At the time of his inaugural speech, this Monday, January 20 in the rotunda of the Capitol, the entire Washington establishment will be present to listen to Donald Trump: from ex-presidents Bush and Obama to members of Congress and judges at the Supreme Court… But this time, and contrary to custom, a group of heads of state and foreign political leaders will also make the trip at the invitation of the new tenant of the White House. They were not chosen at random: all are right-wing populists, nationalists and conservatives.
Among them, Javier Milei, the Argentine president and great admirer of Trump, or the president of El Salvador, Nayib Bukele, accused of authoritarian drift in his country, who likes to present himself as a “cool dictator”. Also invited to this ceremony with great fanfare were the Italian President of the Council of Ministers, Giorgia Meloni, recently described as “fantastic” by the billionaire, whose services confirmed the presence, or the former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, said the “Trump of the tropics”, who will on the other hand be blocked in his country after the revocation of his passport as part of an investigation.
“The leader of this illiberal movement”
“Right-wing populism has become internationalized,” observes Filippo Trevisan, professor of public communications at the American University in Washington. “Although with some local variations and adaptations, this model, which combines populist economic rhetoric with ultraconservative positions on Social issues such as immigration, women’s rights, LGBTQ+ rights, as well as strong appeals to Christian symbolism, have found fertile ground in the United States and several other Western democracies.”
This January 20, an entire populist and far-right international will therefore celebrate the return to business of its champion. “There is a form of allegiance that these foreign leaders come to lend to it,” points out Françoise Coste, specialist in the Republican Party and author of Reagan (Perrin). Donald Trump represents the leader of this illiberal movement in the world.
But this hand-picked guest list does not only include heads of state. On the French side, the leader of Reconquête, Eric Zemmour will be there, alongside his advisor and partner, MEP Sarah Knafo. European MP Marion Maréchal will also be present – who should take advantage of her trip to meet people close to the new president. The head of the German far-right AfD party, Alice Weidel, also received her invitation, but will be replaced by her spokesperson, Tino Chrupalla, officially due to an already overloaded campaign schedule before the legislative elections. from February 23. This had already received in December the unexpected support of Elon Musk, the boss of X and close advisor to Trump, for whom his party is “the only one that can save Germany”.
A new era?
This guest list provides clear indications of which leaders will find favor in the eyes of the next US administration. Unlike British Labor Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who was not invited, the British MP and leader of the far-right and anti-EU Reform UK party, Nigel Farage, confirmed his presence on the day of the inauguration. 10 Downing Street will be represented by its ambassador to the United States, Karen Pierce.
Same treatment for the President of the European Commission, Ursula Von der Leyen, who was also not invited to join the ceremony. Unlike former Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki, whose mandate was marked by his conflict with Brussels on the subject of the rule of law in Poland and who confirmed his presence. “These invitations have a double effect, notes Professor Filippo Trevisan. On the one hand, they arouse embarrassment and concern among the leaders who were not invited and on the other hand, they signal that the MAGA movement ( Make America Great Again) has become more transnational.”
With what consequences for Trump’s second term? “We are witnessing a global reaction, in certain parts of the world, against the ideas and institutions of liberal internationalism,” said Julian Zelizer, professor of history at Princeton University. “Ultimately, we could be at the dawn of a dismantling of institutions and ideas which, since the Second World War, have been defining elements of international life.” The content of the new president’s speech should be enlightening in this regard. Eight years ago, his inaugural message on “American carnage” painted an apocalyptic portrait of an America in full decline. Well surrounded by his far-right foreign counterparts, this time he could mark the beginning of a new era.
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