Trump gets Europe completely wrong, here's why
Trump’s National Security Strategy—What He Gets Wrong About "European Greatness"
I am totally obsessed with Donald Trump's national security strategy because of what he gets wrong in his section on "Promoting European Greatness." I think he's doing a lot of great things and I understand where he's coming from—except when it comes to his European Union policy. I am going to dissect this piece by piece and explain to you why he is so wrong.
The Myth of Stagnation: Looking Backward, Not Forward
The section on promoting European greatness begins by sounding almost okay. It claims American officials are used to thinking of European problems in terms of insufficient military spending and economic stagnation.
But here is the problem: by the time this was published, insufficient military spending had become a thing of the past. If Trump's advisers were following the recent proposals, they would see that Europe has boosted—even catapulted—its military efforts. As for economic stagnation, the EU is already actively dealing with it. While the statistic that Europe’s share of global GDP has dropped from 25% to 14% is a fact (one Mario Draghi cited), it’s a problem Europe is already moving to remedy. You can't look to the past; you have to look to the future.
"Civilization Erasure": A Heavy-Duty Term
He writes: "But this economic decline is eclipsed by the real and more stark prospect of civilization erasure." That is a heavy-duty term. He argues that the EU and other transnational bodies undermine political liberty and sovereignty.
Let's talk about sovereignty. He believes the crux of the issue is nations handing over power to Brussels. But think of the 50 US states; we handed our sovereignty to a federal government. The European nation-states are doing the same, though they currently hold much more of their national policy than US states do. This is a federalist trajectory that has been evolving for decades. He is 30 years too late to stop this.
The Migration Myth vs. Reality
The NSS claims migration is "transforming the continent and creating strife." While it creates strife, the idea that it is "overrunning" or "erasing" European identity is not accurate. In my travels to Europe, I see very distinct national identities—distinct cultures that aren't being erased.
Furthermore, he claims the continent will be "unrecognizable in 20 years" due to plummeting birth rates and unregulated immigration.
Regulatory Suffocation and the Prophetic Horizon
Trump calls for Europe to "abandon its failed focus on regulatory suffocation."
Who is advising him? This is a very narrow, inaccurate view that ignores the portfolios of the Commission, the Parliament, and the actual documents on the table. Most importantly, it ignores the prophetic.
The Book of Daniel and Revelation point to a very powerful Europe at the end of time. Just as Julius Caesar’s Republic led to Augustus’s Empire, the Europe of today is evolving into that final, powerful depiction. Everything is in place. It may be happening slowly, but it is happening.