Former Australian PM says it is ‘foolish’ to write off Trump but says he found his comments about women to be deplorable

This article is more than 3 years old

This article is more than 3 years old

The former Australian prime minister John Howard says he does not believe Donald Trump is a racist, while warning against what he sees as a “rush to condemn” the United States president.

Howard said Trump should be judged on the substance of his actions, saying his “locker-room style might not be the whole man”.

“I think people who are writing him off now are foolish,” Howard said. “And a lot of people who are doing that still can’t accept that they lost.”



John Howard says he 'trembles' at thought of Donald Trump becoming US president Read more

Speaking at a US Studies Centre event titled “Howard on Trump” on Thursday night, the former prime minister largely offered a cautious assessment of the US president’s time in office.

Howard said Australia could trust Trump to preserve the alliance, predicted the US president would last a full term and praised his decisiveness in ordering an airstrike on Syria.

One questioner asked Howard to unequivocally condemn Trump’s comments on migrants, women and Islam.

Howard said he found Trump’s comments on women during the campaign as “deplorable”. He had earlier condemned Trump’s campaign rhetoric on trade with China, the trans-Pacific partnership and economic affairs.

On race, Howard said: “I certainly don’t think he’s a racist, if that’s what you’re inviting me to say. I certainly don’t believe that.”

He insisted it was too early to reach conclusions about the substance of Trump, rather than the style, and warned against joining the rush to early judgment.



“It’s more than a rush to judgement, it’s a rush to condemn,” Howard said. “I accept some of his style is provocative but, in the end, it’s what he does that matters. And I think it is far too early to be joining that rush to condemn.”

Asked about Trump’s withdrawal from the Paris agreement, Howard again described himself as increasingly sceptical of climate change.

“I have become increasingly more of a sceptic on climate change. I have to confess that,” he said.

He said European leaders should have predicted Trump would leave the Paris agreement and said they were in no position to lecture the US, who had carried the weight of defence responsibilities in the region.

Howard was well known for his closeness to the US during his time in office. He was a frequent champion of the value of the Australia-US alliance and showed a willingness to support America in conflict, following the former president George W Bush into post 9/11 engagements in Iraq and Afghanistan.



His relationship with Washington saw him dubbed America’s “sheriff”, a label Bush himself used to describe Australia in 2003, causing some controversy.

During last year’s campaign, Howard said he trembled at the thought of Trump as president. He said an establishment candidate like Marco Rubio would have greater success against the Clinton campaign.

South Australia urges NSW to help break Turnbull's energy target gridlock Read more

“I tremble at the thought of Trump being president. There’s an instability about him that bothers me,” Howard told Sky News last February.

On Thursday, much like his comments after Trump’s election, Howard struck a more conciliatory tone.

He said Australia should not seek to move away from the US alliance in favour of China.

“This argument that we’ve got to make a choice between the US and China, if any government implemented that they would be doing immense damage to Australia’s future.”



Howard said Trump’s “America first” rhetoric was aimed at a domestic audience. He said he did not believe Trump would cause damage to America’s alliances.