Analysis: The former president's negative personality traits influence his approach to international organisations and institutions
The first debate between Donald Trump and Kamala Harris signals that the race for the White House is entering its final stage. The polls are tight and European leaders are understandably nervous about the prospect of a second Trump presidency. They are right to be wary because aspects of Trump’s personality make him particularly hostile to the international institutions, like NATO, the European Union and international trade, security, and climate agreements, that foster global cooperation and prosperity.
During his administration, Trump pulled the United States out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership, the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty, the Iran nuclear deal, and the Paris Agreement on climate change. He also threatened to quit the World Trade Organization, NATO, the United States-Korea Free Trade Agreement, and the North American Free Trade Agreement, and repeatedly criticised the European Union.
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From RTÉ Radio 1's Today with Claire Byrne, what impact could a new Trump presidency have on Ireland's economy?
Three aspects of Trump’s personality distinguish him from other American presidents. First, while most presidents consider themselves intelligent, Trump believes he is the smartest and most knowledgeable person in any room, regardless of the topic. He regularly boasts about being "a really smart person" and "a very stable genius." He also claims to know more than anyone else about everything from debt, taxes, and infrastructure to international trade, the economy, and terrorism. This aspect of his personality makes him highly resistant to accepting viewpoints that contradict his own – often inaccurate – beliefs.
Second, compared to other presidents, he is extremely distrustful of other people. As far back as 1990, he admitted that he "wouldn’t trust anyone" if elected president, including America’s close allies. Throughout his presidency, he frequently tweeted about how he did not trust a range of officials and organisations within his own government. He views almost everyone outside his immediate family as inherently deceitful and threatening.
Finally, while he is obsessed with personal relationships, he places exceptionally low importance on trying to understand non-human phenomena, like how inanimate objects and forces affect each other. This makes it hard for him to understand the kinds of causal relationships that are critical to making informed policy decisions. When one of his senior economic advisors, Gary Cohn, asked him why he routinely makes demonstrably false claims about international trade, like the effects of tariffs, Trump’s response was telling: "I just do… I’ve had these views for 30 years."
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From RTÉ News in 2019, Donald Trump vetoes bill to end support for Saudi-led war in Yemen
These aspects of Trump's personality strongly influence how he views international institutions. His overdeveloped sense that he is smarter than anyone else and, therefore, always right makes him reflexively critical of any international institution (i.e., almost all) that he did not help create. Referring to the Transpacific Partnership, he stated in May 2015 that "many Republicans support TPP. They are stupid," and also called it "a terrible deal." He also labelled the successful Iran Nuclear Deal "one of the dumbest deals ever."
This trait also led him to discount the views of other political leaders who support maintaining these institutions. Each time he decided to withdraw from an international institution, he did so in the face of loud opposition from European leaders, numerous members of his own political party and many of his senior advisors. Trump’s unusually high level of distrust of other people leads him to view the rules and obligations imposed by international institutions as an attempt to "cheat" the United States even though they, of course, apply to all the member countries.
Trump justified his threats to pull the United States out of NATO by claiming the alliance’s European members "owe us a tremendous amount of money from many years back." NATO members are not bound by any obligations to transfer money to other members and, therefore, cannot "owe" money to each other. Regardless, this belief led him to issue an extraordinary public pledge in February 2024 to allow Russia "to do whatever the hell they want" to any European NATO member that fails to pay the money he thinks they owe.
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From RTÉ News in 2018, Trump lashes out at NATO over spending
He has expressed similar conspiratorial views about the United States’ trading relationship with the European Union: "I know the European Union very well. They take great advantage of the United States in trade."
Finally, the unusually low importance Trump places on trying to understand non-human phenomena leads him to routinely misunderstand how the world works. He has made tens of thousands of factually incorrect statements about a wide range of policy issues, institutions, and the effects of his own decisions. According to Daniel Dale, a journalist who fact-checked the president throughout his term, "a solid chunk of [Trump’s false claims]… seem confused or uninformed rather than deliberate."
Trump’s tendency to misperceive the world is dangerous because it can lead him to make irrational decisions that are harmful to both the United States and its traditional political and economic partners in Europe. Despite four years in office, his recent statements indicate that he does not understand that, when he violates international trade agreements by imposing arbitrary tariffs on products imported into the United States, they are paid by American businesses and consumers – not foreign manufacturers.
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From RTÉ Radio 1's News at One in 2019, The Financial Times' Nordic and Baltic Correspondent Richard Milne discusses reports that US president Donald Trump wants to buy Greenland
If, as he has promised to do, he acts on this misperception during a second presidential term, he could start a baseless trade war with the European Union. This would not only make European products less competitive within the United States, but also drive up Americans’ cost of living by forcing them to pay more for everything from steel and cars to medicines and electronics.
Of course, if Harris wins the White House, this does not mean the United States and Europe will completely agree on the importance of international institutions. But her public statements conveying strong support for NATO and Ukraine and willingness to work for the promotion of democracy and human rights through the European Union and United Nations suggest that transatlantic relations should be far more cooperative, stable, and productive on her watch than if Trump returns to power.
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The views expressed here are those of the author and do not represent or reflect the views of RTÉ
