Europe's Post-Trump Sigh of Relief.

• Author: Engelen, Klaus C.

When the major news networks and the Associated Press declared Joe Biden the winner of the 2020 presidential elections on November 7, there was a big sigh of relief all over Europe, especially in Germany.

But when U.S. President Donald Trump claimed victory in the days following the election and declared that he would ask the U.S. Supreme Court to stop the counting of postal ballots which made up a large portion of the votes, shivers went down the spines of political leaders in Europe. Fundamental principles of democracy were being challenged. It's no wonder that most European leaders dread the prospect of another four years of Trump in the White House.

There were exceptions. Janez Jansa, the prime minister of Slovenia, a member state of the European Union, came forward and congratulated Trump the day after the election, before complete results were available. "It's pretty clear that American people have elected @realDonaldTrump @Mike_Pence for #4moreyears," Jansa tweeted.

Judy Dempsey from Carnegie Europe makes the valid point that "several leaders inside the EU will be delighted by a Trump victory. It would give a real fillip to nationalist, popular leaders, whether in Hungary, in Poland, or in Slovenia.... Trump's illiberal views of democracy, accountability, and the judiciary and his penchant for authoritarian leaders is more to their liking than Europe's values based on the rule of law."

In addition, Dempsey warns: "A Biden presidency will be so preoccupied with domestic issues that the foreign policy agenda--and that includes tackling climate change--will be put on the backburner. The European Union, unless it fundamentally changes the way it functions, will be in big trouble."

Because Hungary and Poland are currently blocking the European Union's own-resources expansion--the [euro]750 billion reconstruction fund to fight the economic and social damage of the Covid-19 crisis--the German EU Council presidency is now struggling with an escalating crisis. The two countries' negotiating goal is to neutralize any impact of a rule-of-law mechanism on their governments. The European Union is facing the bitter reality that it can settle for a smaller recovery fund, or else give up much of the new rule-of-law mechanism to control the billions of euros flowing from Brussels into the questionable projects of political cronies close to the ruling governments.

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