Europe’s Future and America First

What I Learned in Paris…

The European-American relationship has changed more in recent years than at any time since World War Two. These sweeping new roles for the two powers produce widespread consternation across the Continent, while most Americans think little of such shifts. Both reactions are probably somewhat exaggerated, as reflected in my recent participation in the Conference of Paris.

This conference brings together elite decision-makers from across Europe — from multinational CEOs to top government ministers. Like Davos and other such transnational gatherings of the credentialed class, there is a heavy emphasis on multilateralism and supposedly lofty goals, including the following three items:

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1. Abandoning Western Civilization

European powerbrokers now grapple with a real identity crisis. Nearly all the nations of Europe have quickly relinquished worldviews centered on Christianity and the foundational precepts of the Western world. Instead, they fully embrace a new secular humanist globalism. This new paradigm aggressively welcomes mass migration from the Third World. In fact, these elites insist on providing grand benefits to stubbornly non-assimilated newcomers — many of whom openly detest the very traditions of the generous societies that lavish benefits upon them.

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2. Eco-Radicalism as the Golden Calf of the Elites

The supposedly “sustainable” agenda now fixates on an extreme green ideology, complete with fanciful platitudes about “decarbonization” and ludicrous goals like “net zero” emissions. The consequences of this folly are severe for regular Europeans, who suffer through sky-high energy costs and the breakdown of the continent’s industrial capacity. Germany — once the world’s foremost manufacturing power — now watches its industrial prowess collapse through self-inflicted policy errors.

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3. An Obsession with America and Trump

At the elite level, there is a constant angst about the direction of America — and particularly the return of President Trump. These European passions have been further inflamed by the recently issued National Security Strategy document from the U.S., which warned of the risks of “civilizational erasure” within Europe and called for a renewed focus on the Western Hemisphere for U.S. foreign policy.

Perhaps this unhealthy preoccupation with America serves as a psychological coping mechanism for powerful Europeans who realize, deep down, that their problems are at home, not across the Atlantic. That was a central theme of my presentation to the conference.

I explained how much we Americans admire Europe — the way any appreciative child looks upon a loving and good parent. After all, we inherited Western Civilization from Europe. America took the best of Europe and crystallized it in the New World, forging the very culmination of Western Civilization that we were bequeathed by centuries of European greatness.

Concurrently, even grateful children eventually see their parents’ flaws. As such, we have grown increasingly disappointed in Europe.

Too often, the “multilateralism” mirage serves as a mere pretext for Europe to benefit from the largesse of American taxpayers, who have effectively funded a European protectorate for the past 80 years. At the same time, European nations have taken advantage of the U.S. in trade — especially with non-tariff barriers that block fair reciprocity in cross-Atlantic commerce. These restrictions have been particularly burdensome on American services firms.

Beyond mass migration, Europe also retreats from God-given human rights that we in America consider sacrosanct — especially free speech. The United Kingdom practically invented free speech, and yet today it descends into a tyrannical social police state that punishes “unpopular” views that do not align with the globalist secular narrative. Vice President JD Vance righty warned the Europeans about this offense against inalienable rights in his historic speech at the Munich Security Conference.

I pressed these points both on the main stage and in sidebar conversations. Unfortunately, most Europeans seemed simply resigned to this retreat. They could not defend their crackdown on ideas and “mean” words — but they also demurred, as if this surrender were the cost of being “enlightened” in 2025?!

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Even more dangerously, European bureaucrats now attempt to extend these speech controls into the United States. EU regulators demand that U.S. companies monitor and censor the statements made by Americans — in America. Thankfully, Missouri Senator Eric Schmitt advocates for forceful Trump Administration counter measures to protect the rights of Americans at home.

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A New Hemispheric Focus

In short, recent actions from Europe make the transatlantic relationship more of a question than an answer. After more than a century of foreign policy focused on Europe as our indispensable ally, the U.S. must now take a dispassionate, mature look at the world as it is.

Russia is not our friend, but it need not be our foe, either. China is the existential threat to U.S. interests. And Europe — at present — is not a reliable ally.

Concurrently, massive opportunities await in the Americas. This administration wisely embraces a Monroe Doctrine 2.0 approach: forging a hemispheric bloc — from our land to Tierra del Fuego — grounded in commerce, security, and a New World commitment to carrying forward the enduring flame of Western Civilization.

Steve Cortes is head of the League of American Workers and an advisor to Catholic Vote.

He directs political campaigns on media, polling, and Hispanic outreach, including Trump 2016/2020 and Vance 2022 US Senate.

He is a former broadcaster for Fox News and CNN.