The Signal leak isn’t just about Europe – it shows how powerful J.D. Vance is

This is an extract from today’s episode of Spectator TV, with Freddy Gray and Ben Domenech, which you can find at the bottom of this page:

Freddy Gray (FG): America is – to use [Vice President J.D.] Vance’s words – bailing out Europe again, and [Defense Secretary] Pete Hegseth says ‘yes – it’s pathetic’ in capital letters. That clearly shows was they’re thinking about foreign policy. What did you read into it?

Ben Domenech (BD): I think you’re completely right to highlight that potion because it is one of the areas where I think we can gather a bit more about their thinking than we have before… They simply do not view the Europeans as being equal partners in this effort and they view them as a long way from being capable of being the partners that they would like them to be. Meaning that, this is something where they feel this is not a problem that America necessarily should have to solve, for the sake of their European allies. And I think that Hegseth too, indicates that he’s aligned himself a little bit more with the J.D. Vance critique of Europe within that context – as opposed to perhaps the more traditional Republican view of America’s role in the world.

Now, whether that’s something that extends out to other areas of policy as well, areas that are, at least from my perspective, far more important than the Houthis, that’s something that I think is is still an open question. But this does, I think, provide some insight, into, the different alignments that people are pursuing within this administration.

This is a group of people who I truly believe represent the spectrum on the right of the differences on foreign policy and national security. In a way that is indicative of where people actually are, meaning that you have a Republican coalition where there are people who are still kind of in each of these different lanes.

And while perhaps the most neoconservative members of the Republican cohort have been banished, or self-deported themselves into the Democratic coalition, they still have some remnants of people who have different opinions about foreign policy going forward that could play a role within this agenda. And one thing that could come from this moment is – and this is something that members of Congress are mindful of, and certainly, those in Washington who pay attention to it or mindful of – is if [National Security Advisor] Mike Waltz ends up being the person who suffers because of this.

I don’t actually think he’s going to be pushed out. That’s my own feeling at the moment after talking to several people. But I do think that this does hurt him within this White House. And, it could mean his voice being listened to less within the room. That’s something that has potential impacts on foreign policy and national security.

We’ve seen lesser offenses sideline people within Trump world. And this one is certainly the first major screw up to come in this White House. And it comes from someone who not a lot of people thought of as being a screw up.