Donald Trump was the most transactional President in American History. More than any other modern Presidential Administration, Trump’s administration lacked a foreign policy. Trump did like specific legislation, tariffs, and treaties. He definitely liked having personal relationships with specific political leaders. But these interests were subject to rapid and unpredictable change. Try as they might, pundits could not figure out which way the political winds were blowing. Even his own staff were often stunned by changes Trump would make in the middle of a speech or conference.
If you are part of the Whitehouse staff and your job is to communicate or carry out Presidential directives, it becomes a bit more difficult if you don’t what the Presidents policies or goals are. Worse yet, Trump was renowned for never taking responsibility for a policy failure, instead, he would attack his own staff or attack the previous President. Usually, this further confused what he wanted to be accomplished. The environment was so confusing and toxic, that Whitehouse staff had an unprecedented 92% turnover.
If the staff INSIDE of the Whitehouse was confused about what Trump (and America?) wanted, consider the confusion in other nations. With far less understanding of US culture, it was easy to misread what Trump said and Tweeted. No other President before Trump made such extensive use of social media, especially Twitter. While it is arguable that direct use of social media made Trump’s inner thinking more transparent to America (and the world), Trump’s Twitter style was usually “shoot from the hip”, poorly written messages, sent out at 3 AM. In the highly sensitive world of International Politics, a single word…. especially a word from the most powerful politician in the world… can collapse a government or start a war. Delicacy and carefully thought-out analysis were never Trump’s strengths.
Because Trump leapfrogged the normal political process, he had no experience with international policy. Instead, he fell back on the skills and abilities that made him successful as a New York real estate developer. But Trump Inc. was a one-man show. There was little in the way of structure, and no one in the organization had the right to say no to Trump. This was the ONLY model that Trump was comfortable with… Trump commands, and others comply. Occasionally, a sufficiently inflexible individual like Donald Trump does rise up that can gain compliance from the Senate and Congress, but that power ends at the border. Other world leaders are usually not very happy to receive orders from the U.S. How has Trump’s style of management impacted America’s relationship with the world?
Relationships: Executive Trump rarely involved himself in negotiations with regulators, agencies, or coalitions. Trump de-emphasized the value of the State Department and other channels of diplomacy, and instead preferred to have direct relations with world leaders. Yet, Trump was notoriously for refusing to read briefing documents. Instead, he went on gut instincts. Without a deep understanding of International agreements and policies, and given his strong resistance to having his “personal” meetings recorded, further complicated the ability of his administration to carry out his intended policies. A wrong word or two between two world leaders could unravel a century of diplomatic work.
Coalitions: Trump prefers a handshake to a complex agreement. But international agreements are far more complex today than a century ago. They require complex measurements, monitoring, and many other conditions. That’s why Washington has tens of thousands of regulators and lawyers to manage these negotiations. But Trump distrusted coalitions and joint negotiations. Trump saw complex negotiations as opportunities to be ripped off. He pulled America out of the Paris Accord (environment), dropped the Trans-Pacific Partnership (economy), refused to honor Nato’s Article 5 (mutual military protection), left the World Health Organization (after a disagreement about COVID), and threatened to de-fund the United Nations unless they agreed to follow his policies. Trump clearly communicated that he was disengaging America from world organizations and issues. America’s friends… and enemies… heard that message.
Commitments: A nation’s global power is reflected in how that nation honors International Treaties and agreements. Trump, however, did not feel bound by previous agreements. Consider how Trump unilaterally canceled the Iranian nuclear disarmament agreement (JCPOA). However, the agreement was also signed by China, France, Germany, Russia, the UK, and the European Union. And the agreement forbids any individual from leaving or canceling the agreement without mutual consent. Worse still, Trump had just signed off on Iran’s full compliance with the agreement. Our allies began to think about how they can partner with America if agreements change every time we have an election. American power was diminished,
America First: To quote Donald Trump, “My foreign policy will always put the interests of the American people and American security above all else. It has to be first. Has to be.” But when America gets the best of every agreement… why would foreign nations continue to sign treaties? If America is to remain the greatest superpower in the world, we need many agreements with many nations. Diplomacy is often about winning in one agreement and giving away something in another agreement. We just need to be satisfied with the totality of agreements. If Trump’s International policy is remembered for anything, it may be his tariff policy. But Trump’s tariffs were unilaterally imposed, ignoring both international policies, and by , is know for anything, the other side of an agreement doesn’t occasionally get something they want, they will soon stop making agreements with you.
Conclusion: President Trump lacked international, political, and diplomatic experience. And he had no interest in playing traditional politics. Frequent and explosive changes in policy confused his own staff, and the world. Whatever Trump’s intention, his lack of a clearly articulated American International policy, and his repeated statements about America’s diminishing interest in global affairs, made it clear that America was stepping back from the rest of the world. In his speech to the United Nations in 2018, Trump stated, “We reject globalism and embrace the doctrine of patriotism… The U.S. (rejects) global governance, control and domination.”
For years President Trump told the world that America will play a smaller role on the world stage, especially where violence and conflict could lead to “forever wars”. By unending America’s commitments to international agreements and institutions, allies and enemies alike have been considering how to adapt to match this new world order.
Only Vladimir Putin knows what his motivations are, but for decades the UN, NATO, and other international bodies have told us that the forces of dictatorship around the world are waiting for sins of weakness to expand their power. Unlike Trump, Putin was a Cold War warrior and follows the old “world as a chessboard ” view of international politics. Did Putin see Trump’s actions as an opportunity to expand on his 2014 gains in Crimea?
What do you think? Let us know!