Angela Merkel Stopped Relying on President Trump Only After Failing to Reason With Him

The Germans did what they could. Starting well before Inauguration Day, they tried to get on friendly terms with President Donald Trump, at least friendly enough not to squander a bond that took more than half a century for their nations to build. The effort was commendable, in part because of the patience it required of German Chancellor Angela Merkel. But it didn’t do much good in the end.

Trump wouldn’t budge.