Since Donald Trump’s second entry as President. His policies and decisions have consistently sparked intense controversy.
His unconventional approach and polarizing policies have left a lasting impact on America and the World, sparking both fervent support and intense opposition.
A good example is Donald Trump’s strange diplomacy with Ukraine’s President, Zelensky. This was nothing short of strange and disastrous. Their meeting at the White House on February 28 lasted only 139 minutes, but the consequences might reverberate across the next few years.
The strange encounter began as soon as Zelensky stepped out of his SUV wearing a military shirt and pants. Trump, never one to miss an opportunity to belittle others, sarcastically remarked, “Oh, you’re all dressed up.” This set the tone for the rest of the meeting, which quickly devolved into a heated argument.
The two leaders were supposed to discuss a minerals deal, but the conversation turned sour when Zelensky questioned Trump’s approach to diplomacy with Russia. Trump, along with his Vice President, JD Vance, rebuked Zelensky, telling him that he should be thanking the president for trying to bring an end to the conflict.
Trump’s compulsion to dominate both allies and enemies seems to have caused him to jettison the negotiation the moment that Zelenskyy declined to show subservience. The meeting, which was ended by Trump with no agreement signed, illustrates why authoritarians are lousy dealmakers, particularly when autocratic instincts are exacerbated by what experts call toxic masculinity.
Toxic masculinity is a version of masculinity that discourages empathy, expresses strength through dominance, normalizes violence against women, and associates leadership with white patriarchy. It devalues behaviours considered to be “feminine” and suggests that the way to earn others’ respect is to accrue power and status.
Trump’s reaction to Zelenskyy in the Oval Office illustrates how these inclinations of Donald Trump, undermine democratic values and make the world a more dangerous place.
Trump staged the public Oval Office meeting with Zelenskyy to showcase his ostensible prowess as – in his words – an “arbitrator” and “mediator.” Trump insisted during the first 40 minutes that “my whole life is deals” and asserted that he has what it takes to make Putin conform to a peace agreement with an embattled Ukraine.
After the meeting, New York Times columnist, Thomas Friedman compared Trump to a mafia don.
This diplomatic debacle raises serious questions about Trump’s ability to navigate complex international relationships. His strange and erratic behaviour has left many wondering what’s next for American foreign policy.
Before his second term began, it was assumed that a president wouldn’t simply refuse to spend billions of dollars already authorized by Congress and deploy a private citizen, like Elon Musk, to obliterate huge government agencies enshrined in US law.
Firing government aid workers living in world hotspots would have been unthinkable. As would disrupting a USAID program credited with saving the lives of millions of HIV/AIDS patients.
No president has ever hatched a plan to force Palestinians from Gaza into Egypt and Jordan, just to propose the takeover of the Homeland of the Palestinians for recreational purposes.
Nor would any conventional American commander-in-chief suggest making support for a fellow democracy like Ukraine, which was invaded by totalitarian Russia, conditional on Kyiv handing over rare earth minerals as payment.
No nation that became the most powerful in history by building a global system in its democratic, capitalist image was hardly expected to assault the free trade system with tariffs or loosen curbs on bribery in foreign business dealings.
Trump has done all this and more, and he argues he’s simply doing what his country wants.
“I have high approval ratings because I’m using common sense,” Trump told reporters a few weeks ago.
The White House claims huge wins in forcing Western Hemisphere countries to take back undocumented migrants, in getting a better deal for US ships in the Panama Canal, in forcing Canada and Mexico to strengthen border security, and in getting Hamas hostages free in Gaza. Some of these victories are real, in part; exaggerated; or illusory. But Trump says it’s the start of his new “Golden Age.”
But Trump’s cowboy style of Presidency comes with huge risks for the US political system and global security.
Domestically, Trump is posing threats to the rule of law on multiple fronts. Many legal analysts believe that the country is heading to an unprecedented constitutional crisis.
Firstly, because the administration has already created so many tests of the rule of law — starting with Trump’s attempt to override the constitutional principle of birthright citizenship — that multiple judges have stepped in to freeze his plans.
And secondly, Trump has proven his contempt for democracy by pardoning hundreds of rioters who tried to keep him in power on January 6, 2021.
Besides, by simply working down his list of government agencies to be wiped out, Trump is ignoring the will of Congress, which has already been expressed with the appropriation of federal funds. The Constitution doesn’t give presidents a choice of whether they enact spending allocated by lawmakers. They are required to do it. The White House is arguing that Trump has a mandate from voters to cut spending and waste.
There are serious fears that Trump plans to ignore the authority of another branch of government — the Judiciary. His administration had failed to reinstate USAID workers who were put on leave as ordered by the courts. A constitutional crisis appears to be looming
Growing fears of a lawless administration are fueled by multiple signs that Trump sees the rule of law as an inconvenience. He, for instance, fired dozens of prosecutors who took part in January 6 cases soon after he returned to the White House.
The prominent role of Musk, the tech pioneer who heads Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency, in shredding vast sectors of the federal government is also alarming ethics experts given the huge government contracts enjoyed by his firms, including SpaceX.
Trump compounded these fears recently with the firing of the head of the Office of Government Ethics, who was only confirmed in his post late last year.
This came as the president granted a full pardon to former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich, who was convicted of multiple charges, including trying to sell a US Senate seat that was once held by Obama.
Trump has tried to splash executive power abroad, too – reiterating that he’s serious about his Gaza relocation plan and forcing Canada to become the 51st state. He views virtually everything through an economic lens.
Many legal experts are concerned that Trump is expanding executive power beyond anything they have known in American history. If the Constitution has one central feature, it is the separation of powers. The Constitution divides power between the states and the federal government, and federal power is divided between the three branches of government – the executive, judicial, and legislative.
Now, Trump appears to be taking over Congress’ core powers, including taxing and spending. Typically, Congress passes a budget, and the president can sign or veto the bill. Once the budget is passed into law, the president cannot refuse to spend the allocated money.
Now, Trump is freezing spending on things he does not support politically, like foreign aid. He also is trying to place new conditions on the disbursement of federal funds as a way to control state and private institutions.
When he fired most USAID employees and froze the agency’s foreign aid payments, he shuttered an entire agency established by Congress.
Aside from Trump deciding to change course, there is not much that can be done. Courts can issue orders, but they do not have the security apparatus and cannot easily enforce them.
Congress has the power to remove the president, via impeachment, however, impeachment is never an easy route.
If the president decides to ignore the courts – and Congress continues to do nothing – It is unfortunate that the final constitutional check on Trump’s power might only come during the next federal election. Until then, the big question will remain who can save America and the world from the unpresidential Brand occupying The Oval Office now?