Let's talk about the EU as a world power and the Greenland moment.... - Belle of the Ranch

[TexasTowelie]

Well, howdy there Internet people. It's Belle again. So, today we're going to talk about the EU as a world power and the Greenland moment.

We've talked about how the US losing the rest of NATO would make the US weaker and would end up creating another near-peer competitor nation out of the EU, even if it's actually a block of nations. This idea got a bit of push back in the United States because of American mythology being confused for American history and that causing the belief that Europe needs the US more than we need them. It would be unthinkable for Europe, especially traditional Western European allies to be competitors. This idea exists even though for most of US history that's exactly what they were. But now we have a bit more confirmation that some in Europe are looking that direction.

What kind of confirmation? The president of France said as much. Macron cited the Greenland moment and said, "When there's a clear act of aggression, I think what we should do isn't bow down or try to reach a settlement. We've tried that strategy for months. It's not working." At one point in the conversation, he asked rhetorically, "Are we ready to become a power, this is the question in the field of economy and finance, in defense and security, as well as in our democratic systems."

He said the US was moving away from the rule of law and that Europe has “the Chinese tsunami on the trade front and we have minute-by-minute instability on the American side. These two crises amount to a profound shock, a rupture for Europeans.” He then said, "World markets are increasingly weary of the US dollar. They're looking at alternatives. Let's offer them European debt”

If you're not up on international trade, you may not see why that matters. But some kind of common European debt could easily become a direct competitor to US treasuries, especially since Europe is being seen as more stable and the democratic institutions more capable. Just like US treasuries have to be purchased in dollars, European treasuries would need to be purchased in euros.

As we've said repeatedly, in foreign policy, money is a power coupon. Those coupons could be flowing to Brussels instead of DC. This isn't backroom talk. This is openly spoken to newspapers. US influence is declining faster than most Americans realize. And if Congress doesn't reign in Trump soon, the US will be weaker than any point since World War II by the end of Trump's term.

To be honest, I'm not sure how they can put this genie back in the bottle now. They might be able to slow it, but it certainly seems like in about a year, Trump was capable of undermining US stability and power to the point that Europe is going to start acting like the global power they always could have been, but chose to follow the US lead.

Anyway, it's just a thought. Y'all have a good day.