Trump 2.0, Personality and Power:Assessing Trump’s Foreign Policyin a Multipolar World Order

Abstract

The evolving role of the United States on the international stage during the second presidency of Donald Trump, coupled with the trend towards a multipolar global system, necessitates a thorough reassessment of the foundational elements of U.S. foreign policy-making. Traditionally, analyses of U.S. foreign policy have been anchored in the rational actor model, which emphasises rational calculations. However, there is a noticeable gap in scholarship that incorporates the personal traits, character, belief systems, and experiences of individual U.S.. leaders into this analysis. The election of Donald Trump as the 47th President of the United States in 2024 presents a significant opportunity to revisit U.S. foreign policy through a more idiosyncratic lens, particularly in light of the declining influence of the U.S. within the international system. This study employed a qualitative research approach, utilising a desk review as the primary source of secondary data, and applies thematic and content analysis as the principal methods for data analysis. The findings assert that Trump's inward-looking policies expressed in the “Make America Great Again” (MAGA) slogan, ambitious nationalist and expansionist agenda such as the acquisition of Greenland, Canada, Panama Canal and renaming of Mexico, abrupt withdrawal from multilateral institutions, erratic trade wars among others are adversely affecting U.S. global leadership position. These actions are creating space for revisionist states such as Russia, China and BRICS bloc to occupy in the absence or relative decline of the U.S. thereby making the multipolar world imminent.