President Trump didn’t just appear out of nowhere. Whether he won or lost, tens of millions of people voted for him in the last three US elections (2016, 2020, 2024).

So Trump is a large slice of America. A part that was there before he appeared on the scene and will remain after he has gone.   

An America we may not like, but which exists nonetheless and probably represents the majority. Because, it needs to be said, in democracies it’s the majority that sets the tone.

Of course, this neither explains nor justifies how confounded Europe has been by the new US administration. They clearly haven’t got a clue what to do, which is why they have resorted to the indecisive can-kicking of “wait and see”.

They’ve realized they have to live with Trump’s America, but they don’t know how. To be honest, I’m not even sure they know what they’re up against or what they’re going to be facing.

One thing is certain, though. The times have changed–as Prime Minister Mitsotakis noted in his statement on Tasoulas’ candidacy for President of the Hellenic Republic.

It’s just that it’s easier to say than it is to interpret, assimilate, and turn into policy.

Still, you don’t need to be especially ‘wise’ to conclude there are two biological sexes and not “a thousand and two”, as Rasoulis was fond of saying.

From this point of view, if the Trump presidency, beyond the braggadocio and pomposity of its rhetoric, also brings about a return to common sense, it won’t necessarily be a disaster.

After all, we didn’t need Trump to realize there are two biological sexes, that illegal immigrants cannot be allowed to flood unhindered into our countries, and that there can be no national defense without national defense spending.  

Obviously, Europe won’t easily deviate from its “wait and see” approach. A part of its leadership is, in any case, vying for the favor of the new President.

What is certain is that we will have to live with Trump for the next four years. And that he’s annoyingly unpredictable. Ask Putin, who ended up with egg all over his face.

So I don’t know if Trump will make the world a better or safer place during his second term. I have to say I doubt he will.

But it would be a good thing if his presidency provides the incentive and the impetus to make Europe better, stronger and more cohesive.

Because “wait and see” won’t get us very far.