Trump is fine being besties with dictators, not so fine with allies who need help

On the one hand, being an ally of Donald Trump must look attractive to certain countries. There would be none of that pesky stuff about human rights.

Donald J. Trump, on the eve of accepting the Republican nomination for president, said Wednesday that if he were elected, he would not pressure Turkey or other authoritarian allies about conducting purges of their political adversaries or cracking down on civil liberties. The United States, he said, has to “fix our own mess” before trying to alter the behavior of other nations.

You want to shoot your own people? Hey, go ahead. We’ve got our own purges to worry about over here. And locking up the opposition? Sounds like a plan. After all, nothing says “shining city on a hill” like giving authoritarian dictators the go ahead to torture and kill as they please. 

On the other hand, what you get for being a America-Under-Trump ally is a bit of a question. Because while both Trump and Pence lay it on thick about never abandoning our friends:

“We cannot have four more years of apologizing to our enemies and abandoning our friends,” the Indiana governor told a partisan crowd in Cleveland. “America needs to be strong for the world to be safe. And on the world stage, Donald Trump will lead from strength.”

Doesn’t really mean America will be there if an ally needs help.

[Trump] said the rest of the world would learn to adjust to his approach. “I would prefer to be able to continue” existing agreements, he said, but only if allies stopped taking advantage of what he called an era of American largess that was no longer affordable.

So … we’re going to expand the military and be stronger in the world, but no one should expect us to help because we can’t afford that and they should take care of themselves. Makes sens… no wait. It doesn’t. It makes no sense at all. If you don't offer help when you've promised ...

… asked about Russia’s threatening activities that have unnerved the small Baltic States that are among the more recent entrants into NATO, Mr. Trump said that if Russia attacked them, he would decide whether to come to their aid only after reviewing whether those nations “have fulfilled their obligations to us.”

That’s not an alliance. That’s an extortion racket. But then, it’s the only kind of partnership Trump knows.