The re-election of Donald Trump as president of the US marks a new era in US and global politics. Eight years ago, his victory might have been viewed as an anomaly. This time, after all that has happened since — notably the attempt to overturn the outcome of the 2020 election — it represents a decisive choice for the worse by the American people. With probable control over Congress and a supine Supreme Court, Trump bestrides the US. He seeks to reshape much to his own wishes. This time, moreover, he will have an army of loyalists at his side.
For any UK government, this will create huge dilemmas. The one-sided relationship with the US is overwhelmingly the most important security relationship the country possesses. It is also one of the UK’s two most important economic relationships (the other being with the EU). UK governments have believed ever since the second world war that the US would remain the great bulwark of liberal democracy and co-operative multilateralism. Now all this is more than just a little in doubt.