Salon Liberté: “From MAGA to MEGA: Does Europe need its own direction?”

Engelstalig evenement georganiseerd door de Vlaamseclub

The single-minded pursuit of American interests by the Trump administration has served as both an inspiration and a challenge to European patriots.

The feeling among so many people is clear: they feel betrayed and left behind by the mainstream parties. Populist parties across Europe are on the rise. The main focus of their political agenda is creating an anti-globalist narrative and protecting sovereignty. But the enormous presence of Donald Trump and the MAGA movement has raised major questions for European populist parties. Sometimes, the alliance between MAGA and MEGA seems smooth: sometimes, their campaigns are a copy-paste of the American ones. Other times, there are significant tensions on trade, geopolitics and more.

When Trump’s MAGA (Make America Great Again) movement won the election in January this year, his admirers and fans from around the world poured into Washington, D.C. — from the Argentine president Javier Milei and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni to the leader of Spain’s VOX party, Santiago Abascal, and representatives of the German AfD. They all fought for a place at the table and to have the best picture with the newly inaugurated President Donald Trump.

Can European political parties address the main societal challenges without becoming “Trump fanboys”? Or is the transatlantic connection so strong that political actors in Europe cannot act alone?

Probably the most important dilemma remains. While the outcome of the American elections gave a huge boost to right-wing populist parties in the EU, is there a danger that newly ascendent populist movements become as intolerant as the woke ideology they rebelled against? To be precise, will they become the new “woke right”? 

Join Salon Liberté as we delve into a tough topic – but commit to having an open discussion where all points of view are welcome.

Speakers of the evening: To be confirmed

Registration and welcome refreshments from 18h

Interested in participating in this event? registration is possible via the following link