World Leaders Prefer Pence Because ‘Unpredictable’ Trump Sees Diplomacy As ‘Nuisance,’ Report Claims

Stoic, calm, composed, and always in control, Vice President Mike Pence is thought to be a more competent leader than Donald Trump, at least abroad. Russia’s Vladimir Putin, Chinese President Xi Jinping, and other foreign diplomats prefer Pence over Trump, a new Washington Post report claims.

Not only do world leaders feel more comfortable discussing international affairs with Pence, but they are also actively seeking the vice president out, as he is thought to be the less unpredictable, according to the report. But there appears to be a problem. President Donald Trump is known for changing his political positions daily, flip-flopping on decisions, abruptly pulling out of trade deals, and generally thought of as a mercurial, unpredictable leader. This reportedly makes Mike Pence’s job tougher as well.

Earlier this week, Pence met with the leaders of Russia and China during his Asia trip, who understand that the vice president “represented only what Trump’s position was that day and that Trump could change his mind the following day for any reason,” because there is “a level of Trump’s unpredictability that even Pence’s Spartan-like discipline can never overcome.”

In spite of his boss’s general unpredictability, Mike Pence made sure to convey the administration’s message concisely and clearly to other world leaders, Russia’s Vladimir Putin in particular. Pence told the Washington Post that he had warned Puting that the United States is not willing to tolerate election meddling. “As the president has told you, we’re not having it,” Pence claims to have said.

In contrast, Donald Trump does not shy away from freely interacting with leaders like Putin, displaying what appears to be affection as photographers snap photos and journalists take notes. As detailed by a previous Inquisitr report, during World War I commemorations in Paris two weeks ago Trump was caught beamingly and enthusiastically smiling at his Russian counterpart. But thanks to the French government, Trump and Putin’s interaction ended there since the organizers demanded that the two leaders stay away from each other.

In May this year, Bloomberg observed that Trump’s trademark unpredictability could end up backfiring across the world as European, South American, and Asian countries scramble together to form alliances and sign trade deals in an effort to avoid the effects of Trump tariffs and the U.S. president’s general unpredictability. Apart from discussing the issue of election meddling with Putin, Pence talked to Chinese representatives warning them to come to the negotiating table with a real offer.

“But don’t believe reports that world leaders were upset Trump wasn’t there,” the Washington Post concludes,

“Trump sees the boring work of diplomacy as a nuisance. Perhaps sending Pence in his place is a win-win arrangement for both of them — and the country as well.”