US President Donald Trump (70) has caused some outcry since his inauguration on January 20th. After the initial shock period, European politicians and leaders are becoming more vocal about their disdain for Trumps policies.

The healthy German/American relationship under the leadership of former President Barack Obama (55) and current German Chancellor Angela Merkel (62) is under threat. It will most likely be a test of strength for Merkel, who also faces a national election in September and has been loosing touch with her voters recently.

► BILD spoke to Dr. Philippa Malmgren (54), a former Special Assistant to George W. Bush (70). She served as a financial market advisor to the President in the White House between 2000 and 2002.

She is also the founder of DRPM Group, an economic advisory firm whose clients include investment banks, fund managers and hedge funds as well as Sovereign Wealth Funds, pension funds, global corporations and family offices. Her recent book »Signals: How Everyday Signs Can Help Us Navigate The World's Turbulent Economy« became a best-seller on Amazon.

BILD: How would you define Donald Trumps style of politics?

Malmgren: Donald Trump is the “Uber” of American politics. He is disrupting and displacing the traditional power structures in Washington D.C.. In his inauguration speech he said that he wants to displace Washington itself. He wants to return power to the states and to diminish the power of Washington.



BILD: What implication does that have?



Malmgren: Trump is flattening bureaucracy. He is reducing the amount of people in the bureaucratic system. The few ones that remain will be the ones that share his views. He has disrupted the traditional civil service and technocracy. He has also disrupted the concept of fund raising, as he won the election without spending a lot of money. All the people who were involved in raising money for politics are out of business.



He has displaced the mainstream media, by going directly to Twitter and YouTube, which frankly is making him more popular with his supporters.



He is also displacing diplomacy. Trump talks in a very direct manner and he doesn’t abide by the traditional rules of diplomacy. In his phone call with Malcolm Turnbull (62) of Australia he learned about the humanitarian accord that the US signed up to regarding refugees. But he argues: “I don’t care what we signed; it isn’t serving US interest now.”



He is also disrupting the gentleman’s rules of politics. For example how you get political nominees appointed. He is prepared to let appointees go through with just 51 votes. In the old days one Senator could prevent an appointee from being appointed. He feels his job is to rewrite the rules.



More on the Trump Administration Former Swedish PM to BILD: Lifting US sanctions would be total disregard of the EU Former Swedish PM Carl Bildt warns in BILD of the „grave consequences“ of the rumoured imminent lifting of US sanctions on Russia

Latest US OSCE Ambassador »Trump shouldn't cozy up with Putin Daniel Baer was US Ambassador to the OSCE. In BILD, he explains the Ukrainian turmoil and says how Trump should handle Russia

Auch Interessant



BILD: Will he succeed in his plan?



Malmgren: It is so easy to “hate” Donald Trump and overlook the fact that some of his ideas might do the country good. If you make government smaller and if you reduce regulations and taxes, usually, this is very good for the economy.



His temporary travel ban has provoked a huge emotional reaction. But, It appears that most Americans genuinely favour more process around immigration. This is different from banning immigration completely.



BILD: You advised George W. Bush from 2000 to 2002. His approach must have been very different to Donald Trumps approach?



Malmgren: Very different. But the Europeans also disliked George W. Bush at the time. Now many would beg to have him back, which is fascinating.



The Europeans risk making a major mistake. They want to believe that Trump is not really in charge. It’s the team around him. But, this is not true. The same was said about George W. Bush. People argue that he was a puppet. I didn’t think it was true then and I certainly don’t think it’s true now.

The speed at which Donald Trump sends out his tweets, there isn’t even time for his staff to write them or check them beforehand. He will not be moderated, modified or toned down. He is proceeding at full speed with the views that he thinks are correct.



Berlin, Brandenburg Gate: Many Germans are critical towards Donald Trump and his policies Foto: BILAN/EPA/REX/Shutterstock

BILD: How will the US/German relationship evolve under Donald Trump?



Malmgren: I think that Germany is definitely going to continue to have a problem. In part, because Trump has the view of “you are either with me or against me.” Unlike George W. Bush, who was accused of that also, but in fact did work to try to sway other countries towards his view. He only gave up after trying. Trump has already given up on Europe. Trump distrusts Germany because the country declined to participate in the Five Eyes program, which is Americas most elite intelligence gathering network. Angela Merkel declined.



So Merkel had already made clear where she stands. Donald Trump does not always view her as a friendly ally. He also believes that her immigration policy and her commitment to the EU are not good for the German economy. Therefore he is opposed to her on both fronts even if he respects her.



BILD: Looking at the bigger picture, what will that mean for the European Union?



Malmgren: Donald Trump detests supranational organisations of any kind. He prefers bilateral relationships. He also feels that a big state is hostile to the interest of its citizens, therefore he views the EU as something to oppose.



In addition, the view within his team is that the EU is a highly unstable entity that may not even exist in 18 months, given the debt problems and the way the public is increasingly voting in the same direction as the British (Brexit) and the Americans. We are seeing this voting pattern in most EU countries with support on the rise for Le Pen in France or for new leadership in Germany.



BILD: And that is why he also wants to disrupt Europe?



Malmgren: Exactly. If Trump is the “Uber” of politics, then he wants to help dismantle the entire EU structure. He wants to restore power to the citizens.



BILD: Will Germany be a key country within that power structure to weaken?



Malmgren: Under the current leadership (Angela Merkel), certainly. His view is that Angela Merkel won’t be re-elected. So she is just a temporary hindrance. He may be wrong here, but I would imagine that his team assume that she is loosing touch with voters. Donald Trump probably views Angela Merkel as the Hillary Clinton of Western Europe. So you can imagine that he is going to be hostile to some of her views.



BILD: What role will Russia be playing in the Trump era?

Malmgren: The Obama team viewed Merkel as being more accommodating with Putin than they were comfortable with at times. Now we have Donald Trump who is accommodating Russia in a way that is making Merkel uncomfortable.



US President Donald Trump (70) on the phone with the President of Russia, Vladimir Putin (64) Foto: dpa Picture-Alliance

Trump’s view is that the US has been carrying the defence of Western Europe for many years and the Germans and other EU countries need to pay more. He also argues that the EU countries need to start investing more into their own defence, because the technology gap between the US is widening. The EU can’t keep up with the US anymore. Trump is probably correct here.



Trump is content to let Russia deal with Ukraine and Syria. He says the US has no interest in being in those places. So Trump thinks, he and Putin have a “deal”. But it is also possible that President Putin is thinking: “great, that’s two out of a much longer list.” Trump is confident he can manage Putin. George W. Bush was also, but it didn’t work out that way. Things turned out differently then and may do so now. In contrast, Angela Merkel understands Russia and Putin. It is going to be interesting to see how Germany manages, being caught between these two superpowers now.



PS: Sind Sie bei Facebook? Werden Sie Fan von BILD.de-Politik!