What would a second Trump term mean? Think Jurassic Park

What would a 2nd Trump term mean? Think Jurassic Park | Susan Glasser | Top Risks 2024

From Donald Trump's perspective, what was the biggest mistake of his first term? Appointing folks who turned out to be establishmentarians might be a strong candidate, according to Susan Glasser, staff writer at The New Yorker and co-author of "The Divider: Trump in the White House, 2017-2021."

Based on over 300 interviews with people intimately familiar with Trump's first experience in the White House, she expects a second term will differ in tone and tactics. One source even likened it to the infamous scene in 1993's "Jurassic Park" in which velociraptors learn to open doors.

"That is a pretty scary moment when a very senior US national security official tells you that that's what's going to be happening in Trump's second term," she said while discussing the subject with GZERO in a livestream discussion on January 8 about Eurasia Group's Top Risks for 2024. "Take it seriously."

Watch the full livestream discussion with Ian Bremmer, Cliff Kupchan, Susan Glasser, Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein, Marietje Schaake, and Evan Solomon.

Check out Eurasia Group's 2024 Top Risks report.

More from GZERO Media

Marine Le Pen, French member of parliament and parliamentary leader of the far-right National Rally (Rassemblement National - RN) party and Jordan Bardella, president of the French far-right National Rally (Rassemblement National - RN) party and member of the European Parliament, gesture during an RN political rally in Bordeaux, France, September 14, 2025.
REUTERS/Stephane Mahe

Army Chief Asim Munir holds a microphone during his visit at the Tilla Field Firing Ranges (TFFR) to witness the Exercise Hammer Strike, a high-intensity field training exercise conducted by the Pakistan Army's Mangla Strike Corps, in Mangla, Pakistan, on May 1, 2025.

Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR)/Handout via REUTERS

Field Marshal Asim Munir, the country’s de facto leader, consolidated his power after the National Assembly rammed through a controversial constitutional amendment this month that grants him lifelong immunity from any legal prosecution.

In this episode of Tools and Weapons, Microsoft Vice Chair and President Brad Smith sits down with Ed Policy, President and CEO of the Green Bay Packers, to discuss how purpose-driven leadership and innovation are shaping the future of one of the world’s most iconic sports franchises. Ed shares how technology and community-focused initiatives, from Titletown Tech to health and safety innovations on the field, are transforming not just the game of football, but the economy and culture of Green Bay itself. He explains how combining strategic vision with investment in local startups is keeping talent in the Midwest and creating opportunities that extend far beyond Lambeau Field.

Subscribe and find new episodes monthly, wherever you listen to podcasts.

People walk past a damaged building during the funeral of Hezbollah's top military official, Haytham Ali Tabtabai, and of other people who were killed by an Israeli airstrike on Sunday, despite a U.S.-brokered truce a year ago, in Beirut's southern suburbs, Lebanon November 24, 2025.
REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir

The Israeli military assassinated a senior Hezbollah commander in an airstrike on the Lebanese capital of Beirut on Sunday. The attack killed at least five people overall.

Servicemen of the 148th Separate Artillery Zhytomyr Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine fire a Caesar self-propelled howitzer towards Russian troops at a position on the front line, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, near the frontline town of Pokrovsk in Donetsk region, Ukraine November 23, 2025.
REUTERS/Anatolii Stepanov

After facing backlash that the US’s first 28-point peace deal was too friendly towards Russia, American and Ukrainian negotiators drafted a new 19-point plan on Monday.