Why Trump's united Ireland stance hit such a nerve
President Trump stood by his support for a united Ireland on Sunday after his remarks during a two-day visit sparked a backlash from unionist and British politicians and praise from Irish nationalists. Why it matters: Trump broke with a longstanding U.S. presidential convention of not taking sides on whether Northern Ireland should ultimately be British or Irish. The U.S. helped broker the 1998 Good Friday Agreement, built around consent and parity between British unionism and Irish nationalism. Former President Clinton, whose administration played a central role in the peace process, explicitly said the U.S. was "neither in favor of a united Ireland nor opposed to the idea." Driving the news: Trump said in Dublin, sitting beside Irish Taoiseach Micheál Martin on Saturday, that he'd "love to see" Ireland unified and that it is "going to happen eventually," so it "may as well happen now." He described uniting Northern Ireland with the Republic of Ireland as "fantastic," adding: "The
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