Since January 20, President Trump has issued some 60 executive orders covering a wide range of topics – from the mass deportation of illegal immigrants to the overhaul of family policy and the redefinition of energy policy. What they have in common is the aim to usher in a new era for America and the world. The radicalism of their ambition is unprecedented in decades. Even Ronald Reagan, elected in 1980, was more measured.
The threats against Greenland and the desire to repossess the Panama Canal, 25 years after its retrocession, are further proof that Trump does not feel bound by any international norms, and that, in his eyes, no agreement, however formally ratified, stands in the way of asserting American power. For him, "America first" must be understood in the strictest sense.
Faced with this spectacular rampage, Europe has been stunned. Like rabbits dazzled by the headlights of a car, heads of state and government have been flailing about, unable to agree on a coordinated response. Even the threat of a takeover of Greenland – though formally part of the European Union – has so far failed to elicit a joint response.
This week, the European Commission published a draft "competitiveness compass" presented as a response to Trump's initiatives. While this willingness is to be welcomed, and certain projects – savings and investment union, common status for innovative start-ups, regulatory simplification – are a step in the right direction, seeing it as a "response to Trump" is too much.
Predatory behavior
In addition to the fact that, at this stage, these are only guidelines and not a joint decision, the proposals made in this text are, for the most part, implementation of recommendations from reports by Enrico Letta (April 2024) and Mario Draghi (September 2024). The election of Trump and his first decisions have probably accelerated the process. But most of the proposals would have been identical had Kamala Harris occupied the Oval Office.
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