Donald Trump and the Nobel Peace Prize

With little time left before November 3, 2020, election day in the US, both President Trump and Democratic Presidential Candidate Biden are working overtime to sway the public. While Trump spent the weekend at several rallies in Nevada, Joe Biden has been attending private fundraising events. 

As you may recall, citing his achievements over the last 3.5 years, President Trump expressed that he deserved the Nobel Peace Prize both on social media and in his press conferences.

In 2018, eighteen Republican Congressmen sent a letter to the Nobel Committee stating that the president should receive the Nobel Peace Prize for his North Korea initiative. This year, two surprise statements from two other countries' parliament members made President Trump happy. 

Magnus Jacobsson, a member of the Riksdag of Sweden, stated that he nominated Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize for his work for the Kosovo-Serbia deal, whereas Tybring-Gjedde, a member of Stortinget, the Parliament of Norway, stated that he nominated Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize for his work on the Israel-UAE peace deal. Both men have radical-right backgrounds and sympathy for Trump is what the two have in common. Gjedde was one of two Swedish deputies that nominated Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2018.

The Nobel Peace Prize, having been awarded since 1901, was omitted in certain years due to the World Wars and other political reasons. According to Alfred Nobel’s will, every year, individual(s) or organization(s) to have endeavored the most for peace between nations and peoples, for disarmament and demilitarization, and for convening peace congresses, are awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. 

The Nobel Peace Prize is awarded by the Norwegian Nobel Committee in Oslo. Members of this committee are elected by the Norwegian Parliament. This year 318 people have been nominated for the prize. Regarding the nominee numbers, this year saw the fourth-highest number of nominees in history. Nominees are evaluated in Norway, and the prize is awarded there. But all the other Nobel prizes are awarded in Sweden.

As you may recall, former President Barack Obama won it in 2009, at the beginning of his first presidential term. President Obama’s award was described by many as premature. However, the  Nobel Selection Committee determined that President Obama would be deemed worthy of the Nobel Peace Prize thanks to his leadership for peace and safety in a world without nuclear weapons.

The last date to be nominated for this prestigious prize is February 1, which means Trump has already been nominated for the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize. Those who also have been nominated for this prize next year include Michelle Obama, Bill Gates, Joe Biden, and Greta Thunberg. The Norwegian Nobel Committee doesn’t make a statement about the nominees. By its rules, that data must remain confidential for 50 years.

In my opinion, President Trump will not be receiving the prize. Since the Nobel Selection Committee Members consist of mostly liberals, it is highly unlikely they vote for a candidate like President Trump, whose ideas completely contradict their ideology.

Last year Trump said, “I would get a Nobel Prize for many reasons if they gave it out fairly.”

Let us not forget that recently, there have been reactions against the committee because some people, chosen by the Nobel Selection Committee, have been deemed worthy of the prize despite not deserving it.

Whether President Trump wins the Nobel Peace Prize or not, if he gets re-elected, he will already have received the greatest prize in his life.