The Trump administration is portrayed as abandoning the traditional U.S. posture of supporting democratic institutions regardless of which mainstream party governs, and instead intervening to advance favored European politicians and commercial interests. The account centers on former ambassador Kimberly Guilfoyle, who reportedly claimed she could help bring down governments. In Romania, she promoted a Greece-to-Ukraine gas corridor and U.S. liquefied natural gas, alongside a lobbyist whose company stood to benefit. After she met Romanian politicians, a coalition partner joined the far right in bringing down the government; the politicians involved deny that Guilfoyle influenced their decisions. The episode also broke a norm against mainstream parties cooperating with the far right.
Similar pressure is described in Poland and Germany. President Trump reportedly urged Polish Defense Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz to leave his governing coalition for a nationalist alternative; he refused. Trump had also endorsed the far-right Polish presidential candidate Karol Nawrocki. In Germany, Trump and Elon Musk publicly promoted the pro-Russian AfD, while U.S. officials reportedly excluded Social Democratic legislators from meetings, signaling preference for the AfD and conservatives. The central contradiction is that Washington demands greater European military responsibility while boosting parties that oppose rearmament, aid to Ukraine, or European defense cooperation. The author argues that this meddling confuses allies, weakens European unity, and echoes a disastrous history of empowering nationalists.
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