In the 50 days since Donald Trump was inaugurated, the liberal world order that has underpinned much peace and prosperity since World War II has been destroyed.
Ukraine has effectively been abandoned to a bloodthirsty tyrant in Russian President Vladimir Putin, who has seemingly won the support of the US President despite his lifelong mission to harm America.
Meanwhile, traditional allies in Europe and Canada have been mocked and threatened, just because they dare to run civil, multicultural societies that believe in a social safety net.
Our Prime Minister Anthony Albanese – who I believe has done a much better job as PM than he is getting credit for – should be commended for strongly criticising Trump’s decision not to exempt Australia from tariffs. The Prime Minister still says Australia can count on America’s defence, but many experts are less certain.
Trump is not just a right-wing bully; he poses a serious security threat to the whole world. Many more Ukrainians and Palestinians will die because of his actions to worsen what are already humanitarian disasters.
While on the cultural front, transgender and non-binary people are no longer welcome in the US public service. That is decades of progress on LGBTQ inclusion ripped up in just weeks.
The media is mostly complicit by just parroting Trump’s words without challenge, presumably fearful they’ll be kicked out of the White House press pack like the Associated Press was.
And politicians around the world continue to flatter and pander to Trump, not wanting to become the next prime time humiliation like the mistreatment of Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Malcolm Turnbull, our 29th Prime Minister, is right to say that we should not “self-censor” for fear of “offending the giant ego” of Trump.
And legendary investor Ray Dalio – the founder of Bridgewater Associates, one of Conexus Financial’s most valued clients – is right to point to the scary parallels with Germany in the 1930s.
Other leaders in global finance should join him. Every day, I speak to asset managers in the US and around the world who are appalled at what they’re seeing but feel unable to publicly rebuke it.
Even Australia’s superannuation community, with its roots in workers’ rights and the labour movement, have not been willing to challenge Trump, instead going to Washington and New York to demonstrate their power as economic partners of the US.
It is understandable that super leaders would want to do business with the world’s largest sharemarket and engage in initiatives that could help generate returns to members. But my sources inform me that not one member of the high-powered delegation sought to refute any of the lies or disinformation or Trump worship from US government officials who presented.
As the old adage goes, what is the use of power unwielded? Global institutional capital and the press must unite behind the cause of the right side of history.
Colin Tate AM is founder and managing director of Conexus Financial, publisher Professional Planner.
