Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) agree that Europe needs a wake-up call following the election of Donald Trump in the United States, but while lawmakers on the left reacted hysterically, arguing that “fascism” is returning to the U.S., right-wing MEPs celebrated the return of Trump to the White House as signalling an end to the woke “madness” and pro-migration agenda of the Joe Biden-led administration.
The plenary session of the European Parliament (EP) in Strasbourg on Wednesday, November 13th, gave way to a debate on the future of EU-U.S. relations following Republican Donald Trump’s victory in the presidential election.
The leaders of EU member states had already discussed at their meeting in Budapest last week what a Trump presidency would look like for Europe. They agreed that Trump would look out for American interests first, and likely pursue a more isolationist, non-interventionist foreign policy, as well as a protectionist economic policy, with the potential of imposing tariffs on European goods.
While the European leaders were more pragmatic and realistic in their reactions to the election results, the plenary session of the European Parliament was a much more lively encounter, with left-wing MEPs going over the top in their scaremongering speeches.
The session was kicked off by Josep Borrell, the EU’s outgoing foreign affairs chief, who said that the EU must “take its destiny into its own hands.”
The coming decades will undoubtedly be shaped by Trump’s actions and the consequences. I’m not going to speculate on what he might do, but I will say that we need to be ready for what could happen. Calmly, vigilantly, but without creating the impression that we are paralysed, like a deer in the headlights.
He said that Trump’s dealings with Ukraine, the Middle East, and China will impact European foreign policy, and emphasised that Trump’s election “should serve to make us fully understand the need to strengthen our security and take our fate into our own hands.”
Polish MEP Andrzej Halicki of the centre-right European People’s Party said that the elections in the U.S. don’t change the fact that Europe must be responsible for taking care of itself, including strengthening its own security and protecting its external common borders. “Europeans must feel safe and we are responsible for it,” he stressed.
Jordan Bardella, the president of the French right-wing National Rally and the leader of the sovereigntist Patriots for Europe (PfE), the third largest group in the EP, welcomed the election of Trump and urged Europe to follow in his footsteps by defending the interests of EU nations. He added that while the U.S. will protect itself against unfair competition and start reducing taxes and regulations, the EU is trapped by the punitive, regulatory, and ideologically driven manoeuvres of the EU institutions.
Nicola Procaccini, the co-chairman of the European Conservatives and Reformists group said Trump’s victory is cause for celebration and a chance for Europe to strengthen NATO’s European pillar and revitalise European competitiveness “without hampering it with the ideological excesses of recent years.”
Austrian right-wing MEP Harald Vilimsky (Patriots for Europe) said the Americans had clearly expressed their desire to get rid of the woke and LGBT “madness” and the excesses of multiculturalism and illegal migration, and that the results have to be respected by Europe.
Referring to Trump’s bid to end the war between Ukraine and Russia, Vilimsky’s Hungarian colleague Kinga Gál said that “a new chapter in transatlantic relations is finally opening,” and “now there is a chance for the destructive war raging in our neighbourhood to end as soon as possible.”
The majority of people overseas, as well as in Europe in June, voted for change. The voters said no to the policies of the liberal elite. The patriotic parties that stand on the side of peace, oppose illegal migration, and support families have gained strength.
Left-wing MEPs were clearly not delighted with the triumphalistic tone of the Right.
Greek socialist MEP Giannis Maniatis said the transatlantic relationship will “probably not be calm at all,” because of Trump’s “contempt for international law and multilateral organisations such as the United Nations.” The lawmaker envisioned a new trade war with the U.S. and warned that Europe has to be prepared to take measures to protect its economy.
French MEP Valérie Hayer, leader of the liberal Renew group, said Europe has to prepare for the possibility of the U.S. cutting aid to Ukraine, meaning the EU will have to strengthen its own security and step up its support of Ukraine, which is “right at our doorstep, where Putin is waging his war.”
Terry Reintke, the German leader of the Greens group, was even more alarmist, stating that Trump would not only do “massive damage” to the citizens of Europe but to the rest of the world, too. “But just because he poses aggressively, doesn’t mean he scares us,” she added, stating that the EU must become stronger in the areas of competitiveness, jobs, and climate change.
MEP Martin Schirdewan of the Left group went as far as claiming that the U.S. would be turned into an “oligarchy”, an “authoritarian” and “fascist” state under Trump. He warned that the EU is not prepared for this new era, and “we now need investments in the future, in good jobs and strong public services.”
