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How will the Trump presidency influence elections in Europe?
Carl Bildt, former prime minister of Sweden and co-chair of the European Council on Foreign Relations, shares his perspective on European politics from Stockholm, Sweden.
How do you believe that the Trump presidency will influence elections in Europe?
Well, of course we don't know. But what we've seen during the last week with important elections in Canada and Australia, not Europe, but fairly similar in other ways, is that the Trump factor has been very important. It has boosted the incumbent governments. It has boosted the center-left. It has boosted those who are seen as standing up to American pressure, and thus produced results both in Canada, primarily in Canada, but also in Australia. Very different from what practically everyone expected a couple of months ago.
Europe, different place. But still we have two important elections coming up, within slightly more than 10 days. We have the first round of the presidential election in Poland. That's very important for the future possibilities of the Tusk government to continue reforming that particular country. And we have the second round of the presidential election in Romania. An important country often forgotten. But there of course, we had gross interference from Russia and TikTok, and a candidate was banned. In both of these cases, we see the Trump presidency acting. They received, in the White House the other day, the opposition candidate. The extreme right nationalist opposition candidate the other day. And they've been making distinct noises in favor of the same political alternative in Romania. Will this backfire in the way it did in Canada, Australia? Remains to be seen. Very important elections both of them. Watch this space.
French President Emmanuel Macron shakes hands with US President-elect Donald Trump as he arrives for a meeting at the Elysee Palace in Paris as part of ceremonies to mark the reopening of the Notre-Dame de Paris Cathedral, in Paris, on Dec. 7, 2024.
The Trump Show, Season II
A senior Ukrainian official said Zelensky and Trump discussed "some key conditions" for ending the war with Russia but gave no details. On his Truth Social account, Trump posted “Zelenskyy and Ukraine would like to make a deal and stop the madness. There should be an immediate ceasefire and negotiations should begin.”
Then, on Sunday, NBC aired Trump’s first post-election interview, taped earlier at Trump Tower in New York. Speaking to Kristen Welker on “Meet the Press,” Trump pledged sweeping Day-One actions, from pardoning Jan. 6 rioters to deporting millions of undocumented immigrants. On birthright citizenship? He’d end it. On tariffs? Americans might pay more for goods, but “I can’t guarantee tomorrow.”
On his political enemies? No time for retribution. Instead, he’s focused on “Drill baby drill.” Trump also refused to concede the 2020 election. When asked why he didn’t think Democrats fixed the 2024 vote, he quipped that it was “too big to rig.” Yuuuuge.
How Trump shook up American democracy — & nearly severed ties with Europe
Ian Bremmer discusses US politics and the upcoming midterm elections with DC power couple Susan Glasser and Peter Baker. Glasser is a Washington columnist for the New Yorker, and Baker is the chief White House correspondent for the New York Times. They recently co-authored a new book about the Trump presidency.
The conversation, which for the first time in the show's history was recorded in front of a live studio audience, looks at the key issues in the midterm election and the Trump factor. Baker and Glasser had planned to become foreign correspondents in 2020, but because of Trump's win decided to stay in DC. Even out of office, they say Trump still looms large over the GOP, and continues to influence US politics like an "active crime scene."
The journalists also discuss Vladimir Putin, who was the subject of one of their previous books, and the Trump-Putin bromance; the two men share more in common than might immediately meet the eye.
This interview was featured in a GZERO World episode: US votes as democracy is under attack
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