"Krone" commentary
Trump – king for four years
So now he is back in the White House, and his opponents and critics - especially those on the left and left-liberal side in the US, but also here in Europe - fear terrible things: the dismantling of democracy, imperialist foreign policy and a trade war against the EU.
ON THE ONE HAND, it cannot be denied that Donald Trump, as president of the strongest power on the planet, does indeed display the airs and graces of an autocrat: power-conscious, without empathy, supported by family and friends.
ON THE OTHER hand, it is worth remembering that the American constitution, and therefore the role of the president, dates back to a time when absolutism - albeit in its enlightened version - still prevailed in Europe. In 1787, when the United States Constitution came into force, Louis XVI was the absolutist king of France, Emperor Joseph II ruled Austria and Frederick the Great of Prussia had only been dead for a year.
Compared to the European monarchies of the time, the young US republic with its separation of powers and checks and balances represented a huge step forward based on the principles of the Enlightenment, despite the strong president. Nevertheless, the role of the American president was and is that of a temporary king. And Donald Trump is obviously a president who consciously lives this out.
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