Trump’s ‘Art of the Deal’ Foreign Policy

Donald Trump’s foreign policy has been controversial and raised eyebrows in liberal Western circles in North America and Europe. It undermines the very fabric of the liberal international order, systematically built since 1993 by the US to replace the bipolar Cold War order. The idea of the liberal order is based on two foundations - the American power paramountcy (referred to as the unipolar moment by Charles Krauthammer) and the liberal-democratic moral superiority (represented by the end of history thesis of Francis Fukuyama). There was a bipartisan consensus in the US between the liberal internationalists of the Democratic Party and neoconservatives of the Republican Party on the benefits of American hegemony and democratic proselytisation. The emergence of Donald Trump in 2016 as the leader of the Republican Party challenged this consensus. Still, he relied on establishment candidates like John Bolton and Nikki Haley to run his foreign policy due to his inexperience with the Washington political environment. However, this time he seems more prepared to implement his vision of transactional foreign policy, which can also be termed Trump’s “Art of the Deal” Foreign Policy.

Trump: The Art of the Deal (1987) recommends thinking ‘bigly’ (a term not used in the book, but became associated with Trump in 2016), using media sensationalism and doubling down on critics. President Trump is not afraid of being controversial and targeted by moral sermonisers. He uses ‘alternative facts’, meaning he exaggerates what he intends to do or what he has achieved. For instance, after his victory in 2024, he has been referring to Canada as the 51st state or as part of the peace process in Gaza; he has proposed converting it into the ‘Riviera of the Middle East’. It becomes difficult to distinguish between a policy statement and ‘hot air’. However, there seems to be a ‘method to his madness’ or rather ‘apparent madness’.

Trump’s “Art of the Deal” Foreign Policy is based on the ideology of nationalism, which puts America first and expects reciprocal bilateralism. He does not bother about being the ‘Machiavellian Chiron’, a centaur who pretends to be a saint while serving his beastly desires. As the POTUS, he serves the American national interest, making the US a normal nation-state, instead of an imperial or hegemonic superstate. Empires often fall under the weight of their overstretched military commitments to protect their vassals, contain their rivals and maintain the aura of superiority. Trump’s foreign policy may ensure the US avoids that fate.

For India, this is a decisive moment. It is time to reduce tariffs. Let Royal Enfield compete with Harley-Davidson. Let Indians remain in India. These do not portend any disaster. What India gains is breathing space from the forces of political destabilisation within the country and in the neighbourhood. These forces have been sponsored by elements within the American establishment and civil society, sometimes referred to as the ‘deep state’. The same elements are also against Trump. Therefore, as Trump curbs the power of these elements, India’s national security will improve.

“Trump’s ‘Art of the Deal’ Foreign Policy,” VideshNeeti, 16 April 2025, 2 (2): 4.