Why Donald Trump's 'wrecking ball' politics are a recipe for global disaster
Donald Trump’s first year should act as a warning to those who imagine the UK needs politicians with a similar appetite for destruction
“The world has entered a period of wrecking-ball politics. Sweeping destruction – rather than careful reforms and policy corrections – is the order of the day.” So begins the 2026 Munich Security Report, published ahead of the German city’s famous conference.
This was the place where last year the newly elected US Vice-President, JD Vance, notoriously lambasted Europe and claimed that its greatest threat was not Russia or China but “the threat from within, the retreat of Europe from some of its most fundamental values” – as if what he characterised as infringements of free speech were more dangerous than the Russian bombs raining down on Ukraine.
At the time, there was widespread outrage over Vance’s remarks. However, the security report notes that “political forces favouring destruction over reform are gaining momentum” across the world, as “those who wield bulldozers, wrecking balls, and chainsaws are no longer treated as marginal radicals but are at least tolerated and cautiously admired – if not openly celebrated and embraced”.
Opposing ‘demolition politics’
This direction of political travel, the report argues, is being driven by disenchantment and resentment over the performance of liberal democracies. The challenge for governments opposed to “demolition politics” is, therefore, to “credibly demonstrate that meaningful reforms and political course corrections are viable – and much more likely to satisfy growing demands for improvements than a policy of widespread destruction”.
Keir Starmer’s and John Swinney’s current struggles underline how difficult this can be. However, Donald Trump, a political inspiration to some in the UK, is also in deep trouble as Americans discover the true cost of electing the populists’ populist. Just over a year into his presidency, his net approval rating has slumped to about minus 18.
His tariffs, the cost of living, the fatal shootings of two US citizens by ICE officers, the Epstein files and growing authoritarianism are among numerous sources of public discontent with the president.
Many Americans are also concerned about his threats to annex Greenland, comments undermining Nato and apparent closeness to Putin.
America needs its Nato allies
Fortunately, a backlash is growing. In a statement released ahead of the Munich conference, eight former US Ambassadors to Nato and eight former Nato Supreme Allied Commanders Europe underlined the importance of allies to the US, in both economic and military terms.
“If the United States were to withdraw from Nato, or diminish its utility by eroding trust among allies, the immediate result would not be a ‘peace dividend’”, they wrote. Instead, the US would need to spend more on its military, there would be a “greater risk” of conflict in Europe, and “a European military bloc that does not align with American interests” could also potentially emerge.
“America’s allies are its single greatest geostrategic advantage. Russia and China, despite their efforts to align with other nations like North Korea and Iran, simply have nothing to compare,” they added.
Dangers of UK ‘wrecking ball’
People in Scotland and the UK should also be clear about the value of our allies and who they are. Brexiteer rhetoric about the European Union must never be allowed to obscure the fact that Britain needs to remain close to its fellow liberal democracies. Trump’s appalling first year since his return to the White House should also act as a warning to those who imagine the UK needs its own wrecking ball.
The modern world as we know it was essentially built by liberal democracies from the ashes of the devastating world wars of the 20th century. Tearing up the international rules-based order that has helped keep peace in the world for eight decades and replacing it with ‘great power’ rivalries is the surest way to return to those horrific, tragic times.
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