In the space of only a few days, the American president was forced to look directly at what he hates most: his own failure.
And failure flooded his field of vision on all levels:
- As soon as he landed in Davos, he started on Greenland again. He said goodbye to tariffs, goodbye to obtaining a title deed for the “piece of ice” and aborted the lunatic idea of a military operation, an attack against Denmark, a NATO Ally.
- As soon as he landed in Davos and announced all these things, the US stock markets recovered, with some indices recovering what they had lost not only in recent days, but in recent weeks. So, President Trump found out (once again) what America’s most influential levers of power – the stock market and the business environment think about him. The message he received is indecently explicit: whenever Trump has a very bad day, the stock market has an extremely good day.
- The Greenland drama could potentially spark a sensitive discussion in American domestic politics: what is the state of the US President’s mental health? At the moment, this is a marginal discussion though it’s being debated on social media. The Greenland saga however could strongly legitimize it and turn it into a major public and political discussion. If it gains momentum, it risks hijacking Trump and his administration’s PR machine, and the Republican campaign for the midterm elections. Those elections are scheduled for November, so there is plenty of time for legitimate concerns and more narratives to put meat on them. Moreover, further discussion about President Trump’s mental health could be a formidable weapon for those who choose to use it, as the Biden precedent already exists. And that precedent established: such a discussion is legitimate and comes up when there are signs (and they also in Trump’s case as they existed in Biden’s case). It was Trump’s team, in Biden’s case that managed to successfully exploit such a discussion across the media and politics. Those interested have learned the lesson so far. Finally, such a discussion, as the past shows us, can even produce a major upset_. Biden was exited political life and lost his candidacy for the presidency at the very last minute. From this point of view, although there were some pre-Davos suspicions regarding Trump, they have now taken off post-Davos. Who knows… From Spring maybe they will start to bear fruit as well!
- Finally, Trump’s strong promotion of the idea that, by whatever means, the US will annex Greenland has produced a backlash among several European far-right parties that enjoy the support of MAGA and the official support of the US government (see the reference to European “patriotic parties” in America’s national security strategy, published late last year). Of course, in Europe’s ‘sovereignist-populist stud farm’ there are individuals who allowed themselves to be exploited – the AUR-George Simion episode with the cake in the shape of Greenland, decorated with the US flag, is a good example, with the episode serving both Trumpism and Putinism. And if Trump’s bluster with Greenland has already had a first boomerang effect among most extremists in Europe, what happened in Davos will only amplify the initial effect. Trump left the famous forum with his tail between his legs, and this cannot be ignored. Among virile extremists, the loss of virility is a cardinal sin. And Trump, politically speaking, was emasculated at Davos.
- Of course, there is also the NATO aspect. Trump tore into the Allies not only with reproaches based on fake news, but also with naked insults. He went so far as to tarnish the memory of the European soldiers who fell in Afghanistan alongside American soldiers. He crossed a red line that he lacked the intellect not to violate. And once he violated it, it will become clear over time that he lacks the political tools to mitigate the damage as well. Of course, in this world there are bootlickers and sycophants willing to suck up to Trump. But from what could be observed, they aren’t that many of them, perhaps limited only to the territory of Romania.
- Finally, Trump had the opportunity to see that Europe exists, has enough power to confront him in essential issues and at the same time learns quickly. I wrote about the European potential for retaliation, one Trump profoundly misunderstood, a few days ago, and the dynamics in the Greenland saga suggest the argument is valid.
- Trump promised to help protesters in Iran if the mafia and criminal regime kills people. He didn’t. I wrote about my suspicion here.
- And the caricature of his Board of Peace Council has been filled only with autocrats and non-golden leaders, to keep the Trumpist vocabulary.
Donald Trump is probably the least traveled rich man although he has at his disposal a private plane, a private fleet of helicopters, even a superyacht. Of course, Donald Trump travels a lot: only he does it strictly from one rally to another and between his residences in the US and Europe.
He has never had an authentic contact with the world and that’s why he has no idea how the world works, how broad, nuanced and complicated it is.
In his own way, Donald Trump lives in his own world – a geographically narrow, culturally non-existent one which is devoid of basic reading.
Trump’s failure in Davos, on Greenland, is undoubtedly also linked to this vast deficit of knowledge. And what is his big weakness, becomes an obvious advantage for those he collides with.
This is the Donald so far. Not only the recent past is a problem, but the near future could also become a problem.
There are at least two areas that represent vulnerabilities: the ICE militia on immigration line, and the Supreme Court debates on tariffs.
Less than three weeks ago, ICE militia killed an innocent woman, who had children of which the youngest was six. ICE militia later arrested a five-year-old child, cruelly using him as bait to capture his mother.
In addition to these two incidents, there has been a lot of ICE abuse against downtrodden people and others who had not even broken the law.
Polls suggest that Americans are growing rapidly disillusioned with this Putinist-Hitlerist use of the ICE militia by the Trump administration. In a year of crucial congressional elections, only the small minded can imagine that such behavior will bring political benefits.
Last but not least, the Supreme Court is about to decide the fate of the tariffs imposed by Trump on a host of countries.
If the judges validate the tariffs, America will be seen as a country deeply entrenched in a zone of systemic lawlessness.
If, on the other hand, the court partially or totally invalidates Trump’s tariffs, then the effect could be seismic. Not only will it force the U.S. government to repay huge sums of money, but it will also politically dismantle Trump’s economic philosophy and throw away his promise to the MAGA people that foreign investment will flow into America like milk and honey in the Golden Age.
Because if the Supreme Court undermines Trump’s tariffs to any extent, no CEO or shareholder in this world will relocate to the US- because they wouldn’t have to.
Donald Trump is today at his lowest point with the prospect of things getting worse.
As in the case of Putin, in the case of Trump, it is friends, not just enemies, who dream of his statue collapsing. And they have just become more numerous.
