Experts Tell CNN Europeans See Trump as ‘Profoundly Corrupt’ And Are In ‘Disbelief’ a Candidate Standing Trial Could Win
Christiane Amanpour interviewed two experts this week about how U.S. allies, particularly in Europe, view Donald Trump’s trial and his potential return to the White House.
Amanpour first asked the American Enterprise Institute’s top defense expert, Kori Schake, for her impressions of how the U.S. is viewed internationally right now.
“Kori, can I ask you first, since I assume you’re getting a lot of questions as an American overseas about what’s going on? I’m sure about the election, but can we first ask whether just this trial is raising any questions from people you meet in Taiwan and on the road?” Amanpour questioned.
“Oh, of course, it’s raising questions, and it’s a reminder of the chaos premium that Donald Trump brings with him into American politics, because it’s a reminder both for American voters and for allies, that the former president doesn’t appear to have any actual principles to help guide and anticipate his decisions, and that he’s profoundly corrupt,” replied Schake.
“Well, you know, you say that with a sigh of sadness. I understand what you’re saying, and I just wonder. I’m going to ask Nathalie as well whether his, you know, assault on the democratic institutions every day, going in and out of the court and essentially denigrating the independent judiciary and calling it a witch hunt. I just wonder how you in Italy, Natalie, are interpreting that and how Italians interpret that?” Amanpour asked her other guest, international affairs expert Nathalie Tocci.
“Well, you know, Christiane, I think. I guess the first reaction is really disbelief. I mean, it seems absolutely incredible that someone with the number of indictments that Donald Trump has, and that we’ll be spending the next, you know, few months in and out of court, and who may well end up being convicted, for criminal charges could end up being president again,” Tocci replied, adding:
Yeah. I think there’s a sort of fundamental lack of understanding of how this could actually even be possible. So I think, you know, disbelief is probably like the first reaction. And then, of course, there’s a lot of concern because it is clear that what is happening in the United States is only going to increase that polarization further. And the more polarized America becomes, the greater the isolationist instincts. You know, more likely those are going to prevail. And, of course, as you were saying, we’ve already seen how this is playing out on absolutely crucial questions, such as the war in Ukraine. And again, you know, we can only imagine that more of this is going to happen in the weeks and months ahead.
Later in the discussion, Amanpour asked her guests about how Europeans view a second Trump term. “It’s America’s allies that are going to be mostly on the worried back foot, under another Trump administration. You know, maybe not that he’ll pull out of Daito, but maybe weaken the whole Article Five commitment. Do you hear that worry in Europe, Nathalie?”
“Yes. It’s a huge worry. Which is why what I would say to you. You know, we’re headed now to European elections. I would say that actually, almost regardless of who wins those elections. And, you know, who are the leaders that are going to emerge as a result of those elections? Defense is probably going to be the first priority of the next political institutional cycle in Europe. And that is not so much a question of, you know, right and left and who wins and who loses. It’s simply the consequence of a realization, two years on about time that our continent is at war,” Tocci replied, noting that Europe can’t afford to embrace any kind of isolationism.
Watch the clip above via CNN.
