NPR

Transcripts: Trump Told Mexican President Border Wall Is 'Least Important Thing'

Early on in his presidency, leaks showed an argumentative Trump on the phone with foreign leaders. New transcripts provide more details about how those phone calls went.
President Donald Trump is seen speaking on the phone with King of Saudi Arabia, Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud. / Mark Wilson / Getty Images

Way back at the start of the Trump presidency, the president created a stir with his first calls to leaders of U.S. allies. It was reported that he had angrily cut off a call with Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and in a call with Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto, threatened to send military personnel to Mexico to deal with "bad hombres" (the Mexican government disputed this).

Now, new details of the conversations have emerged, via , and the excerpts printed by the show a president cajoling and heatedly arguing with the two foreign leaders. The transcripts do not

You’re reading a preview, subscribe to read more.

More from NPR

NPR2 min readWorld
Hamas Releases Video Of A Second American Being Held Hostage In Gaza
Hamas has released a video showing two captives, one of them an American, as part of an effort to prove that the two men are still alive. It was the second video of a U.S. citizen released this week.
NPR4 min readAmerican Government
Gaza Protestors Picket White House Correspondents Dinner, As Biden Ribs Trump
The war in Gaza spurred large protests outside a glitzy roast with President Joe Biden, journalists, politicians and celebrities Saturday but went all but unmentioned by participants inside.
NPR2 min read
CDC Says 3 Women Diagnosed With HIV After Receiving 'Vampire Facial'
Although HIV transmission from contaminated blood through unsterile injection is a well-known risk, the CDC said this is the first documentation of probable infections involving cosmetic services.

Related Books & Audiobooks