Trump deliberates what action to take in the aftermath of the Syrian chemical weapons attack. Australian Prime Minister Malcom Turnbull loses an opinion poll, for the 30th time. Former President of South Korea is sentenced to jail for corruption, just like many of her predecessors.
Trump might make Russia and Iran “pay a price” for Syrian attack
“President Trump said Monday that he may seek to hold accountable not just Syria but its patrons in Russia and Iran for a chemical weapons attack that killed dozens of people outside Damascus over the weekend, a move that could widen a geopolitical conflict already roiling the Middle East,” writes Peter Baker in The New York Times.
Trump met national security and military officials and seemed likely to order an airstrike against Syria. “Less clear was how he would act on his stated intent to make Syria’s allies ‘pay a price’ for enabling the massacre without risking a perilous cycle of escalation,” writes Baker.
Trump is deliberating action that could possibly be more effective than last year’s missile strike. That strike too had come in the aftermath of a similar attack by Assad on his own people.
“Mr. Trump left little doubt that he intended to order military response against Syria for what he called a “barbaric act” and said a decision could be made as early as Monday night or soon thereafter. ‘We’re making a decision as to what we do with respect to the horrible attack that was made near Damascus, and it will be met and it will be met forcefully,’ he said Monday evening as he hosted the military leadership for dinner at the White House,” writes Baker.
Australian PM loses opinion poll, for the 30th time
Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull lost an opinion poll-for the 30th consecutive time. The interesting bit, however, is that it is the same benchmark he had set for deposing former PM Tony Abbot.
Turnbull now maintains he regrets making those remarks and had set the bar too high.
“Mr Turnbull ousted Mr Abbott in a coup in 2015, famously claiming: ‘We have lost 30 Newspolls in a row. It is clear that the people have made up their mind about Mr Abbott’s leadership,” writes Jonathan Pearlman in The Telegraph.
“The long-awaited 30th Newspoll, published in The Australian newspaper, showed just 32 per cent of people were satisfied with Mr Turnbull’s performance, compared with 57 per cent dissatisfied and the remainder uncommitted.”
“Australia has become known as the ‘coup capital of the world’ after seeing party members vote to topple Mr Abbott, Kevin Rudd in 2010 and Julie Gillard in 2013.”
While it does raises questions about Turbull’s future as a leader, his position as PM faces no immediate threat. “Despite his dismal run of opinion polls, Mr Turnbull’s immediate future appears to be secure because the coalition has no obvious alternative as leader,” writes Pearlman.
All of South Korea’s Presidents have been embroiled in corruption scandals
Former President of South Korea Park Guen-Hye was sentenced to 24 years in prison Friday for bribery, abuse of power, and other charges. She joins the list of many South Korean leaders, who have been prosecuted for similar charges.
“It is a busy time for anyone interested in the fight against corruption in South Korea. In mid-March a court in Seoul began hearing the case of three former spy chiefs who stand accused of funnelling 4bn won ($3.8m) from the National Intelligence Service to the office of the former president, Park Geun-hye, who was impeached a year ago. A week later prosecutors arrested Lee Myung-bak, another former president, over allegations that he had collected more than $10m in bribes while in office and had hidden his ownership of a profitable auto-parts maker,” writes The Economist.
“All four of South Korea’s living ex-presidents have now either been convicted of corruption offences, or are in jail being tried or investigated for such crimes.” Apart from this, former generals and three Presidents who are now dead, have also been linked to corruption scandals.
“In short, corruption has long been a feature rather than a bug in South Korean politics. ‘Asking for money from chaebol executives in return for political favours was considered quite normal until very recently,’ says Kang Won-taek of Seoul National University. He believes the country’s authoritarian past is to blame. The absence of democratic checks and balances encouraged politicians to identify the state’s interests with their own, he argues.”
“That may partly explain the odd way in which Ms Park approached her trial, refusing to co-operate with prosecutors or even to show up to hearings, which many observers believe damaged her case. “She didn’t have a sense of guilt,” says Mr Kang. Mr Lee displayed similar contempt for the judiciary when he refused to answer prosecutors’ questions in March.”