Everyone has felt the return of Trump one way or another — even penguins and seals were hit with 10% tariffs on the Heard and McDonald Islands in the sub-Antarctic. No one is spared, as the right and far-right abroad are so too distancing themselves from Trump’s unpredictable return to office. Leaders now must respond to the smear of affiliation to Trump’s politics, with even long-time friend, Nigel Farage taking a step away from MAGA circles.
Those who borrowed Trump’s avatar for their own domestic politics are especially stuck, scrambling to answer calls to stand up to Trump’s sweeping tariffs and public belittling, all the while without trying not to contradict their own right-wing promises. For the likes of Italy’s Giorgia Meloni and France’s Marine Le Pen, Trump’s unpopularity abroad is a slap in the face, despite their vocal public support for his second presidential term. Now that Trump is wreaking havoc for many on the right abroad, the same leaders must address the elephant in the room and imagine a world without Trump’s ‘America First’ agenda.
Loyalty has no reward
Many initially benefited from Trump’s return to office, romanticising his style of politics and capitalising on his election success for their own domestic political gain. In Canada for example, landslide victories for Pierre Poilievre looked pretty much inevitable in polls following Justin Trudeau’s resignation. But perhaps too soon, as much of his right-wing momentum tanked following Trump’s lampooning of Canada as the 51st state of America. This gave space for Liberal opponent and now Prime Minister of Canada, Mark Carney to hijack the strongman persona promising to stand up to America. Trump’s authoritarian drift and confrontational style have begun to backfire for his once allies, as his accusations of freeloading and taking advantage of American generosity haven’t spared even those who saw his success as something to replicate at home.
Next Prime Minister of Canada Polls
Similarly, in Australia, polls had mini-Trump on track to win and take power from Liberal Anthony Albanese. Yet, a sudden swing in the polls saw Labour secure a win with more seats than before Trump took office. As candidates courting the MAGA movement visit the US during campaign trails, it appears their copy-and-paste Trump politics hasn’t translated well with voters at home. In Romania, for example, the recently elected pro-European, pro-NATO candidate Nicușor Dan was sworn in as the new president, but not before his Trump-like opponent George Simion had a jab at alleged voter fraud among Romania’s deceased, before finally admitting defeat on Facebook.
Betrayal of allies
As Trump abandons the table, the global right and it’s network of partners also dwindles. Without Trump’s ideological leadership, differences among the right are re-emerging violently, with each faction clawing for relevance, accusing others of being too soft, too Western or too globalist. The right and far-right’s greatest strength was Trump’s reckoning of the establishment’s failures and promises to fill the gaps left by Liberalism. However, Trump’s first 100 days in office have quickly cemented the reality that the United States is not concerned with benefitting the interests of other politicians, regardless of whether they showed loyalty towards his politics. Confusion, panic and infighting, the global right is left looking for a new political figurehead to reposition their own politics whilst Trump exits the stage.
Faced with an unreliable United States, the right is warming to China as it offers to fill the investment, development, and diplomatic recognition left by Trump’s exit. Traditionally banned as anti-Western and economically dangerous, paradoxically, China is now emerging as a vital partner for the confused right wing. China is happy to help, welcoming the same politicians who stood behind Trump’s taunting of China’s rise, once described as the greatest theft of the West. But with Trump out the door: what choice remains for those on the right desperate to stay economically and politically competitive?
The global right finds itself stranded on the stage without a script or reliable partner. As Trump’s political encore plays out like an unfinished rerun, much of the right-wing in the West is caught off guard without direction and mounting eye rolls from their once riled up voter base. The global right, fractured and floundering, faces a stark choice: cling to Trump’s fading spotlight or flirt with ideological reshaping, one that distances itself from Trumpian politics and takes another direction. Either way, Trump’s “America First” has left his imitators scrambling for relevance, proving that in the game of global influence, loyalty is a currency that buys precious little.
