The quiet, low-key civility was a shock to the senses after an 18-month campaign of hateful rhetoric to elect the 45th President of the United States. Some questioned the hypocrisy of the gracious words of congratulation offered by both Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama to Donald Trump.

Others felt relief as it was apparent that a peaceful and civilized transition of power is taking place in Washington, especially since Donald Trump had asserted that the election was rigged. The U.S. Election Project estimates the 56.9 per cent Americans who did vote, voted in secret, without intimidation and in an efficient fashion. The peoples’ voice was heard, loud and clear.

Until Inauguration Day, Jan. 20, 2017, the transition of power should offer a much needed pause in political wars. While campaigns are about egos and partisan behaviour, the actual taking of office with the eventual swearing of oaths, creates an awed awareness of responsibility and accountability. It is no longer about you. It is no longer about your party. It is now about the country.

The tradition in Canada is much less showy — we never see an outgoing and incoming Prime Ministers shake hands in a photo. Generally, a defeated Prime Minister slips away quietly from office as Stephen Harper did in 2015. Pierre Elliott Trudeau chose a different exit when he roared off in his Mercedes Benz. But whatever the exit, the professionalism of transition remains. PMO offices are emptied within days, ready for their new occupants.

And so, change begins with a recalibration of issues and personalities between the U.S. and Canada and more widely, between the United States and the world.

Some changes will be glaringly obvious. In spite of a call of congratulations to the incoming president, Justin Trudeau and Donald Trump will likely not have the friendly “bromance” that was evident between Trudeau and Obama. That is fine. A simple professional relationship is all that is necessary between a prime minister and a president.

Our Liberal majority government must now use diplomacy, not necessarily friendships, as it learns to negotiate with a massive trifecta of Republican power. For the moment, the White House, the House of Representatives and the Senate are all controlled by Republicans. Mid-term elections are not held till 2018, which will allow all 435 seats in the House of Representatives, along with 33 Senate seats and 36 governorships to be challenged.

But while Canadians are concerned with trade issues and policy differences, the President-elect has many other flanks to monitor.

The divide within his own borders (he was not quite able to capture the popular vote) will dog him constantly. With the nomination of at least one new Supreme Court justice over the next few years, Trump has promised to put forward the name of a conservative, “pro life” judge, potentially turning the clock back for women. Reopening the abortion debate cannot help but mix toxic, divisive politics with strong emotions.

A further challenge will be Trump’s own global reputation and by extension, the reputation of the United States. Gender issues, racist remarks and targeting of individuals by ethnicity know no borders. Protests and demonstrations are likely to greet him at every international gathering.

And then there is his lack of experience with any kind of foreign policy issue. Syria is a heartbreaking shambles. Britain has voted to leave the European Union, (a decision Trump supported), causing economic confusion and political uncertainty. Other important elections in France and Germany are soon to be held.

President Trump may, however, find a natural home with other right wing parties and authoritarian leaders like Putin — a chilling thought.

Pippa Norris, from the Harvard’s Kennedy School, notes that across Europe, the average share of the vote in national and European parliamentary elections under extreme right-wing leaders has more than doubled since the 1960s, from around 5.1 per cent to 13.2 per cent at the expense of centre parties. For progressives, this rise in extreme right-wing ideology rekindles worrying thoughts of earlier times, when freedoms were curtailed and voices were silenced.

The phrase “a new world order” is a conspiracy theory meaning that somewhere, a group of powerful, anonymous people are controlling the world like master puppeteers. It signifies a massive turning point in power. Already, journalists have been describing Trump’s election as ushering in a new world order, an order that could also upend NATO and return Putin into the fold of the G8.

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Prepare for turbulence. At this point, it would be almost calming to think of a new world order, because, even after a peaceful transition, the short term appears to be the opposite — disorder.

Penny Collenette is an adjunct professor of law at the University of Ottawa and was a senior director of the Prime Minister’s Office for Jean Chrétien.

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