At Davos, Trump will face a less friendly brand of billionaire – but their dominance is waning | Larry Elliott
These high priests of globalisation are facing the fact that Trump’s tariffs are part of a global shift to protectionism
Hollywood would struggle to come up with a better plot. On Monday, as Donald Trump returns to the White House, the World Economic Forum’s (WEF) annual talk fest kicks off in Davos. The arch protectionist v the spiritual home of globalisation. The man who says “tariff” is “the most beautiful word in the dictionary” being sworn in for a second term just as the high priests of free trade assemble 5,000ft up in the Swiss Alps.
The Davos elite have a love-hate relationship with Trump: they despise him, but when he showed up at the WEF as president he was the hottest ticket in town. This year, the billionaires will have to make do with a video link appearance, but even from the other side of the Atlantic, Trump will dominate events. That’s not surprising. Most of the WEF attenders have grown up believing that trade barriers should be torn down, not erected. As such, they see Trump’s support for protectionism as a dangerous heresy.
Larry Elliott is a Guardian columnist
Continue reading...
Read more at The Guardian
Topics
-
Less than 2 in 10 confident Trump DOJ will act fairly: Survey
Less than 2 in 10 Americans are “extremely” or “very” confident President-elect Trump’s Department of Justice (DOJ) will act in a nonpartisan and fair manner, according to a survey released ...The Hill - 1d -
At sentencing, Trump lied and got less than a slap on the wrist
Trump’s statements at the hearing were riddled with lies and irrelevancies. His only bit of remorse was saying that “this has been a very terrible experience.” For him or for the country?The Hill - 3d -
Kamala Harris Shares a Trump-less Photo of Presidents at Jimmy Carter’s Funeral
Pictures shared on social media by the vice president and by the Carter Center prominently showed other past presidents in attendance.The New York Times - 4d -
Scott Bessent, Trump’s Billionaire Treasury Pick, Will Shed Assets to Avoid Conflicts
Financial disclosure forms show hundreds of millions of assets including property in the Bahamas and investments in Bitcoin and bets against China’s currency.The New York Times - 4d -
Duckworth: Trump’s Pentagon pick has less experience than Applebee’s manager
Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), a decorated combat veteran and member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, says President-elect Trump’s pick to lead the Department of Defense is dangerously ...The Hill - 5d -
House Republican: Gulf of Mexico name less important than Trump's actions
Rep. Austin Scott (R-Ga.) said President-elect Trump’s musing about changing the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America is less important than his actions in the region, particularly ...The Hill - Jan. 8 -
Meta Follows Elon Musk’s Lead, Moves Staffers to Billionaire-Friendly Texas
According to Mark Zuckerberg, Meta trust and safety workers will be relocated to Texas to prevent them from “censoring” users. Experts point to other advantages.Wired - Jan. 7 -
Meta scraps fact-checking, brings back political content in latest Trump-friendly move
Meta announces intent to "restore free expression" on its platformsCNBC - Jan. 7 -
Nikola Jokic Channeled Larry Bird. Now He’s Even More Dominant.
An off-season evolution has the N.B.A.’s three-time most valuable player at perhaps his highest level ever.The New York Times - Jan. 5
More from The Guardian
-
US says it is ‘confident’ ceasefire issues can be resolved before Sunday after Israeli cabinet delays vote on deal – live
Final sign-off for ceasefire deal delayed after Benjamin Netanyahu accuses Hamas of ‘reneging’ on parts of agreement. The devastating impact of 15 months of war on Gaza How Trump loomed over ...The Guardian - 18m -
Biden or Trump – who should claim credit for the Gaza ceasefire deal?
Joe Biden says his team negotiated deal but Donald Trump claims it was agreed now only because he is about to become president. Middle East crisis – live updates The question yelled at Joe ...The Guardian - 4h -
‘I realised we’re such hypocrites’: how growing numbers of US veterans were moved to protest over Gaza
As images of the war flooded social media and news reports, disillusioned ex-military personnel increased their efforts to pressurise the administration to stop arming Israel. . Of the protesters ...The Guardian - 4h -
Democrats concerned after Mike Johnson fires top Republican from House committee reportedly at Trump’s request – live
House speaker removed intelligence committee chair Mike Turner, whose stances have run afoul with Trump. Here’s what Florida’s governor, Ron DeSantis, wrote on X about his decision to name that ...The Guardian - 16m -
UK to back Ukraine ‘beyond this terrible war’ with 100-year pact, says Starmer
PM visits Kyiv to agree partnership and says Putin shows no signs of wanting to stop ‘unrelenting aggression’. Keir Starmer has announced a “historic” 100-year partnership with Ukraine, saying the ...The Guardian - 1h
More in World
-
LA fires live updates: California weather eases up as firefighters report gains against massive wildfires
Improved conditions should help fire crews and allow residents to return to their neighborhoods. Easing of extreme winds expected to strengthen efforts to put out blazes As officials answered ...The Guardian - 15m -
Democrats concerned after Mike Johnson fires top Republican from House committee reportedly at Trump’s request – live
House speaker removed intelligence committee chair Mike Turner, whose stances have run afoul with Trump. Here’s what Florida’s governor, Ron DeSantis, wrote on X about his decision to name that ...The Guardian - 16m -
US says it is ‘confident’ ceasefire issues can be resolved before Sunday after Israeli cabinet delays vote on deal – live
Final sign-off for ceasefire deal delayed after Benjamin Netanyahu accuses Hamas of ‘reneging’ on parts of agreement. The devastating impact of 15 months of war on Gaza How Trump loomed over ...The Guardian - 18m -
Italy, Albania and UAE sign clean energy deal across Adriatic Sea
Yahoo News - 18m -
Live Updates: Disputes Hold Up Israeli Cabinet Vote on Cease-Fire Deal
The agreement, which would include the release of hostages, was met with cautious optimism. But Israel’s cabinet needs to ratify the deal, and the prime minister’s office said it was unlikely that ...The New York Times - 19m
