Exclusive: Trump to get Nobel Peace Prize

Norwegian committee has buyer regret after Obama experience

Michael Cook | Jun 1 2017 | comment

SPOILER ALERT: This may be fake news

US President Donald Trump is to be awarded the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize, according to documents released exclusively to MercatorNet earlier today by Wikileaks.

The decision of the Norwegian Nobel Committee comes as a stunning surprise to the world’s media and foreign policy establishments. But the Committee has clearly been swayed by Trump's vision of an “ultimate deal” for peace in the Middle East. As he said in a recent conversation with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, “It is something that I think is frankly, maybe, not as difficult as people have thought over the years.”

Trump’s can-do optimism characterised US President Teddy Roosevelt, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1906 for negotiating an end to the Russo-Japanese War.

A source close to the Committee says that it regrets its 2009 decision to award the Prize to President Barack Obama after only a few months in the job. Its members now believe that that draining the swamp may be more effective in achieving global peace than a breath of fresh air.

The chair of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, Mr Thorbjørn Jagland, refused to comment on the authenticity of the leak. However, he did confirm that Mr Trump was one of the nominees. He told MercatorNet: “This does have some plausibility, you know. Look, in 2007 we gave it to Al Gore for jetting around making millions of dollars out of a PowerPoint presentation and in 2009 we gave it to Obama for not being George Bush. Why not give it to an American politician who’s reshuffling the deck instead of reshuffling the deck chairs?”

The official announcement of the Nobel Peace Prize will be on Monday, October 9. Below is the text of the press release prepared for the occasion.

The Norwegian Nobel Committee has decided that the Nobel Peace Prize for 2017 is to be awarded to President Donald Trump for his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international self-reliance and a deeper sense of realism in dealing with threats to world peace. The Committee has attached special importance to Trump's mastery of the art of the deal.

Trump has as President created a new climate in international politics. A refreshing sense of national autonomy has reclaimed a central position, with an emphasis on the moral responsibility that each nation has for guiding its own destiny. Tweets may replace drone attacks as the first weapon of choice for resolving difficult international conflicts.

His vision of a world in which nations “pay their fair share of the cost” of their own defence has powerfully stimulated international discussion around the world and especially in Europe.

In 2009 the Norwegian Nobel Committee awarded Obama the Peace Prize after only nine months in office, overwhelmed by his good intentions and personal charisma. Unfortunately, over the succeeding 39 months, we were deeply underwhelmed by the rise of the Islamic State, chaos in Syria, anarchy in Libya, Europe’s refugee crisis, Russia’s incursions in Ukraine, the weeping sore of Palestine, and North Korea’s nuclear program.

For 112 years, the Norwegian Nobel Committee has sought to award the Peace Prize to leaders facing conventional military challenges. Now the world faces the prospect of an unending series of asymmetrical conflicts for which the 2009 Laureate proved ill-suited. Only very rarely has a person to the same extent as Trump captured the world's attention; in unpredictable times, what the world needs is an unpredictable leader.

In 2009 the Committee endorsed Obama's appeal that "Now is the time for all of us to take our share of responsibility for a global response to global challenges." In 2017 Donald Trump is the world’s last best hope to fulfil his predecessor’s earnest aspiration.

Oslo, October 9, 2017

Michael Cook is editor of MercatorNet

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June 1, 2017

Some readers may have been surprised, not to say flabbergasted today by a MercatorNet exclusive on the decision of the Nobel Committee to award the Peace Prize to Donald J. Trump.

The Committee’s press release, courtesy of Wikileaks and all ready for an October 9 announcement, cites President Trump’s “extraordinary efforts to strengthen international self-reliance and a deeper sense of realism in dealing with threats to world peace. The Committee has attached special importance to Trump's mastery of the art of the deal.”

Yes, you can make this stuff up – and that is exactly what Michael Cook did. Apparently he made such a good job of it that a few people think it’s true.

Dear reader, it is not. At least, not as far as we know ;) As the Nobel Committee did NOT say, but truthfully could, “Only very rarely has a person to the same extent as Trump captured the world's attention; in unpredictable times, what the world needs is an unpredictable leader.”

There’s more than a grain of truth in our 100 percent fake news scoop – but more importantly there’s lots of laughs in this hilarious send-up of the Obama fan club. Nice one, Michael!