If there’s one thing we know for certain about Trump, it’s that he really, really hates the EU. Would he swallow his pride and anger and make nice with the Europeans for the overriding purpose of containing China after the November election? Or would he continue to maintain that the Europeans are just as bad as the Chinese, and double down on “America First?”
Given that the Trump campaign is going to be all about the yellow peril, you would think he would be compelled to pick the first option, but that isn’t necessarily the case. Trump believes that he can concurrently abuse the Europeans and demand their allegiance; all apparent contradictions dissolve in the face of his overwhelming awesomeness. The Europeans, of course, don’t see it that way. At the end of the second term, the EU may well be closer to China on trade issues than to us.