Lectures are Out of Place

Elections in the USA are, for some Europeans, an occasion to look upon the system there with contempt. Criticism of US policy is, of course, legitimate, but one should not entirely lose sight of one’s own situation in the process. Given certain incidents here, lectures on the US system are out of place. A commentary by Stefan Haböck, International Officer of the Paneuropa Movement Austria.

The USA has elected its President, and it has been a gripping week. The interest in who becomes the President of the greatest political power is naturally enormous. However, the reporting on it has now spiralled completely out of control and bears no reasonable relation to other events in Europe and the world. The obsession, not only with Trump but with US domestic policy itself, is boundless. While the future Vice President’s jogging video is analysed in detail, other powers in the Caucasus are shifting borders by military force.

Fascination and Contempt

It is striking how much a degree of contempt mixes with the fascination for the (undoubtedly) entertaining and important world of US politics. It is as if the USA were not a venerable democracy – with all the flaws and shortcomings that exist in every Western state – with functioning checks and balances, where transfers of power constantly take place and Representatives and Senators are directly elected, but rather a third-rate autocracy.

There is no question that Trump, in his own way, is an anomaly in the Western world. His character deficits are not only obvious; he also uses them specifically to drive policy and sentiment. No one would dare to publicly disparage women or various groups in such a way. But is that true? Is it much better here, as the media’s contempt for Trump suggests?

Not at all. Of course, with the most powerful man in the world having a Twitter account, no one can escape his tirades.

Misogyny and Corruption are Always a Problem

In 2016, the Slovak Prime Minister insulted a female journalist. There was a brief outcry, but no consequences. His party family, otherwise known for feminist positions, merely shrugged its shoulders. Ultimately, he did have to go. He was driven out by citizens’ protests after the country’s corruption culminated in the murder of two young people.

But that is just one example. In various countries, corrupt – yet elected – cliques raged against the rule of law. Here, too, there was often silence from the party family. Liviu Dragnea was elected in Romania before he sought to make corruption exempt from punishment to protect his friends.

One shakes one’s head at the official, tax-funded events that Donald Trump held at his resorts. But: in some heavily subsidised states, the relatives of the respective heads of government also suddenly became wealthy.

Only America Trades in Arms

The USA stands for militarism, and European states would never make arms deals with authoritarian systems. Or would they? In 2019, one-third of all German arms exports went to Turkey. Many arms exports from European states also go to the military dictatorship in Egypt and to Qatar.

Protectionism – Made in USA?

Donald Trump, with his ‘America First’, is considered a protectionist. Europe would never close itself off to free trade. Except in almost every free trade agreement. Singapore had to accept over 90 protected designations of origin that EU governments negotiated into the agreement. But that is just a minor detail: when it comes to trade with Canada (one of the most democratic and free countries on earth), Europe’s media, NGOs, and politicians switch into defence mechanism mode. Nowhere are trade agreements – the strongest lever of European geopolitics – fought against as fiercely as in Europe.

Nationalism and Agitation

And ‘America First’ is also xenophobic. Something like that would never pass here. Except when it involves a xenophobic campaign in the United Kingdom in which working Poles are maligned. In Poland, some politicians invoke ‘Polish blood’.

In France, during the last presidential election, the far-right party and the far-left candidate together achieved more than 40% of the votes in the first round. Both are radical nationalists. From Germany – due to the lack of a threshold in the EU elections – a representative of the NPD sat in the European Parliament.

Are the Media in the USA Much Worse?

Since there is also concern in Europe about the media landscape in the USA: it was also in the United Kingdom where the tabloids put the photos and names of three judges on the front page with the headline: ‘Enemy of the people’. The newspaper is one of the most widely read in the UK and is owned by a wealthy Viscount. And it is read primarily by women. The editor responsible for the front page became the press spokesperson for Prime Minister Theresa May in 2017. This was not an issue, because in 2017, people were laughing at Anthony Scaramucci.

In Europe, three journalists were murdered in 2018. Daphne Caruana Galizia in Malta, Jan Kuciak in Slovakia, and Viktoria Marinova in Bulgaria. All three were investigating corruption in their respective countries. Even if the murder of Marinova was not connected to her work, with Jan Kuciak’s fiancée, Martina Kušnírová, three people were murdered in connection with journalistic work in 2018.

Distortion of History and Exaltation

In South-East Europe, one country has blocked its neighbour for two decades – because of a dispute over a historical region. As a tit-for-tat, there were – tax-funded – 25-metre-high statues as a reference to its own past. Hardly had this dispute been settled when the next EU country began to block its neighbour’s progress with nationalist slogans and historical distortions. Macedonian is supposedly just a Bulgarian dialect – this should be recognised, otherwise: no EU accession. (Note: In a joint statement, the two Paneuropa organisations in Bulgaria and Macedonia have called for working together for the European future.)

The Supreme Court in Washington and the ECJ in Strasbourg?

The nomination of a new judge for the Supreme Court by the US President also caused a stir. Why the filling of a judicial post on another continent so upsets people who certainly do not know who their own country’s representative is at the (for Europe more relevant) ECJ, is a mystery. Some, who otherwise suspect the ‘EU Court’ to be in Strasbourg (where the Court of the Council of Europe is located), knew every detail of the appointment procedure for the US Supreme Court.

And finally, the US electoral system is always criticised. Outdated, curious, not fit for modern times. Italy, with 66 post-war governments, and Belgium, with 600 days without a government, cannot compete with that.

Agitation Must Have No Place – On Either Side of the Atlantic

Looking at other countries with contempt is, in principle, an unpleasant trait. It is the task of all democrats to ensure that democracy is protected, that human, civil, and fundamental rights are not curtailed, and that hatred and agitation as tools of political rhetoric cannot be successful, no matter in which country.

Featured image: White House, © European Union 2018 Etienne Ansotte