Trump Tells Europe to Put on Its Big Boy Pants: Europe Throws a Tantrum.
The White House released a new strategy document, and thereby immediately unleashed a meltdown and freak out in Europe. Why? Well, for one thing, the document prioritizes the Western Hemisphere, then Asia, and then-and only then-Europe. Most provocatively, it puts the onus for protecting Europe on–get this–Europe!: “We want to support our allies in preserving the freedom and security of Europe, while restoring Europe’s civilizational self-confidence and Western identity.”
The nerve!
Europe’s reaction has given new meaning to the term “schizo.”
So on the one hand, the US is dismantling the security apparatus that has kept Europe peaceful for 80 years thereby leaving the continent vulnerable to the predatory Russians, but on the other hand, Europe is an economic colossus. Er, shouldn’t economic colossuses be able to defend themselves?
You see, they are so awesome that we need them more than they need us:
And they’re so sick of us.
But how dare we leave them to their own devices???
I can assure you that M. Hoez (not hoes!) (he of the .eu email address) definitely does not understand how few fucks Americans give, and are in fact totally on board with curing his sickness by saying hasta la vista, baby!
The threat of which is what set of these tirades. Seriously–reading X posts from Europeans is not recommended, unless you want to get vertigo. How dare you leave! Fine! Go! Good riddance!
Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau contributed to the hysteria:
His post makes clear that the US views Europe as dysfunctional, and that we cannot continue to enable this dysfunction. But addressing the dysfunction would require Europe to change its suicidal economic and environmental and immigration polices, and its anti-democratic, anti-liberty policies.
Alas, these policies are near and dear to the EU ruling class and its apparatchiks, like M. Hoez.
Fine. You have a choice. We’ve made the choice clear. If you want to do things your way, you’re on your own. If you want our assistance, change your ways.
My only criticism of Mr. Landau is he gives NATO too much credit. Their pious proclamations of “Transatlantic unity” are purely self-serving attempts to perpetuate their free riding on the US. It’s insincere. Keeping the grift going.
Europe clearly does not want to change its ways and it wants us to protect it anyways.
Sorry. The Free Ride is over.
This all takes place against the background of Ukraine, where the Trump administration is trying to end the war on less than perfect but more than realistic terms. Clearly, the Europeans (including the British) don’t want the war to end, almost certainly because they want Russia tied down so they don’t have to fight it themselves. So they are continuing the pattern set by Boris Johnson of persuading Zelensky to hold out, pledging their undying support. (Meaning they won’t die, but Ukrainians will).
Starmer, Merz, and Macron (average approval rating around 20 percent) have formed a troika to seduce Zelensky.
That’s an insult. To the Three Stooges.
It is exactly this sort of thing that drives this administration further from Europe. A few days ago Rubio called out Macron et al for almost derailing cease fire talks in Gaza through their meddling, and said that they are having the same effect in Ukraine. Which I believe is exactly their intention.
Meanwhile, it is abundantly clear that the US is squeezing Zelensky hard. When the NYT runs articles highlighting the at most one degree of separation between Zelensky and massive corruption, it is the equivalent of putting a horse’s head in his bed. (And what’s with the NYT these days? First it totally discredits the WaPo’s double tap story. Then it runs a damning story on the Democrats’ and Euro’s pet–whom Trump despises. Usually if Trump goes one way the NYT goes 180 the other direction).
In brief, Europe is far more trouble to the US than it is worth. Yet it insists on our protection and our deferring to them on matters of national security and economic policy.
And the administration is telling them, bluntly, that those days are over. Hence the lamentations and rending of garments from London to the Elbe and beyond.
The US diplomatic corps should make it its prime purpose in Europe to keep showing, at every opportunity, the clip of German diplomats giggling when Trump warned them of the folly of relying on Russian gas.
Comment by dearieme — December 7, 2025 @ 6:53 pm
“Yet it insists on our protection and our deferring to them on matters of national security and economic policy.”
Correction: A handful of morons on Twitter have insisted on this. Anybody with any sense (or national pride) in Europe has known this moment was coming for *years* and both unsurprised and largely apathetic to this news. In fact, I that see on France24 this morning, a water leak in The Louvre has higher billing than Trump’s supposed “betrayal” of Ukraine.
Like, I don’t get all the hate. If you think Europe is free-riding (and we definitely were), then just… you know… stop paying for it already, instead of whinging about it but never actually doing anything.
Comment by HibernoFrog — December 8, 2025 @ 3:00 am
@Hiberno – absolutely. It’s almost like they maintain the status quo so that they have something to whinge about. Just take all your toys and f*ck off home. It’ll do us both good.
On a related note, over recent years I made a point of asking any US military personnel I happen upon at airshows in the UK etc why they are here i.e. what strategic purpose their forces serve here. Not once have I received a cogent answer. They honestly haven’t a clue.
Comment by David Mercer — December 8, 2025 @ 8:07 am
I keep going back Lord Ismay, NATO was created to, “keep the Americans in, the Germans down, the Russians out”. “Germans down” can easily have meant keep the Continent down , which got the US into two wars and had centuries of warfare. The US was there to replace continent militaries, a fact brought out by the European military was ineffective at dealing with FRY wars in the ‘90s. Withdrawal of US from Europe will not end well, it’ll be years when they are unable to prevent or end another war on the Continent and the UK will be powerless to do a remake of 1940-1942
Comment by The Pilot — December 8, 2025 @ 9:20 am
Appreciate the shout out to the local boy Edgar!
Comment by JC — December 9, 2025 @ 1:12 am
@David: It puts me in mind of an abusive spouse, who complains bitterly but ultimately doesn’t want to leave, because they like having influence over their partner. In particular when their partner is home to many international organisations, two security council votes, two nuclear arsenals and the 2nd or 3rd biggest economic bloc in the world.
So actually, yes, hear us roar, but only economically since our militaries are, for now, relatively minor.
@Pilot: And who do you think, exactly, is going to be having these wars?
Comment by HibernoFrog — December 9, 2025 @ 4:31 am
Every EU action echoes in the book, The Rotten Heart of Europe, written by the late Brendan Connelly in 1998. At heart, they are socialists and totalitarians. You can’t shake off that feudal culture….
Comment by Jeffrey Carter — December 9, 2025 @ 9:51 am
“which got the US into two wars”: the USA got into those wars because, in each case, a President who had campaigned on an anti-war ticket was keen to go to war if he could find an excuse for it. It was sublimely stupid of Hitler to give FDR the excuse he wanted viz declaring war on the USA.
Germans: fine soldiers, stupid strategists.
Comment by dearieme — December 10, 2025 @ 4:19 am
It was amusing earlier in the year when Europe announced their mega defence budget, with the proviso that it would only be spent in Europe, you know, to help us build up domestic strategic capabilities (something else the US has been whingeing about ad nauseum). Cue baby Marco saying that is was unfair that US defence firms would be excluded. Awww poor darling, he doesn’t like it when we play by Uncle Sam’s rules.
Comment by David Mercer — December 10, 2025 @ 2:09 pm