Donald Trump’s approach to most issues is routinely incoherent, but Australia offers a special case.In his second week as president, the Republican had a disastrous conversation with Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull via phone, in which Trump bragged about his imagined electoral-college landslide, lashed out at Turnbull over a refugee agreement, and abruptly hung up 25 minutes into an hour-long call.Last night, the American president, after meeting with Turnbull in person, said the media’s characterization of the testy phone call in January was wrong. Seconds later, Trump added that the call did, in fact, “get a little bit testy.”I’m glad we cleared that up.But Trump also took some time last night to praise Australia’s government-funded universal health care system. The Washington Post reported:
“We have a failing health care — I shouldn’t say this to our great gentleman and my friend from Australia, because you have better health care than we do,” a tuxedo-clad Trump said at a meeting with Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull in Manhattan on Thursday.Australia has a government-funded health-care system, called Medicare, that exists alongside private insurance. The system is funded in part by taxes, including on the wealthy.
Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."