Joseph Popolo, Dallas businessman and ambassador to the Netherlands, explains Trump's strategy in Europe.
Dallas businessman Joseph Popolo, the founder of Charles & Potomac Capital, was sworn in as U.S. ambassador to the Netherlands in October. He visited with the editorial board last week for a wide-ranging discussion on U.
S. policy in Europe, migration and the war in Ukraine. Our conversation has been edited for space and clarity.but there’s a whole section there around restoring European greatness. He talks about the need for Europe to share more of the burden of defending itself. So those are the big themes running through, and that certainly ran through the security conference, and that runs through NATO, is how we not in any way retreat from Europe, but we also address the very important issue of China as a global competitor. The second plank is around growth here in Europe. And then the third piece, and you heard Secretary Rubio speak a lot about this, was this very unique cultural tie we have historically with Europe. And that’s going back to the beginning of Western civilization.You could say it is both, very clearly. Ukraine is an existential crisis right now, but I believe we are seeing Europe recognize how dependent they have become on America. And we want that to be more of a partnership, a mutual benefit, and less a dependency. So that’s what you’ve seen the president, NATO Ambassador Whitaker, and Secretary-General Rutte all drive. The Europeans acknowledge that they have been relying on us far too long, really since the end of the Cold War, and they understand now, and they’ve all committed very clearly, to step up to that new 5% goal .We were talking about stimulating the European economy and the Dutch economy. There is a difference in cultural values in that Europe, especially northern Europeans, tend to value the welfare state. How much should the United States be pressuring other countries to change their internal political identity?The answer is we shouldn’t, and we’re not. But I think we see very clearly the trade-off of going too far on the climate front, getting rid of perfectly good nuclear power plants in Germany, for example, and Northern Europe getting itself hooked on the , which turned out to be a very bad decision. And there are limits to how much a country can afford from a welfare state perspective. So whether it’s us making that point or I believe the Dutch and most of Europe themselves seeing that, those trade offs are very real. And you get a welfare state so big that you don’t get any economic growth, and then you have problems helping to defend your country.There’s a general recognition here that Europeans are not replacing themselves, that a robust immigration system is needed just as it is in the United States. But it has to be done the right way with people that share the culture. And I think, prospectively, you’re going to see more focus on that, independent of religious background or where folks may come from. It’s more about shared values around democracy, human rights, freedom of speech, all the items that I spoke to. And I think you’re going to see more of an emphasis on that than in the past where it was less about that and whether or not you could fill out a form claiming asylum.One of the things that Secretary Rubio brought up several times was the idea that Europe needs to regain a sense of pride in its culture and the elements of its certainly shared culture with us. Help us understand that.I think it is around what Europe has brought to the world, and I think the secretary did a phenomenal job of laying out all of the advances that we owe to Western Europe, including frankly the United States, and being proud about that and saying Western culture does have value. Western culture is unique. Western culture has brought so many things to the world and not being in any way ashamed about that.Rudy has covered politics, government, crime and all three mixed together for both The Dallas Morning News and The Chicago Tribune.U.S. Secret Service shot and killed armed man who entered secure perimeter of Mar-a-Lago
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