India, April 28 -- US President Donald Trump recently stoked widespread outrage after he shared the transcript of a talk-show by American Right-wing commentator Michael Savage from his social media account; Savage had termed India a "hellhole country" and Indian immigrants to the US "gangsters with laptops". Angry denunciations of Trump's endorsement of an extremist racist screed, demands that he delete the post, and calls for India to push back much more forcefully underscore the charged emotions in the aftermath.

But hurt feelings about national pride, honour and stature are beside the point because Trump is never going to retract, apologise or back off from his heterodox, unfiltered and unscripted mannerisms and deeds, which originate...