Trump humiliated: Juncker brags about bringing US President to his knees in White House

The outgoing EU Commission President has spoken out about the claims he was often drunk during key political meetings, after he was seen stumbling and struggling to walk unaided. Jean-Claude Juncker hit out at the allegations at the time, and said his uneasy footing was due to sciatica, a condition that causes pain down the leg and lower back. He also bragged that “you cannot bring Trump to his knees when you go the White House drunk”, when referencing the agreement the EU chief made with Donald Trump over tariffs on EU car imports.

Last June Mr Juncker met with President Trump to avoid an all-out trade war between the EU and the United States.

The pair agreed to work towards “zero tariffs” on industrial goods, apart from cars.

But Mr Trump did agree there would not be further tariffs imposed on cars, while they negotiate – a significant win for Mr Juncker.

The US President has repeatedly expressed frustration that the EU imposes a 10 percent tariff on imported US cars, while the US tariff on European cars is only 2.5 percent.

He had threatened to put 25 percent tariffs on nearly $200billion (£150billion) in car imports, which would particularly harm Germany.

But Mr Juncker managed to avoid such a scenario.

The 64-year-old EU chief had been accused of being drunk on multiple occasions, after he was filmed stumbling.

At the NATO summit in 2018, Mr Juncker was seen unsteady on his feet and had to be propped up by the Dutch and Portuguese leaders.

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When a reporter asked if Mr Juncker had been drunk the Commission spokesman replied that the question was “more than tasteless”.

Commission spokesman Margaritis Schinas: “I don’t think this is elegant, I don’t think this is fair.”

He said the President had suffered a “very particularly painful attack of sciatica accompanied by cramps” and added: “The president has himself publicly stated that this sciatica affects his ability to walk.”

Sciatica occurs when the sciatic nerve, which runs from the hips to the feet, is irritated.

Mr Juncker’s walking problems occurred again at an appearance in the Irish Parliament, where he seemed shaky climbing stairs.

Several heads of states helped him steady his footing.

Mr Juncker said of the incident: “I have some issues when I walk. I’m not drunk. I have sciatica problems. I’d rather be drunk. Hah!”

Now, as his term as Commission President comes to an end, the EU chief has said the alcohol allegations initially upset him.

He told German newspaper RND: “In the beginning it bothered me a lot.

“But now, I’m no longer interested in such claims.”

Mr Juncker’s term was due to come to an end this week, on October 31, but his replacement Ursula von der Leyen has delayed her start date because of delays in the Commissioner nominations.

She is due to take office on December 1.

source: express.co.uk