America’s fake European friends
When asked about the confrontation between the U.S. and China, an increasingly totalitarian power without the slightest sympathy for Europe’s PC-world, Merkel responded, “I would very much wish to avoid the building of blocs. I don’t think it would do justice to many societies if we were to say this is the United States and over there is China and we are grouping around either the one or the other.”
Well, sure. When the U.S. saw Europe on one side and the Soviet Union on the other, America chose Europe. That obviously was a mistake since Washington should have avoided “the building of blocs.” It just didn’t do justice to Moscow and its satellite states for America to be “grouping around the one or the other.” Obviously, NATO was a big, long error. Thanks for pointing that out, Angela!
What better evidence is necessary to show that Donald Trump was right to trash the Eurocrats and question America’s commitment to faithless friends who take Washington’s support for granted? Actually, there is better evidence: a new poll from the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR).
ECFR reported,
“Our survey showed that Europeans’ attitudes towards the United States have undergone a massive change. Majorities in key member states now think the U.S. political system is broken, that China will be more powerful than the U.S. within a decade, and that Europeans cannot rely on the U.S. to defend them. They are drawing radical consequences from these lessons. Large numbers think Europeans should invest in their own defense and look to Berlin rather than Washington as their most important partner. They want to be tougher with the U.S. on economic issues. And, rather than aligning with Washington, they want their countries to stay neutral in a conflict between the U.S. and Russia or China.”
America’s political system is broken. Thus say people from countries that have spawned far-right movements, brought hardline parties into government, held repeated inconclusive elections, confronted secessionist pressures, broken off the European Union, repeatedly empowered establishment coalitions, suffered economic collapse, demanded continental financial bailouts, dismantled democratic processes, tolerated extensive corruption, failed to contribute seriously to defense, and whined about the threat posed by Moscow. These people are complaining because Americans elected Donald Trump? Seriously?
The Europeans’ shameless hypocrisy, irresponsibility, disloyalty, ungratefulness, and sanctimony are some of the reasons so many Republicans voted for Trump.
Alas, the poll gives reason after reason why Americans should resist President Joe Biden’s naïve Europhilia. Almost half of Europeans polled believe the world is a worse place after Trump’s presidency. More than a quarter don’t believe Americans can be trusted after Trump’s election. That number runs more than half in Germany and more than a third in Denmark, Sweden, and United Kingdom.
Over half of Europeans believe the U.S. political system is broken. The British take the lead, hitting 81 percent. The Germans, Danes, Dutch, and Swedes follow at 71 percent, 71 percent, 68 percent, and 67 percent, respectively. Only the Poles and Hungarians fall under a third.
When asked to join America in confronting China, most Europeans are not interested. Why not? Well, who wants to go with a loser? An amazing 59 percent believe that within a decade China will be the stronger power. These true believers hit 79 percent in Spain, 72 percent in Portugal, 72 percent in Italy, 62 percent in France, and 58 percent in the UK. Germany comes in at “only” 56 percent. Poland, Denmark, and Hungary run just under half, at 49 percent, 48 percent, and 48 percent.
These numbers highlight how few real friends America has in Europe.
