A headline in a recent Washington Post op-ed declared that: ‘The Trump contagion is already in Europe – and it’s spreading’. The Post‘s European Affairs columnist, Lee Hockstader, who wrote the article, described the president-elect as ‘a dangerous role model to a rising cadre of European wannabes’. Sorry, Post. Europe may have given the USA blue jeans, burgers, and bubble wrap, but Trump’s form of political leadership originated in Europe at the turn of this century. Its initial purveyors were Pim Fortuyn of Holland, France’s Jean-Marie Le Pen, and Jörg Haider of Austria.
They also knew, like Trump, how to engage with the masses, tapping into anger at the liberal elite
The charismatic Haider was profiled by the BBC in 2000, shortly after his Freedom Party had entered a coalition government following a strong performance in the previous year’s election.
‘Haider’s rise to prominence has horrified many around the world…who regard him as an ambitious, racist opportunist,’ wrote the BBC.
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