Austria | Political scientist Cas Mudde warned that Europe must confront a volatile and transactional “Trump world order” by building true strategic independence and prioritizing democratic values over market interests. Speaking at Central European University’s (CEU) 35th Anniversary Presidential Lecture Series, the prominent scholar of far-right politics outlined how a second Trump administration presents structural challenges to European liberal democracies. Mudde highlighted that the polarization of the U.S. political system—driven by uncompetitive legislative districts where winning a radicalized party primary guarantees election victory—has granted the MAGA movement full control over Congress and the judiciary, resulting in an unpredictable and instinct-driven American foreign policy.While Mudde noted that European leadership remains dangerously divided and slow to recognize the holistic threat, he argued the current political climate also presents distinct opportunities. Trump remains deeply unpopular across the continent, public support for deep European integration (including unified trade, defense, and foreign policies) is high, and the European far-right remains internally fractured by competing national interests. However, Mudde emphasized that achieving true strategic autonomy requires looking beyond military spending, pointing out that regional defense is meaningless if European weapons systems continue to run on software operated by American firms.
Source : Central European University
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