German magazine Der Spiegel called for Germany’s political leaders to form a continental alliance against President Donald Trump.
In an op-ed published Sunday, Klaus Brinkbaumer describes Trump as a “pathological liar,” “racist,” and “tyrant.” Trump is cast a modern iteration of Nero, “the emperor and destroyer of Rome.”
Trump’s chief political adviser Stephen K. Bannon is described as joining Trump thought “contempt … for science and education.” Both Bannon and Trump are cast as negligent due to their “disdain for climate [change] and environmental policies.”
Contemporary globalization requires growing international governance, argues Brinkbaumer, with Trump and Bannon posing a direct threat to this supposedly preferable global order status quo:
Among the things that counted as true progress during the 20th century were multilateralism and free trade. The world has become so complex that no single country can solve the major problems on its own — that was our recognition. Organizations like the United Nations, the World Trade Organization, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, NATO and the EU were all created for this reason. None of these organizations is perfect, but they are what we launched — and we do need them. Bannon now wants to wipe them away, and either Trump is executing Bannon’s intentions or he shares them.
“Nationalism and xenophobia,” writes Brinkbaumer, are being deployed by “demagogues” like Trump and Bannon. He frames the “America First” slogan as deceptively portraying America as a victim.
“German democracy,” continues Brinkbaumer, “is ideologically antithetical to Trump’s vision.” He alleges that German “right-wing extremists are trying to give [Trump] a helping hand.”
European governments, including the European Union, contends Brinkbaumer, must unify in political opposition against Trump’s vision of a more decentralized global structure of governance.
Last week’s cover of Der Spiegel depicted Trump decapitating the Statue of Liberty, presumably implying a betrayal of the statue’s mantra.
BERLIN, GERMANY – FEBRUARY 05: The cover of the February 4, 2017 edition of German weekly news magazine ‘Der Spiegel’ depicts an artist’s drawing showing U.S. President Donald Trump holding the severed head of the Statue of Liberty on February 5, 2017 in Berlin, Germany. The drawing, by Cuban-born artist Edel Rodriguez, has ignited controversy, with crisitcs both in Germany and the U.S. claiming it is too provocative. (Photo by Sean Gallup/Getty Images)
Read the entire op-ed at Der Spiegel.
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