Donald Trump is an autocrat. And his actions undermine the rule of law and encourages other political leaders to follow his autocratic example
- Autocrats are more likely to enjoy short-term success, especially for themselves as individuals. But by undercutting the law they create instability which spells long-term disaster for the rest of us
By Tom Arms
Trump’s bombing of Iran and the NATO summit mark the beginning of a new era in international relations.
They were both a ‘political success ‘for the American president.
They were also both a disaster for international law and the rules-based order that has underpinned the longest period of peace and prosperity in world history.
We have now entered an age of strong man politics where laws and political outcomes are determined not by legal precedence and a sense of equality and justice, but by the strength of the political leader and the country they lead. In short, might is right.
Many argue that it has always been thus. To a large degree they are right. But since the end of World War Two the establishment of international structures, law, alliances, global trade and treaties have acted as a brake on unfettered power. Trump has dismantled—or is in the process of dismantling—the post-war world order and removing the brake.
Let’s start with the bombing of Iran. Depriving Iran of the ability to have a nuclear bomb is a good thing. Iran is a dangerous ideologically-driven rogue state. However, the way in which the bombing was organized was another nail in the coffin of international law.
Read: The Uncertainty in the Aftermath of the U.S. Bombing in Iran
Read: There was no attempt to secure international backing for the attack. There was no attempt to even secure domestic or congressional or bipartisan backing for the attack.
Donald Trump did not try for a UN Security Council resolution. He did not consult with his NATO allies. It is debatable whether or not he should have sought a declaration of war from Congress as the constitution stipulates. But he should have at least conferred with the senior members of both parties in the House of Representatives and Senate. He didn’t.
He did not do any of the above. Trump supporters will argue that timing and the need for secrecy dictated otherwise. They are wrong. The threatened action was well-known and the president had given himself a two-week window of action. The fact is, Trump is a unilateralist who acts when and how he wants to without regard to the law or convention.
The NATO summit was a different example of the tectonic shift in international relations. Europe has always looked to the United States for leadership. The US has the economic power, political clout and nuclear arsenal. But successive presidents have endeavoured to insure that alliance decisions were reached collectively. This is because positions with the widest possible agreement have the greatest chance of success.
The European members of NATO need to increase their defense spending. A resurgent Russia is again threatening. China is rising. The Old World has been riding on American military coattails for too long. But that did not mean that the alliance needed to abandon its collective decision-making. NATO’s decision this week to increase defense spending to five percent of GDP by 2035 was not the result of a careful consideration and debate. It was the result of being bullied by Donald Trump.
European (and Canadian) NATO has agreed to the spending increase because Donald Trump threatened to pull out of the Alliance if they didn’t. And if Trump withdrew America from NATO, Europe would lose the protection of 100,000 US troops and the American nuclear umbrella.
What was particularly sad was the way European NATO bent the knee to the American president. Trump’s 24-hour attendance bore no resemblance to a visit by a military partner. It was more like a Roman emperor collecting tribute from conquered people.
Europe and Canada have ten years to reach the five percent target. That should be enough time. When they do, they will have the defensive capacity to dispense with the US. This will not be in America’s interest as its leadership of NATO has been a major weapon in its diplomatic arsenal.
NATO and Iran are only two examples of Donald Trump’s disregard bordering on contempt for the law. Other prominent examples are his refusal to accept the 2020 presidential election. This badly undermined faith in the American electoral process. Then there is the pardoning of the January 6 Capitol Hill rioters. Add to that, his attempts to avoid justice by constantly delaying attempts to bring him to trial for various offenses. Don’t forget Trump’s 34 felony convictions. Finally, there is his disregard for Congress in issuing executive orders which dismantled the US Agency for International Development and other congressionally-mandated government debates.
Donald Trump is an autocrat. And each of his political successes—Iran, NATO DOGE, immigration…undermines the rule of law and encourages other political leaders to follow his autocratic example.
Autocrats are more likely to enjoy short-term success, especially for themselves as individuals. But by undercutting the law they create instability which spells long-term disaster for the rest of us.
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Tom Arms is foreign editor of Liberal Democrat Voice. He is also a regular contributor to The New World (formerly The New European) and the author of “The Encyclopedia of the Cold War” and “America Made in Britain.”
