The Realist POV on Trump’s First 100 Days

To mark the first 100 days of the second Trump White House, we have a special ask-me-anything episode. Amid a firehose of news, which policies will endure, and which are purely rhetorical? How does Foreign Policy find the signal in the noise? FP Live’s executive producer, Dana Sherne, turns the tables on host Ravi Agrawal as he assesses the implications of President Donald Trump’s foreign policy. Suggested reading (FP links are paywall-free): Ravi Agrawal: Trump Is Ushering In a More Transactional World Stephen M. Walt: Trump Is Not a Revolutionary Daniel Treisman: The Deep Familiarity of Donald Trump Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

April 29 marks the 100th day of U.S. President Donald Trump’s second term. What do foreign policy experts make of his administration’s performance so far, as it continues to wage a trade war, reshape long-standing diplomatic relationships with allies and alliances, and advance a new world order? FP columnist Emma Ashford sits down with Ravi Agrawal to discuss. Suggested reading (FP links are paywall-free): Emma Ashford: Four Explanatory Models for Trump’s Chaos Emma Ashford and Matthew Kroenig: Is the World Overreacting to Trump? Nicholas Bequelin: The Key to Understanding Trump’s Chaotic Foreign Policy John J. Mearsheimer in Foreign Affairs: Why the Ukraine Crisis Is the West's Fault Brought to you by: nordvpn.com/fplive quince.com/fplive Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The rollout of the Trump administration’s tariffs has rattled markets, prompting questions of what these protectionist policies mean for the global economy moving forward. Two top experts on globalization join FP Live to share their thoughts. Elisabeth Braw is an FP columnist and the author of Goodbye Globalization: The Return of a Divided World. And Eswar Prasad is a trade scholar and professor at Cornell University. We want to hear from you! Help us shape the future of FP Live by sharing your thoughts on the show by clicking here. Contact us anytime at [email protected]. Suggested reading (FP links are paywall-free): Transcript: Is the World Going to Deglobalize? Elisabeth Braw: What’s the Cost of Doing Business Under Trump? Eswar Prasad: The World Will Regret Its Retreat From Globalization Joseph E. Stiglitz: Play by the Rules Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The U.S.-China trade war has rattled the global economy, and there’s little sign of de-escalation. What does this mean for their respective economies? Where does this end? The Council on Foreign Relations’ Zongyuan Zoe Liu and the Center for Strategic and International Studies’ Scott Kennedy join FP Live to discuss. We want to hear from you! Help us shape the future of FP Live by sharing your thoughts on the show by clicking here. Suggested reading (FP links are paywall-free):  Scott Kennedy: Why Beijing Thinks It Can Beat Trump Deng Yuwen: Why Beijing Is Standing Up to Trump Howard W. French: Trump’s Tariffs Are a Gift to Xi Lili Pike and Christina Lu: Can Washington and Beijing Walk Back Their Trade War? Lizzi C. Lee: How China Should Handle Trump’s Tariffs James Palmer: China May Have a Revenge List for Tariff Wars Cameron Abadi and Adam Tooze: How Tariffs on China Brought Back Decoupling With a Vengeance Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The race is on to dominate the artificial intelligence economy, making the need for safeguards ever more pressing. Jared Cohen, the president of global affairs at Goldman Sachs, joins FP Live to discuss the potential risks and benefits of this growing market—and how so-called geopolitical swing states play an increasingly important role. This conversation was taped earlier this week, before the Trump administration's announcement of the 90-day suspension of reciprocal tariffs. We want to hear from you! Help us shape the future of FP Live by sharing your thoughts on the show by clicking here. Note: This discussion is part of a series of episodes brought to you by the Goldman Sachs Global Institute. Suggested reading (FP links are paywall-free):  Jared Cohen: The AI Economy’s Massive Vulnerability Jared Cohen: The Next AI Debate Is About Geopolitics  Becca Wasser and Josh Wallin: Build Allied AI, or Risk Fighting Alone Peter Dombrowski and Bruce Jones: A New Era of Undersea Conflict Is Here Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Two leading economists debate the potential trade-offs of the Trump administration’s tariffs that are now roiling markets. Oren Cass, the founder of American Compass, joins Kimberly Clausing, a professor at UCLA, to discuss what this all means for the United States and the global economy.  We want to hear from you! Help us shape the future of FP Live by sharing your thoughts on the show by clicking here. Suggested reading (FP links are paywall-free):  Wendy Cutler: How Countries Should Respond to Trump’s Tariffs Bob Davis: Trump Has the Whole Global Trade System in His Sights Michael Hirsh: Tariffs Can Actually Work—if Only Trump Understood How Lili Pike: Trump Threatens China With New 50 Percent Tariffs Joseph Rachman: Trump’s Tariffs Crush the ASEAN Economic Model Transcript: The Case for Trump’s Tariffs Edward Alden: Trump’s Wanton Tariffs Will Shatter the World Economy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Legal scholars argue that the Trump administration’s push to curtail the power of the U.S. judiciary mirrors moves by several authoritarian governments around the world. What does this mean for the United States’ court system and the rule of law? And what can be learned from global advocacy and civil society defying these trends? Political scientist Andrew O’Donohue joins FP Live to share his findings. Suggested reading (FP links are paywall-free):  Andrew O’Donohue: The U.S. Judicial Crisis Is Uniquely Dangerous Julian E. Zelizer: Why Republicans Love Strong Presidents David E. Rosenberg: Can Israel’s Highest Court Stop Netanyahu? Halil Karaveli: Erdogan Is Trying to Divide and Conquer Turkey’s Opposition Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Several of the world’s wealthiest men stood behind Donald Trump as he was inaugurated for a second term, contradicting his image as a populist president. This prompts the question, how much influence do the wealthy have on U.S. politics? Democratic Sen. Chris Murphy joins FP Live to share his take on the state of U.S. democracy, and whether the United States is becoming more corrupt, to mark the launch of Foreign Policy’s latest print issue: “Billionaire Rule.” Suggested reading (FP links are paywall-free):  Spring 2025 Print Issue: Billionaire Rule Jodi Vittori: Is America a Kleptocracy? Adam Tooze: Elon Musk’s First Principles James Crabtree: How Modi and Trump Treat Billionaires Differently Priya Satia: The Deep Roots of Oligarchy James Palmer: Did China Get Billionaires Right? Andrew O’Donohue: The U.S. Judicial Crisis Is Uniquely Dangerous Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Trump administration has dramatically shifted the United States’ long-standing relationship with Europe, pushing it to shore up its own defense. How is the continent grappling with these changes? And what does it mean for its policies, both foreign and domestic? Suggested reading (FP links are paywall-free):  Kishore Mahbubani: It’s Time for Europe to Do the Unthinkable Transcript: The Speech That Stunned Europe Edward Lucas: Comrade Trump Ivo H. Daalder: It’s Time for a New Trans-Atlantic Bargain Michael Hirsh: On Ukraine, Split the Difference Between Trump and Biden Anchal Vohra: Europe’s Economic Decoupling From America Is Underway Brought to you by: https://incogni.com/foreignpolicy. Use promo code "foreignpolicy" to get an exclusive 60% off an annual plan. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Geopolitical risk analyst Ian Bremmer joins FP Live to assess U.S. President Donald Trump’s first 50 days in office and how it is impacting the world. Suggested reading (FP links are paywall-free): Ravi Agrawal: Trump Is Ushering In a More Transactional World Daniel C. Kurtzer and Aaron David Miller: Lessons from the Trump-Zelensky Confrontation Howard W. French: Trump’s Plan for a Greatly Diminished America Daniel W. Drezner: Does the Madman Theory Actually Work? Stephen M. Walt: What I Got Wrong About Trump’s Second Term Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices