The election of Donald Trump to the White House in 2016 was a symptom of the transformations in American society. That transformation will impact the debate over the role and responsibilities of the U.S. in the coming years. The challenges America faces is the forging of a consensus on both its domestic choices as well as it's willingness to sustain its leadership on the global stage. They are both interrelated and as unpredictable. as is the president himself. The implications for transatlantic relations are serious as these challenges are simultaneously unfolding in Europe. The consequences for both Europe and the U.S. should revitalize the recognition that the web of interests and objectives shared between the two continents are uniquely important. But the centrifugal domestic forces at work, in addition to the continuing threats and instability beyond the transatlantic community, are dangerous obstacles to that recognition. The more efforts aimed at finding shared solutions are pursued-as it has been largely accomplished in the past several decades-the better chances for success. That will be in no small measure facilitated by a healthy, honest, and hopeful willingness to engage with each other. But that prospect is far less possible if the centrifugal forces on both sides of the Atlantic continue to gain traction.
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