America’s image to the outside world is something that should be held to a certain set of standards. Otherwise, other countries could view the U.S. as a joke or less than, and take advantage of that fact.
On Aug. 24, former President Donald Trump’s mugshot was released to the public, along with his 18 co-defendants. Public records show that this is the first-ever mugshot taken of a former president. Instead of using his power and money to permanently remove the photo from public records, according to the National Public Radio (NPR) he decided to use the picture for his campaign for the 2024 presidential election. What kind of message does this send to not only our citizens but the other world leaders who may have to work with a president who was ‘proud’ of his mugshot?
There have recently been a lot of problems within America that have left other countries no choice but to look down on or ridicule the country. This is a prevalent problem that arises with how our democratic system takes place. The political parties within our country create deep factions, meaning decisions are often contradicted, repealed or not backed up by some part of the country.
A prime example of this is whether the U.S. is a part of the Paris Climate Agreement. According to the British Broadcasting Corporation, former President Barack Obama signed the agreement in 2015, however, when Trump took over office in 2016, he pulled the U.S. out of the agreement. Four years after that, when President Joe Biden took over office, he signed the U.S. back on. This causes confusion for the rest of the world as they are unsure of where the U.S. stands and whether they can count on its loyalty to the cause. Further, the fact that world leaders must readjust their relationship with the U.S.’s president every four to eight years can prove to be very confusing and troublesome. However, we still maintain those relationships and try our best to negotiate, compromise and get along with other nations, no matter the damage the previous president had done.
This cannot be the case, however, when our very own former president and potentially returning president is proudly presenting himself as a criminal. National Public Radio (NPR) emphasized the fact that Trump is facing 13 felony counts in Georgia and is facing four separate indictments. Yet, NPR also states, that he is using this publicity, especially that of his mug shot, to be the face of his campaign. Thus far, he has taken the picture to Twitter, posting the caption “Election interference. Never surrender!” He has made merchandise with the mug shot on things such as mugs and t-shirts and it has even created a social media challenge where supporters will merge their face onto his mugshot.
To outside countries, this has without a doubt made the U.S. seem like a joke. If their very own former president is making a joke out of his very serious crime, and even using it as the face of his campaign to be the President of the United States, what stops outside countries from associating U.S. leadership with being a joke and a criminal? While this certainly is not the first event that would warrant disrespect from other countries, it is the most controllable and unnecessary.
I do not think there is much to do in order to take back the damage Trump has inflicted, both on the country and what other nations will think about our country, however, this does prove to be beneficial in some way. Hopefully, this event can prove to be a lesson for U.S. citizens to more carefully decide who they believe should represent their country. Next time when checking a box on a ballot, the question that runs through our head should be, “Is this who I want representing and being the face of my country?”
