They let Trump be Trump and now Trump is getting out of control. By the end of Trump’s weeklong European tour that concluded earlier this week, the mercurial president had weakened America’s ironclad commitment to the decades-long NATO alliance; undermined the UK premier’s fragile government over Brexit; and publicly discredited US intelligence apparatus in favour of archrival Russia.
Trump’s conduct overseas, especially in relation to Russia, outraged many in the US, including former presidential candidates. Hillary Clinton suspected that Trump was playing for Russia. Trump’s performance was termed “disgraceful” by John McCain. Mitt Romney blasted Trump for drawing “moral equivalence” between US and Russia. John Brennan, a former CIA chief, called Trump’s conduct “treasonous”. But a CNN anchor sounded hopeful, thinking Trump presidency had finally hit the bottom.
It was indeed a nightmarish scenario for the future of the trans-Atlantic alliances which successive US presidents have invested in building up since the end of the Second World War. To be fair, Trump hasn’t softened the Russian sanctions regime yet; nor is he talking of pulling the US out of NATO. It is his public denunciation of the EU as a “foe” as well as his continued refusal to confront Russia over its 2016 election meddling that is the source of much of the outrage.
Critics maintain that as long as Trump is in the White House, America’s global influence will not recover. After all, Trump has gone after one global multilateral forum after another; he has torn apart crucial deals on climate change, the Iran nuclear programme, and the Trans-Pacific trade; and hardly a day goes by without a trade war being threatened from the Trump Twitter handle.
Meanwhile, the question of the 2016 Russian interference remains polarizing in the US. Trump considers the issue a “witch hunt” – an attempt to delegitimize his presidential victory and send him to jail. After he landed home from the Euro trip, Trump made a sharp reversal and reposed his “faith” in the US Intelligence apparatus, which he had undermined just a couple of days ago in Helsinki. But that feeble attempt at making amends probably didn’t wash with the establishment. The damage had been done.
Be that as it may, America is stuck with Trump, at least until 2020. Despite all the provocations at home and abroad, Trump remains popular with the Republican base. The economy has been growing and the unemployment is keeping low. Heading into the midterms in a few months, the Democrats seem to have no coherent narrative to Trump’s obnoxious populism. Meanwhile, the Mueller probe doesn’t look like indicting Trump anytime soon, though it is helping to unearth the scale of Russia’s meddling in 2016 polls.
Feeling confident, Trump is alienating EU leaders and courting autocrats like Putin and Kim. More alarmingly, and to the dismay of those championing American exceptionalism overseas, Trump is actively encouraging his brand of divisive populism in Europe, where immigration has fueled the rise of far-right political parties. As Trump isn’t going anywhere, expect more political disruptions in next couple of years. But what is unclear is the end-game of this chaotic presidency, if there is one.
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