Bully Boy
Trump’s intimidation tactic is getting old. Countries are no longer shocked and awed
Trump’s bullying ways continue. Just as American and Iranian negotiators were meeting in Bürgenstock, Switzerland, for direct talks to end the US-Iran war, POTUS was posting threats on social media, and telling Fox News that he had told Iranian negotiators that if they closed Hormuz again, “you won’t have a country…You won’t even make it back to your f******g country”. Iranian negotiators walked out of the talks room in Bürgenstock in protest. In the same vein, over the weekend, Trump took to berating Italian PM Meloni, saying she was begging for a joint photo at the G7 in France. Meloni shot back that Trump treats his allies with less respect than his adversaries.
Of course, Trump’s bullying ways are not new. It’s baked into his policy approach. Within the current Trump administration, this has been cultivated as a strength. It’s supposed to get people out of their comfort zone, and help seal favourable deals for US. It’s classic playground bullying tactics. Trump projects power towards a smaller target to intimidate. And when the latter buckles, Trump claims victory without even a fight.
Except, much like bullies in everyday life, repeated intimidation has diminishing returns. That’s why Trump’s calculations vis-à-vis Iran went awry – Tehran refused to be intimidated. Similarly, India too stood up to Trump’s bullying via trade tariffs. Result: both countries are reported to be close to a trade deal. But bullies are addicted to bullying, even when they don’t get what they want. Trump’s ‘leadering’ habit of compulsively taking credit for events, has begun to work against him. He has to be seen as producing favourable American outcomes, rather than getting the job done. And as countries – from China to Brazil – crack this pattern, it becomes a flaw. Trump will, in all probability, remain a bully. But with New Delhi, Beijing, Tehran, and now Rome, standing up to him, his hectoring won’t work.
Disclaimer
Views expressed above are the author’s own.
