not sure why he backed down, i dunno about the netherlands in particular there's a pretty good chance the no go zones and car fires are true, like they are in france and sweden.

If there were truth to the statements, why would the Netherlands media want to ask him about them?

Like begets like I guess.

Yes, what this guy is idiotic.

But only rabbits like 'people all around world dislike Trump!!! ' you care about reputation in so superficial way.

Please tell me that you're not proposing that no Democrat President has ever appointed a less than stellar Ambassador? And, good grief, it's the Netherlands, for Pete's sake!

Of course things like this only happen to ambassadors Trump appoints. When liberals select someone to be an ambassador they are always perfect and never, ever say or do anything that causes a stir, right?

Trump is just incapable of finding sterling representative's like Obama's ambassador to Belgium Howard Gutman who solicited minors for sex (fortunately for him Hillary's State Department covered it up so he could complete his full term and be replaced).

There's weak, and then there's this. Oh no you didn't. When they've got no backup beyond an unsubstantiated report and partisan-inspired innuendo, decent folks don't go there.

Sorry nonexistent one but an Inspector General's report accused Gutman of ditching his security detail so he could go to a park and pick up hookers, including minors, for sex. This was squelched by Undersecretary of State Patrick F. Kennedy while Hillary headed that department.

See for instance the New York Post (""), the Telegraph ("US state department accused of covering up 'prostitution' investigation"), the Hill ("IG memo: US ambassador to Belgium ditched security detail to visit prostitutes")

because journalists in general are dumb.

Wasn't global warming supposed to turn the Netherlands into a pond or something?

Ambassador does something stupid, film at eleven...

"Look a squirrel!"

No, thanks.

That's in the best light. In more reasonable light, it's a corrupt bargain. "Don't look at my guys' sins, or I'll blow the cover on yours." You should be ashamed for offering this. I've got an answer, and with luck that will take care of it: If they're all guilty, let them all burn.

This won't work, even if you stuck to the facts, because I'm not the partisan you're looking for. But you haven't stuck to the facts.

There was an accusation, not a finding. It was a memo to the IG, not an IG report. It was a public park. There would be victims, or at least witnesses. In a sense there were: Belgian police watching the ambassador surreptitiously, who said the park was not a haven for prostitutes and drug dealers. Tabloid journalism spinning "bombshells" out of ambassadors talking to a host country's citizens in a public park does not a sex scandal with minors make. What were you thinking.

There is a comparison to be made here.

Gutman was immensely popular with the Belgians, and ended up making a decided difference. US approval, which had been dismal under Obama's predecessor, to the point they were openly speaking of barring our ships, and calling for the arrest of Bush administration figures if found on their territory, was turned around.

Hoekstra was nominated to poke a finger in their eye. which fits the pattern for this administration. Even before his statements at the Horowitz center (11:30) taken straight out of Infowars made the recent press, he was ruthlessly mocked by the Dutch for his blatant racism.

If you want to defend this guy, be my guest, but my advice would be not to go there, either. Either road, leave the whataboutism behind. Approach the issue as if you were only interested in the truth. You already know how to do this. Let the facts drive your politics, just as if it were science.

Yes you are, and it's easy to tell:

His "blatant racism" was... this ad:

Trump's ambassador to the Netherlands had his first official day on the job today, so was promptly asked by a panel of dutch reporters at his press conference about his previous claims / lies about no-go zones and politicians being set on fire.

His response was that he didn't want to answer questions on this subject and he'd take questions on other subjects.

The reporters' response was to say "This is the Netherlands, that's not how it works" and reporters around the room continued to ask him the same question phrased in different ways and remind him he hadn't answered their colleagues' questions.

This is how media can actually hold politicians accountable, and Americans can learn a lot from it. The blatant lies of US conservatives are simply not tolerated in other Western countries. They don't get to throw out a bunch of lies and then refuse to discuss them, they have to actually either admit they lied and retract their statements, or explain to the satisfaction of reasonable people what justification they have for them.

Unfortunately for the US, it seems Trump employs the "best" people. He's setting your country's reputation on fire via his actions and his ambassadors.

'This is the Netherlands, you have to answer questions': Dutch reporters confront new US envoy: