countries I have in mind are most of the EU, east Asian and south American multiparty democracies, our neighbors Canada and Mexico.
As I see it, these countries share with the US more than with other countries, like African, central Asian or south Asian countries, where liberal democracy and its practice only exists on paper. Up to now, we shared common values like the rule of law, free markets, freedom of the press, political liberalism, atlanticism for our security, our trust in science, institutions and facts… The US was an ally, an indispensable one you might add, even a benign one in some circles.
Now this ally has turned to a bully in an incredibly short period of time: in less than a week trump has started bullying Denmark so they sell Greenland to the US, threatened about taking the Panama channel back, also threatened most of America’s trade partners with tariffs if they don’t do what he wants, pausing aid to Ukraine, in effect condemning that country to be absorbed by Russia within the next 2 years, he even wants an American flag on Mars… what for?
I don’t see why he thinks our trade partners wont also raise their tariffs to our stuff if we do so. What I also don’t understand is why he blames the victim (Ukraine) and cozies up to putin. Not even Reagan would have done something like that.
Autocrats in the world are sure having a good time watching our disunity work to their favor.
I wonder what’s going to replace the post WW2 and post cold war order, now that liberal democracy is being so successfully attacked from the maga right and people trust more what they read on their ecochamber than what centrist, established media report (I’m not saying that the Washington Post, NPR or the LA Times are neutral, but are more neutral that fox ‘news’ or 'news’max).
By ignoring him, really.
Pretty much. He has the attention span of a toddler so he’ll find a different target soon enough.
Most countries have a strategy tuned to their particular needs, and experience learned from last time. As I recall it often involved flattering Trump and building relationships with his subordinates.
exactly, and remain in diplomatic contact with the civil servants and politicians he has not infected
What I also don’t understand is why he blames the victim (Ukraine) and cozies up to putin. Not even Reagan would have done something like that.
Reagan just blamed domestic victims of systemic racism and bigotry like black and gay people, not other countries!
Reagan did plenty of victimizing in Central America. Admittedly it was more ideological and not as self-serving as Trump.
The U.S. has always been bullies, fundamentalists, militant, entitled. All the things you don’t want in an ally. Yes, the U.S. is worse now. (I’m American, by the way.) But I hope U.S. allies have kindof seen this coming and made arrangements to weather this sort of thing, even if it lasts forever. Myabe that was kindof the point of the E.U., for instance.
The U.S. isn’t the only country going off the rails, though. Think of Brexit, for instance. I’m not saying the U.K. government is anywhere near as… quite frankly openly fascist as the U.S.'s is right now, but at least the U.K. isn’t immune. Unfortunately no country is.
We go golfing and he wins. Then we make a business deal and he wins again. The press takes pictures and he looks like a huge successful winner. Then I go back to doing my job.
By hoping it’s only 4 years.
Weaponized incompetence and flattery
Over here?
- Create a common EU army
- Put EU defense bases on Greenland
- Invite Canada to become a EU member
- Build an anti-immigrant wall on the EU-USA border and make the Americans pay for it
Am canuk, id love to join the EU please.
Trump only respects strength, so at first no favours, no deals, protect national interests as fiercely as possible no matter the cost.
After enough strength posturing, I think it would be possible to negotiate with Trump and do business without selling off my country completely.
Then just pray we survive until 2029 or Trump dies
It’s probably a good thing I’m not a national leader because the first thing I’d do is recall all diplomats and cut off relations. He wants isolationism? Give it to him and let him feel it for real, not just his tough-guy head-canon version of it.
Use whatever human rights violation justifications necessary (shouldn’t be hard) to hit the US in the wallet. Cut off US businesses from customers abroad. Expel military personnel. Pull travel visas. All the tricks America uses against everyone else. Make the people feel the inconvenience of not being a world citizen.
Same as we did last time. Strengthen our relationships and trade with friendly non-US countries.
came to say this. pretty much have to wait it out and strengthen each other and be ready to interceed if trump does anything to crazy.
Tariff.
When he threatens us, raise it 1%. If he raises a tariff of 5%, raise ours 5%. Also, of course we drop out of new-nafta.
They drop their tariff 4%, we drop our tariff 4%. New president, tariffs are 0% again.
We need to buy their shit for now, but I hear Greenland is due for a new port.
Win a trade war, then wait for his mind to drift to fanboying for dictators for life, just like last time.
Wait for opportunities.
Implement policies that reinforce the economic downturn in the US that will inevitably come and jump into the holes it leaves behind in the global economy.
Note that even on a personal level we can do things to accelerate this. De-Google, switch to Linux, quit US social media, torrent movies and tv shows and quit Amazon, Netflix and Apple tv. Boycott America!
Secretly record the back channel phone calls where he begs world leaders to let him do what he wants to save face, then release it with no deal.
He’ll be furious but when there are like 6-10 phone calls on record not even his diehard followers will respect him. Blood in the water at that point.
I am skeptical of that last bit. They mental gymnastics things all the time, I’m sure this would be no exception.
Fair assumption. In this fictional scenario I think there would for sure be a Q-Anon style contingent who would believe the world leaders colluded with some kind of audio deep fake.
I believe most republicans crave power at all costs and they want their team to keep winning. They will tolerate a cheater and a criminal that gets results but they will not abide a pathetic loser that makes them all look small by association.
Ignoring him and getting better ties with China
