California Govenor Gavin Newsom delivered a blunt rebuke of global leaders at the World Economic Forum in Davos, accusing them of enabling US President Donald Trump through what he described as performative diplomacy.
“People are rolling over,” Newsom told reporters, calling the behaviour of world leaders “pathetic” and “embarrassing from an American perspective.” He warned that European leaders were being “played for fools,” arguing that attempts to placate Trump amounted to submission rather than strategy.
Referring to Trump as a “T-Rex,” Newsom said leaders either “mate with him or he devours you,” urging Europe to “stand tall, stand firm, stand united.” He criticised the gap between private concern and public acquiescence, calling for leaders to “stop saying one thing privately and another publicly” and to show “some spine”.
The remarks come as EU–US tensions escalate in 2026, driven by renewed tariff threats from Donald Trump and disputes over Greenland, NATO burden-sharing, and industrial policy. At Davos, Ursula von der Leyen emphasised “European independence” in security and investment, while stressing alignment with the US on Arctic security.
Emmanuel Macron went further, warning that trade coercion and power politics are eroding collective governance, arguing that a rules-based order—rather than “the law of the strongest”—must underpin transatlantic relations.
ℹ️ Sky News
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