As if 2020 hasn’t already been a crazy year on its own, leaving many convinced that the worst has passed, something completely unexpected begins to make headlines. This year seems to be a competition between public figures over who can put out the worst news of the year. However, the award for the most comical news of the year goes to President Donald J. Trump’s nomination for a Nobel Peace Prize.  

A statement released by the United States White House Press Secretary confirmed the news that President Trump had been nominated for this year’s Nobel Peace Prize on Sept. 9.  

According to the official Nobel Prize website, since its formation in 1901, the Norwegian Nobel Committee has sworn by a 50-year secrecy rule. It does not allow for the release of information on nominees or winners until 50 years after recipient names have been made public. Nominations can only be made by approved members of the Norwegian Nobel Committee.    

The Atlantic Online reports that the Norwegian Parliamentarian Christian Tybring-Gjedde made his nomination of President Trump for a Noble Prize public. Tybring-Gjedde’s nomination stems from the agreement which the president made between Israel and the United Arab Emirates. The agreement suspended Israel’s plans to annex a portion of the West Bank territory. 

Ignoring the committee’s honorable rule and making a nomination public is disrespectful and unprofessional. Not only should nominations be carefully made, but committee members should also be held liable and reviewed for not respecting honorable tradition. 

Only four United States presidents have gone on to win a Nobel Peace Prize. The most recent being Barack Obama for his efforts in strengthening international diplomacy and cooperation back in 2009.

President Trump has commented several times on his disapproval of Obama’s work.  

“[Obama] is the founder of ISIS,” mentioned Trump in regards to Obama’s withdrawal from Iraq during a campaign rally in 2016.  

Any individual who falsely accuses others for the benefit of their own image is unfit of being nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize, let alone winning one.  Nobel Prize winners should care more about creating a peaceful global environment for the benefit of humankind as a whole and not about bringing others down for personal gain. 

Since 1901, the Nobel Peace Prize has been awarded 100 times. Some years have gone award-less and have allocated the year’s funds for the next year’s winner. Laureates, which are recipients of the Nobel Prize, receive a gold medal, diploma, and 9.0 million SEK, which rounds down to be around 1 million dollars in the United States, according to the Nobel Prize website.  

President Trump has demonstrated numerous times how he epitomizes the complete opposite of peace. Just this year alone, Trump has been unwilling to ensure essential worker’s safety during a global pandemic and has kept very quiet about the nation’s serious problem with racial injustice. 

Trump supporters are probably the only people glad to hear about the president’s nomination, as it may influence votes in Trump’s favor in the presidential election this November. However, a nomination which ignored all of Trump’s mistakes during his presidency should not be regarded as a valid reason to support a possible re-election.  

Although Trump’s nomination may come as a result of helping ease political tensions in the Middle East there is still much work to be done. 

Even the United States, which falls under the leadership of Trump, has a long way to go before all citizens can feel safe in their own country. In order to demonstrate peaceful leadership, Trump needs to be more accepting and inclusive of minority groups.

 The recipient of a Nobel Peace Prize should be someone who promotes the concept of global peace within every aspect of their work and not just on account of one agreement they made alongside the help of others.  

“It is my express wish… that the prize be awarded to the worthiest person,” Alfred Noble, the creator of the prize, wrote in his will. 

While many people believe that Trump deserves to win a Nobel Prize due to his strong leadership and international war efforts,  a Nobel Prize recipient should represent someone who is an image of constant pursual for global peace and the progression of humankind.  

President Trump is neither.