Ramaphosa's Trump Gamble FAILS!

Added: 2026-06-05

[00:00:00]South Africa just sent an ambassador to Washington. His name is Ralph Mayor. 78 years old. He's an Africana. And he has been tasked with fixing a relationship that is so broken that it had no South African ambassador in America for over a year. And I actually defended this man at one stage, giving points to why he could work and points into why he couldn't. So, good luck, Ralph. you're going to need it because South Africa once again has it all wrong. This beef didn't start with Trump, but they've got Trump so far up their asses, they couldn't just help but send Ralph Mayor there. Welcome back to the show and today I've decided to make the conversation that South Africa's government does not want to have because what is happening between South Africa and the United States right now is not about Donald Trump. But they they want you to think it's just about him and it's going to end with him. They don't want you to think that it didn't start with Trump. It will not end with Trump.

[00:01:02]And until South Africa is actually honest about that, nothing Ralph Mayor says in Washington will matter. And I say this as someone who actually defended Ralph Mayer, giving points to why he would work. But they have it all wrong. The relationship broke before Trump arrived. I'm talking about South Africa's relationship with the United States. What South Africa has done in the last decade in relation to American interests that I'm about to tell you right now will make you understand why Washington's patience has run out. You see, South Africa conducted a joint naval exercise with China and Russia.

[00:01:39]Operation Mosi 2 in February 2023. A democratic nation, a constitutional republic, chose to run military drills with authoritarian powers on its own coastline. The Americans noticed amongst the many others that noticed. And South Africa has been one of the most aggressive African voices pushing for a bricks alternative currency specifically designed to reduce dependence on the United States dollar. The Americans noticed that too because it happened to be money they printed. South Africa joined 83 other states at the International Criminal Court, attacking the United States over Trump's ICC sanctions in February 2025.

[00:02:25]Then South Africa demanded that Taiwan close its diplomatic mission in Ptoria, a move that aligned perfectly with Beijing's foreign policy interests. and Ramaposa himself, Cupcake himself in the flesh, made populist anti-Trump statements as far back as 2018, years before the current crisis. And then came the ICJ case against Israel, a case that put South Africa directly in opposition to the United States most important Middle Eastern ally. You attack Israel, you attack the United States. Washington did not forget South Africa has gone without diplomatic representation in Washington since March 2025 when Trump expelled Ambassador Ibraim Rasul for his criticism of the MAGA movement.

[00:03:19]US Secretary of State Marco Rubio accused Ibrahim Rasul of being a rage race baiting politician who hates America and hates Trump. That expulsion was the visible moment. But the rot had been building for years. That's what I'm trying to get to you. Now I need to introduce you to someone. Meet Ralph Mayor. This is the guy Ramaposa has appointed him as South Africa's ambassador in the United States in a move that was widely seen as nothing but an effort to ease the diplomatic tensions because Ralph Mayer was a minister of defense from 1991 to 1992 under the white minority government of FW de Clerk's national party. He then later became a chief negotiator in the talks that brought an end to the aparted regime and led to the election of Nelson Mandela in 1994.

[00:04:17]30 years ago he sat opposite Ramaposa at the negotiating table literally. Now Ramaposa is sending him to fix the mess his own government created. That man has more experience in his pinky that than you have in your entire well-being when it comes to diplomatic relations. So on paper, this is a smart appointment, right? He's African, the group Trump has been championing.

[00:04:42]He negotiated under impossible pressure before. He has credibility on both sides of South Africa's political history. And he is not Ibrahim Rasool. He's not a race bait. He doesn't bring up race every time you want to argue with him.

[00:04:56]And that last point alone is worth something in Washington right now. But but here is the problem that no appointment can fix. I already made a video on why Ralph Mayer could actually be a good ambassador.

[00:05:11]But here's the other thing. Ralph Mayer joined the ANC in 2006. So he is certainly not a neutral figure to the Africano organizations that have built direct relationships with Washington.

[00:05:23]There is a huge trust deficit between him and a vast group of his own people, Africaners, including the Freedom Front Plus, Afreum, Solidarity, and some agricultural unions who had established good relations with Washington and don't trust him. Afrey Forum CEO Khali Krel said the last thing this country needs is for yet another ANC kada to be deployed as the ambassador to the United States of America. And Washington itself is not waiting either. The refugee program for minority South Africans is expanding not just for African for minority South Africans that happens to have a majority of African because they were prioritized first. Tariffs and foreign aid cuts remain in place. Trump froze most financial assistance to South Africa happened a while ago. And the fundamental issues, the ANC's foreign policy alignment with China and Russia, the ICJ case, the expropriation act, none of those have been resolved. And then South Africa thinks they can just sell Ralph Mayer to fix everything there. Approximately 600 American companies operate in South Africa. 600 employing thousands and generating billions in bilateral trade. The economic cost of this diplomatic collapse is being paid for by ordinary South Africans like you and me every single day. Jobs, investment, trade, all affected by a government that chose ideological posturing over pragmatic relationships.

[00:07:02]The ANC spent years building anti-American credibility with the global south. Now it is sending a 70-year-old, 78-year-old Africana negotiator to Washington to try and undo that damage somehow, one meeting at a time, even though they're not willing to do anything on their part. Is that strategy or is that a desperation move with a diplomatic title? You tell me.

[00:07:28]Ralph Mayer is a good man with genuine credentials when it comes to negotiation skills, but he cannot negotiate away 30 years of deliberate choices. He can fix the tone, but he cannot fix the trajectory unless the government responsible for that, which happens to be the government he is in, changes its actual behavior. And based on 30 years of evidence, don't hold your breath.