially host the president and the first lady as she has done with previous U.S. presidents. But Trump will still meet with the Queen at Windsor Castle on Friday. During a state visit, foreign leaders are invited to address the British Parliament ー Trump will not be given that chance.
Prior to his flight from Brussels to London, Trump said: "I think they like me a lot in the UK."
Tens of thousands of protesters would disagree. Trump's visit has inspired Londoners to pull together a “Carnival of Resistance” that will feature massive crowds marching through the streets, a giant balloon of a baby Trump floating in the skies, and a group of people blaring trumpets to make a ["bad noise for bad times"](https://www.facebook.com/Trumpets-Against-Trump-1834111463526077/).
"Having a special relationship means that we expect the highest standards from each other," said Mayor Khan, who signed off on the baby balloon. "It also means speaking out when we think the values we hold dear are under threat."
After London, Trump will head to Finland on Monday to meet with Russian president Vladimir Putin, a one-on-one private conversation that has raised concern among global allies and [congressional lawmakers](https://cheddar.com/videos/rep-meeks-trump-is-putting-russia-first) back at home.
After scrutiny over the negative impact on the mental health of children, social media apps have begun adding stricter limitations to parental controls. Jim Steyer, CEO of Common Sense Media, a nonprofit organization focusing on recommendations for entertainment platforms, joined Cheddar News to talk about the changes, why they might not be enough, and what parents can do to help. "It's almost that the companies — whether they're Snapchat, Instagram, YouTube, or whatever — have to start the process from the beginning of designing the product," he said. "They have to be much more clear about age verification so that a 12-year-old and 11-year-old can't get on there." Steyer also pushed for federal legislation to reign in the issue.
As Big Tech companies from the U.S. like Google and Apple managed to build market dominance overseas, the European Union has decided to curb what it sees as monopolistic growth. Greg Martin, the co-founder of Rainmaker Securities, joined Cheddar News to talk about how the impact of the antitrust regulations being adopted. "I think there's a lot of great outcomes here, but those will be far down the road [because] I do think there's some interoperability things that need to be worked out technologically," he said. "But it's going to be really good ultimately for the consumer in my opinion."
Tenicka Boyd is a digital creator making content that reflects her two passions: activism and style. The TikTok star joined Cheddar News to talk about her platform and new looks this Spring. Boyd admitted that at first she wanted to remain anonymous on the social media platform before finding her passion. "I just joined TikTok hoping that no one would find me, and I started creating colorful content," she said. "I didn't know that you could monetize this and really do it full time, and I just followed my passion because I realized that you can have multiple different lives and do multiple different things."
Catching you up on what you need to know on March 25, 2022, with Ukrainian forces retaking Kyiv, 300 deaths reported from the bombing of a theater used as a shelter in Mariupol, U.S. regulators ditch a climate review of natural gas projects, the 94th Academy Awards, and more.
North Korea says it test-fired its biggest intercontinental ballistic missile under the orders of leader Kim Jong Un, who vowed to continue expanding his nuclear arsenal while preparing for a “long-standing confrontation” with the United States.
Ukrainian authorities in the besieged ruins of Mariupol say that about 300 people died when a Russian airstrike blew up a theater where hundreds of civilians were sheltering.
Survivors of the Parkland School Shooting along with activists from March For Our Lives set up on the National Mall on Thursday. Their demonstration displayed 1,100 bodybags that spelled out the phrase “Thoughts and Prayers” to remind lawmakers that condolences are not enough and to push for action on guns. Each bag represented 150 lives lost due to gun violence. Trevon Bosley, a board member of March For Our Lives, joined Cheddar News to discuss the organization's return to Washington, DC. "The main thing bringing us back is that we have not seen anything being done on the national level for gun violence.” Bosley said. “We’re not seeing anything changed, and we’re not seeing lives being saved”
UK's prince William and his wife were met by protesters during their visit to Jamaica. Cheddar News speaks with political strategist Dee Dawkins-Haigler, who explains why the country's path to independence is relevant to Americans.
