One day after the new U.S. administration came to power, the European Parliament (EP) debated how to respond to Trump’s inauguration and what Europe’s role should be on the changing geopolitical stage. It went exactly as you’d expect, with leftist MEPs acting like they’re the last line of defense against the global rise of authoritarianism while right-wingers celebrated Trump as a symbol of hope for Europe’s conservative revival.
In his opening speech, the European Commission representative—trade and economy chief Maroš Šefčovič—played it safe by refraining from any direct criticism of Trump and expressing eagerness to continue with a good transatlantic relationship.
Straight after that, however, Šefčovič promised a set of further commitments which were all subtle warnings to Trump about where the European Union’s red lines are: continuing to uphold the rules-based international order including the “inviolability of borders” (Greenland); unwavering support for Ukraine “as long as it takes” (pro-ceasefire stance); or safeguarding the integrity of electoral processes (Musk-Weidel interview).
The MEPs were much more direct, however, especially on the left. Most members of the socialist S&D, the liberal Renew, or the Greens were talking about how Trump’s inauguration marks the downfall of American democracy and the greatest threat to the EU’s own, after which Europe has no choice but to isolate itself from the U.S.A. and realize its global liberal agenda alone.
French MEP Majdouline Sbai (Greens) said Trump was a symptom of the “rise of fascism” and “totalitarianism” throughout the West, adding the first step of healing is recognizing your “sickness” and suggesting that Europe should cut itself off from the infection and the build relationships with other countries instead (even though the world beyond the EU sees Trump’s influence as more positive than not).
“We’re in a new era, an era of authoritarian capitalism and social media,” Greek socialist MEP Yannis Maniatis declared, with an even grimmer picture for Europe. “We now stand alone, it’s time to take action separately.” Greens vice-chair Sergey Lagodinsky was of the same opinion, saying the bloc has no other option but “to mature into a united global power” that takes responsibility for the world.
With admirable idealism and a fair bit of delusional naivety, Lagodinsky went on to say that the EU can continue to both finance Ukraine and invest in its own security with or without the U.S.; that it can show the world that “trade is the answer to war and cooperation is the answer to nationalism”—rich, coming after 15 sanction packages against Russia—and that Europe “can be a safe home for all, a white male pensioner and queer IT specialist and her wife” as well.
The liberal Renew suddenly also rediscovered the potential of European greatness, with the group leader Valérie Hayer saying that the EU “had enough of having the younger brother complex” and it was time to stand on its own feet. Not only to pursue its geopolitical interests alone but also to fend off the newest threats coming from America. “Musk, Trump, and their cronies have their own ideological agenda in Europe, they want to undermine our democracies,” she said. “This is a political and ideological fight that we must wage.”
On the other hand, conservatives such as Patriots (PfE) leader Jordan Bardella (RN) or European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) vice-president Carlo Fidanza (FdI) welcomed the opportunity of finally having to focus on European strategic autonomy, which they saw not as being backed into a corner by Trump but as a path toward a building a more pragmatic and egalitarian transatlantic relationship. Remember, the right has been calling for more independence from the U.S.’ foreign policy ever since the war broke out, but these newfound freedom fighters on the left did nothing but deepen Europe’s subordination to Democrat-run Washington for years.
While recognizing that Trump’s ‘America First’ policies are unlikely to coincide with Europe’s general interests, the MEPs celebrated the new administration for giving back hope to conservatives around Europe.
Perhaps the best assessment was given by Gerolf Annemans (Vlaams Belang/PfE), who began by telling his “panicking” leftist opponents that Trump’s presidency does not mean the end of democracy, but “on the contrary, it’s going to be a celebration, even a festival of democracy.”
The only problem, he warned is that Brussels has ruined its reputation in the eyes of the new administration, which sees it as a centralized, planned economy with far too many rules, too much rigidity, and too little room for dealmaking and negotiating, with “a compulsive leftist tendency to restrict the freedom of expression” on top of that.
Put simply, “today’s EU is at odds with the new era that began yesterday on the other side of the Atlantic,” Annemans said.
We, the patriots of Europe, want to join this new era, a new patriotic time that we hope will arrive—country by country, election by election—in Europe as well.
Jorge Buxadé from the Spanish Vox (PfE) also reminded his democracy-morning colleagues that Trump won both the electoral college and the popular vote by far, and achieved spectacular results among every social and demographic group. In contrast, he said von der Leyen became EU Commission president because she won the vote of “all the losers” of the EU elections, such as Macron, Scholz, the Renew, or the Greens. “The victory of Trump is the victory of the people. Of peace over war, and common sense over wokeism,” Buxadé added. “That’s over, the future belongs to patriots.”
The sentiment was echoed by German MEP Christine Anderson (AfD/ESN), who said Trump’s inauguration speech was “a breath of fresh air [that] marks the beginning of a golden age.” She urged Europeans to put an end to the EU robbing its member states of their sovereignty, destroying their economies, and disenfranchising their people:
The sound of freedom ringing throughout the world yesterday should inspire us. Let’s make Europe great again.
