It wouldn’t be an international convening if President Donald Trump didn’t make himself the center of attention. Over the weekend, French President Emmanuel Macron hosted the G-7 summit with leaders from the United Kingdom, Germany, Canada, Italy, and Japan, along with President Trump, in attendance in Biarritz, France. From skipping a meeting on climate change—the White House described it as a “niche” issue—to advocating for bringing Russia back into what would be the G-8, Trump wasn’t short on causing controversy. Just prior to leaving for the foreign trip, he had spooked the markets once more by tweeting attacks toward Chinese President Xi Jinping, who had announced new tariffs on American goods at the end of the week. Because of President Trump’s repeated decision to go it alone on the world stage, Ed and Daniella revisit their conversation with former Ambassador Wendy Sherman, who was the lead negotiator for the United States with Iran during talks about its nuclear program. Last fall, she shared her insights on America’s moral standing in the world and why coalition building has been a successful strategy for U.S. diplomats for decades.
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Daniella Gibbs Léger is the executive vice president for Communications and Strategy at the Center for American Progress. Ed Chung is the vice president for Criminal Justice Reform at the Center. Chris Ford is the broadcast coordinator at the Center.