As tensions with Trump deepen, Europe wonders if America is lost for good

5/19/18

Since Jan. 20, 2017, European leaders have managed U.S. relations with one eye on the clock, anxiously counting down the hours until President Donald Trump's term is up and hoping the core of the Western alliance isn't too badly damaged in the meantime. If Trump is succeeded by a more traditional Democratic or Republican administration, the wounds could still heal. But, even then, it could take a long time, given the extent of the damage. And close European observers of the United States are not optimistic about a reversion to the mean. One sign of the evolving stance toward the United States was the unusually biting commentary this week from European Council President Donald Tusk, whose job in Brussels is to channel the ids of the 28 nations in the European Union. A mild-mannered former Polish prime minister, his statements are typically gentle efforts toward consensus, not international rallying cries. Not this time. "With friends like that, who needs enemies?" Tusk told reporters as he readied a summit of E.U. leaders largely focused on Trump-ignited brush-fires. The faltering Iran nuclear agreement, the bloodshed in the Gaza Strip and the specter of a transatlantic trade war were all on the agenda. Tusk denounced "the capricious assertiveness of the American administration," using terms that just 16 months ago would more typically have been applied to international rogue nations such as North Korea and Russia.

His sharp tone matches the public mood. In Germany, a country that rebuilt itself after World War II in America's image and with American money, polls show that Trump is seen as a bigger threat than Russian President Vladimir Putin. After the U.S. pullout from the Iran deal, the influential weekly Der Spiegel called on Germany to become part of the "resistance against America," and pictured Trump on its cover as a yellow-haired middle finger to the continent. "The mood in the country is that we can't let the U.S. run the world, especially if it's run by someone like Trump," said François Heisbourg, a former French presidential adviser on national security and defense. "When an ally treats its allies like enemies, you have a problem." Whether it's Trump in office or any other American president, he said, "U.S. priorities have changed, and why shouldn't they? It's not something we should complain about. It's a fact we have to acknowledge." Europe is peaceful, it's wealthy, and it's time, he said, for the continent to take care of its own security. "We can almost be thankful to Trump," Lau said. "He's made it clear to Europe that we need to wake up."

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Rogue Valley said:

As tensions with Trump deepen, Europe wonders if America is lost for good

These days my greatest nightmare supersedes Donald Trump. Perhaps Trump is just the diseased symptom. Could it be the United States itself that has changed?

As it is now in 2018, the US government of my lifetime is almost unrecognizable and the ideas/rationale floated by many fellow Americans are absolutely dreadful. Perhaps this is how all empires begin the descent.

As the older white baby-boomer generation flames out, America will fast become far more diverse and heterogeneous. Hopefully, also more tolerant and forgiving. Redemption.

Related: How Trump Is Changing America

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veritas1 said:

Yes, being free of government to make decisions about your own life is quite scary for the newer pants wetting generations.

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Rogue Valley said:

As tensions with Trump deepen, Europe wonders if America is lost for good

These days my greatest nightmare supersedes Donald Trump. Perhaps Trump is just the diseased symptom. Could it be the United States itself that has changed?

As it is now in 2018, the US government of my lifetime is almost unrecognizable and the ideas/rationale floated by many fellow Americans are absolutely dreadful. Perhaps this is how all empires begin the descent.

As the older white baby-boomer generation flames out, America will fast become far more diverse and heterogeneous. Hopefully, also more tolerant and forgiving. Redemption.

Related: How Trump Is Changing America

Click to expand...

Mach said:

You believe the difference in the current Republican party vs Democratic party is that one side let's you be free to make your own decisions in life, and one does not?
That's part of the problem.

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veritas1 said:

No, both parties believe in big government. It's just that one believes in much bigger and more intrusive government than the other. I was simply responding to the rather comical feelings of apocalyptic doom that have overtaken liberals. Cheer up, you'll be back in the saddle in a few years.

Click to expand...

Rogue Valley said:

As tensions with Trump deepen, Europe wonders if America is lost for good

These days my greatest nightmare supersedes Donald Trump. Perhaps Trump is just the diseased symptom. Could it be the United States itself that has changed?

As it is now in 2018, the US government of my lifetime is almost unrecognizable and the ideas/rationale floated by many fellow Americans are absolutely dreadful. Perhaps this is how all empires begin the descent.

As the older white baby-boomer generation flames out, America will fast become far more diverse and heterogeneous. Hopefully, also more tolerant and forgiving. Redemption.

Related: How Trump Is Changing America

Click to expand...