Even after Trumpism’s midterm rout, the world struggles to trust America

LONDON (AP) — For Joe Reeve, the afterglow of the midterms quickly faded.

The London startup founder was part of the wave around the Trump-weary world that woke up to the stunning news that Americans had roundly rejected President Donald Trump’s fist-in-the-eye handling of the United States that had started a war with Iran, forged no peace in Ukraine or the Middle East and made gas and food so expensive.

Voters, Reeve found online, had flipped control of both houses of Congress, handing the power to control the president to his Democratic rivals. American democracy, 250 years later, has survived the Trump era.

But a deep distrust of the United States had also survived the vote. And from national leaders to aspiring American immigrants, no one seemed convinced that change was coming.

“What everyone has learned,” Reeve, 29, the husband of a Ukrainian woman, said in an interview a day later, “is that the American system allows these wild fluctuations. We all know, now, that America has the ability to turn on a dime and spit in our faces.”

Associated Press interviews around the world since the vote have revealed a sense that “one election doesn’t fix anything,” as Kim So-jung, 49, an office worker in Yongin, South Korea, said. “We need to see what they are actually doing and see that they are doing something different to regain at least a little bit of trust.”

And now ? “What happens next matters much more”

The fact that 77 million Americans voted to elect Trump to a second term, along with the administration’s combative conduct in its tariff war, Israel’s conduct in Gaza, immigration and Iran, had already shaken confidence in America around the world.

By the time Americans woke up Wednesday, world leaders and ordinary people from Europe to Australia had moved beyond the “wow” stage and reckoned with the reality that Trump still retains enormous powers.

“Frankly, Trump has largely governed without Congress for the past two years. Why should that change now?” German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said hours later that voters had relinquished control of the House and Senate.

Trump’s apparent detachment from the results and his focus on construction projects in the days before and after the drubbing have done little to calm speculation about how he governs. He could dissociate completely, according to some observers. Or he could turn to foreign policy and become even less predictable.

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“For the country’s allies, the question is not whether America is back,” Ian Bremmer, president and founder of Eurasia Group, wrote in Think China. “What is this a return to – and for how long?”

The stunning midterm elections were not enough to reverse policies that strained economies and finances and put dreams of success in America on hold for many around the world.

Trump’s tariff war has shaken markets and economies. He canceled humanitarian aid for millions and upended the post-war world order. Under Trump, U.S. immigration policy has become violent and deadly — and making the United States seem like a place best avoided.

There was no sign that Trump was giving up. On Friday, he promoted his longtime aide Stephen Miller, a key architect of his hardline immigration policies, to replace Susie Wiles as White House chief of staff.

“I don’t think all is forgiven,” ReadtheLine.ca editor-in-chief Jen Gerson said in an online discussion Thursday. “The president’s continuation in power for two terms is – and should remain – a warning signal to Canada and to all U.S. allies.”

Political and economic uncertainty in the United States may affect companies like Synetica, an Indonesian technology company, one of its business development executives said.

“To me, regaining trust means seeing America consistently respect democratic institutions, the rule of law and its international partners,” Aditya Surya, 40, of Yogyakarta, Indonesia, told the AP. “The elections are a good start, but what happens next matters much more.”

For many, rolling back the tariffs is a key test of restoring confidence in America.

Many eyes are turning to the question of whether Democrats can overturn Trump’s costly tariff regime, as the new majority promised in its 100-day agenda — and whether Trump accepts or vetoes such changes.

Hamish McIntyre, an Australian beef producer, doesn’t suspect it. As the southern hemisphere’s spring harvests get underway in parts of Australia, farmers are grappling with war-inflated diesel prices in Iran, contributing to what the government predicts will be a 39% drop in key agricultural profits.

“The midterm outcome is unlikely to fundamentally change the direction of U.S. tariff policy,” said McIntyre, president of the National Farmers Federation agriculture advocacy group. The election, he added, does not prevent “the administration from continuing to pursue its broader trade agenda.”

Ivan Slatkine, president of the French-speaking Swiss Business Federation, said he was comforted that the elections show that American institutions remain strong. This deserves some confidence, he added.

But.

“Let’s not be naive,” Slatkine said. “The concept of ‘America First’ is not going to be abandoned any time soon, and I doubt the new majority will reverse every decision the president has made.”

Hong Kong businessman Danny Lau has given hope for the elections. More than 30% of the orders received by its aluminum coating plant in Dongguan, southern China, come from American customers. But his company was paying a customs duty of almost 81%.

“Trump started the tariff war,” Lau said. “If he lost his influence, would that help at all on the tariff front? At the very least, I hope he doesn’t raise them further.”

Michael Lu, CEO of gift box producer Brothersbox in southern China, said he believed political tensions remained high, particularly after Washington’s previous trade war against China. But whoever wins the midterm elections did not expect radical changes in Washington’s overall stance toward China. The United States accounts for about 20 percent of Lu’s company’s business.

The political change in the United States does not change the fact that “continuing to strengthen the alliance and economic relations with the United States is essential for Japan,” said Yoshinobu Tsutsui, president of Keidanren, the Japan Business Federation, a lobby group that represents 1,500 companies. He said he expects Trump to emerge even stronger, not weaker, with Democrats in control of Congress.

For some, the American dream is still on hold

Ambika, an Indian citizen who asked to be identified only by her last name, works in IT in the United States and has long aspired to make America her permanent home. But Trump’s crackdown on immigration and the latest green card restrictions gave him pause.

“The recent changes in visa policy worry me,” she said this week while visiting family in India. “I don’t know if…the midterm results would result in a policy change that might benefit those of us who want to move to the United States”

There is no more accurate view of the evolution of America than the American elections. And these midterms produced the greatest shift in political power since the post-Watergate elections of 1974.

But what now?

“Time and time again, we are presented with these chances for change, only for greed to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory,” British commentator Martin McSweeney wrote on his “Truth Matters” substack at 5 a.m. the day after the election. “Will this time be different? It depends on the American people, and that makes me very nervous given my past experience.”

Associated Press writers around the world contributed to this report. They include: Kanis Leung and Thomas Chan in Hong Kong, Rod McGuirk in Melbourne, Sheikh Saaliq in New Delhi, Kim Tong-hyung in Seoul, South Korea, Yuri Kageyama in Tokyo, Edna Tarigan in Jakarta and Jamey Keaten in Geneva.