One Way to Win Trump Over: Nominate Him for the Nobel Prize

Hindustan Times

2 days ago

WASHINGTON—President Trump often bristles at questions from the media. But he perked up when a reporter asked a group of African leaders if he should be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.
'I didn't know I'd be treated this nicely, we could do this all day long,' Trump said as the African heads of state—gathered Wednesday at the White House for a summit—opined on whether the Norwegian Nobel Committee should bestow its award on America's polarizing president.
Trump has long been fixated on awards and prizes given by elites, but nothing has captured his attention like the Nobel Peace Prize. In meetings and speeches, Trump often mentions the honor, sometimes complaining that he hasn't received it.
As world leaders and lawmakers seek to curry favor with the president, they have learned that flattery is often the most effective strategy. In lengthy Oval Office meetings in front of television cameras, they have lavished Trump with praise, hailing him as a peacemaker, a visionary and a transformational leader. Increasingly, they are adding to the list a public declaration that Trump deserves the Nobel Peace Prize.
The Nobel Peace Prize was bestowed upon Barack Obama in October 2009 for creating 'a new climate in international politics.' The designation, given just months after he was inaugurated, faced backlash from conservatives and other critics of the then-president. Former secretary to the Norwegian Nobel Committee, Geir Lundestad, told the Associated Press that the decision to give the award 'didn't achieve what [the committee] had hoped for.' The hand-wringing could, among other factors, diminish Trump's chances of winning.
Other U.S. presidents who won the award while in office include Theodore Roosevelt for mediating the end of a war between Russia and Japan, and Woodrow Wilson for his role in creating the League of Nations. Jimmy Carter also won the award, more than two decades after he left office, in part for his work to resolve international conflicts and promote human rights.
Nominations for this year's prize were due by the end of January, so if the committee was going to give it to Trump this year, the nomination likely would have been submitted months ago. The Norwegian Nobel Institute doesn't comment on nominations for the prize, which will be announced in October.
World leaders have been eager to please Trump in this second term. The British rolled out their monarchy, dangling a second state visit. The Dutch put him up overnight in a palace. The Finns leveraged the golfing prowess of their president, Alexander Stubb, dispatching him to Florida for some time on the links.
Now world leaders have caught on to Trump's desire to win the award. And unlike other Trumpian wishes—such as increasing military spending of North Atlantic Treaty Organization countries or securing a new presidential airplane—this one if granted would come with no monetary cost. World leaders, lawmakers and previous Nobel winners are among the select group who can nominate potential winners.
Last month, Pakistan issued a statement saying that Trump should receive the award, citing his role in resolving recent clashes between India and Pakistan, two nuclear-armed countries. Nominating Trump for the peace prize was in Pakistan's self interest, said a senior former minister belonging to the country's ruling political party, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz. Trump's role resolving the recent tensions, the former official pointed out, prompted Islamabad to tie itself more closely with the U.S.
Earlier this week, during a dinner at the White House, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu presented Trump with a copy of the letter that he said he had sent to the Nobel committee nominating Trump for the award. 'Coming from you in particular, this is very meaningful. Thank you very much, Bibi,' Trump said as he examined the letter.
On Wednesday, the African leaders were quick to endorse the idea. 'Of course we are supportive,' said Umaro Sissoco Embaló, the president of Guinea-Bissau. Added Gabon's president, Brice Oligui Nguema: 'A Nobel Peace Prize, I don't see any problem with that.'
Mauritanian President Mohamed Ould Ghazouani pleaded ignorance about the nomination process, but said his country wouldn't get in the way. 'Our world needs more peace,' he said.
The prize isn't really a matter of voting by countries, said Senegalese President, Bassirou Diomaye Faye, though he added that he thought Trump would be a worthy recipient. 'When the time comes, I think everyone will see that it is a deserved prize,' he said.
It isn't just world leaders who have attached Trump's name to the big prize. Rep. Darrell Issa (R., Calif.) wrote a letter to the Nobel committee nominating Trump for the honor in March. Other lawmakers pushing for the president to get the award include Sen. Bernie Moreno (R., Ohio) and Rep. Buddy Carter (R., Ga.).
Trump's supporters say his efforts to negotiate a cease-fire between Iran and Israel after his decision to launch U.S. strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities should qualify him for the award. They they have praised the president for his efforts to secure the release of American hostages from Gaza. Trump hasn't achieved lasting peace in Gaza and Ukraine, despite saying he would end the wars upon taking office.
The president's critics have said that his mass-deportation campaign and efforts to target his political opponents should disqualify him from receiving the award.
During Trump's first term, a member of the Norwegian Parliament nominated him for the 2021 Peace Prize for helping to broker peace between two Middle Eastern countries. Instead it went to Maria Ressa and Dmitry Andreyevich Muratov, journalists from the Philippines and Russia.
Trump has also weighed in on the recipients of the Pulitzer Prize. He sued Pulitzer board members over 2018 prizes they awarded to the Washington Post and the New York Times for coverage of Trump's alleged ties to Russia during the 2016 campaign. Trump's lawyers are in discovery in that case.
Write to Annie Linskey at [e-mail]