Turkish president Erdogan's government continues to reward Donald Trump's invitation to the White House with contempt for the American people and American government.
Turkey summoned the U.S. ambassador in Ankara to protest what it called "aggressive and unprofessional actions" by U.S. security personnel against Turkish bodyguards in Washington during President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's visit last week.
The move Monday appears to be in retaliation to calls in the United States for strong action against the Turkish security officers who were seen hitting and kicking protesters outside the Turkish ambassador's residence in Washington during Erdogan's visit.
This is transparently just an attempt at tit-for-tat. Erdogan's bodyguards were caught on videotape rushing up to peaceful Erdogan protesters and assaulting them; pouting afterward that American law enforcement officers had the audacity to intervene in the attack is petty thuggery. This is America, the land where looking sideways at a police officer can get you bullet-riddled in the name of freedom; if Erdogan's thugs got their fee-fees bruised by officers merely pushing them off the Americans they were attacking then perhaps the Secret Service ought to send each of those bodyguards flowers and teddy bears as apology? Ask Trump for the mailing address, I'm sure he can get it.
Trump's affection for the world's autocrats continues to be repulsive, but few of us expected the fruits of that affection to be made apparent directly on U.S. soil, and within months of his move into the office. He doesn't care, of course, but it's yet another sign of his ego-driven incompetence burning through every previous American norm of behavior. If this had happened under a past administration there would be diplomatic expulsions and, probably, a condemnation from top members of the White House; now Trump is listening meekly as a government of petty thugs scolds America for not letting them beat up whoever they want.