By Jeffrey D. Sachs

European leaders should recognize that a significant majority of Americans reject Trump’s malignant narcissism. By opposing Trump and defending the international rule of law, Europeans and Americans together can strengthen world peace and transatlantic amity for generations to come.

August 20, 2019 "Information Clearing House" -  With Donald Trump due to visit Europe again for the G7 summit later this month, European leaders have run out of options for dealing with the US president. They have tried to charm him, persuade him, ignore him, or agree to disagree with him. Yet Trump’s malevolence is bottomless. The only alternative, therefore, is to oppose him.

The most immediate issue is European trade with Iran. This is no small matter. It is a battle that Europe cannot afford to lose.

Trump is capable of inflicting great harm without compunction, and is now doing so by economic means and threats of military action. He has invoked emergency economic and financial powers that aim to push Iran and Venezuela to economic collapse. He is trying to slow or stop China’s growth by closing US markets to Chinese exports, restricting the sale of US technologies to Chinese companies, and declaring China a currency manipulator.

It is important to call these actions what they are: the personal decisions of an incontinent individual, not the result of legislative action or the outcome of any semblance of public deliberation. Remarkably, 230 years after its constitution was adopted, the United States suffers from one-man rule. Trump has rid his administration of anyone of independent stature, such as the former defense secretary, retired General James Mattis, and few congressional Republicans murmur a word against their leader.

Trump is widely mischaracterized as a cynical politician maneuvering for personal power and financial gain. Yet the situation is far more dangerous. Trump is mentally disordered: megalomaniacal, paranoid, and psychopathic. This is not name-calling. Trump’s mental condition leaves him unable to keep his word, control his animosities, and restrain his actions. He must be opposed, not appeased.

Even when Trump does back down, his hatreds seethe. When face to face with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the G20 summit in June, Trump declared a truce in his “trade war” with China. Yet a few weeks later, he announced new tariffs. Trump was incapable of following through on his own word, despite the objections of his own advisers. Most recently, a plunge in global markets has forced him to retreat temporarily. But his aggression toward China will continue; and his intemperate actions vis-à-vis that country will increasingly threaten Europe’s economy and security.