The Far-Right Is Global Now and So Is the Backlash

From Springsteen to Sumy, Buffett to Bucharest, the resistance to authoritarianism is mounting, but so are the costs of letting it slide.

Good morning! As tornadoes rip across the American heartland and authoritarianism gains ground across Europe, the United States finds itself increasingly isolated, militarily disrespected, diplomatically mocked, and economically unstable. From Springsteen to Warren Buffett to Ukrainian drone units, the warnings are all there: democracy is under siege not only from enemies abroad, but from the rot within.

The week’s headlines read like a geopolitical noir: deadly storms have killed at least sixteen across the Midwest, with FEMA slow to respond and the White House silent. Trump, true to form, is focused elsewhere, throwing a tantrum at Bruce Springsteen for criticizing his regime from the stage in Italy. Springsteen, who has more awards than Trump has coherent thoughts, opened his European tour with a defiant call to resist what he called a “corrupt, incompetent, and treasonous administration.” Trump responded by calling the Boss “atrophied”, which is brave talk for a man who thinks bronzer counts as a skincare routine.

If the president is disengaged from natural disasters, he’s even more disconnected from the intelligence needed to prevent man-made ones. Reports confirm Trump has attended barely a dozen intelligence briefings since retaking office. Advisors, desperate to maintain his attention, have resorted to using graphics, cartoons, and color-coded arrows. Written memos are largely ignored. National Security Advisor Mike Waltz was reportedly fired for having the audacity to offer actual advice, and Marco Rubio now doubles as both foreign policy coordinator and presidential handler. Meanwhile, American adversaries take notes and advantage.

That erosion of seriousness has consequences. The United States is now referred to in diplomatic circles as a "rogue state", not just for its erratic leadership but for the damage it's doing to global stability. Trump’s trade wars, broken alliances, and rejection of global norms have turned the U.S. from a respected power into a loud, unstable uncle at the geopolitical dinner table. Even strategic partners are backing away.

Case in point: India. Furious over what they describe as a string of insults and betrayals, Indian officials have slammed Trump for falsely taking credit for a ceasefire with Pakistan, criticizing companies like Apple and Tesla for expanding in India, and orchestrating the forced deportation of over 100 Indian nationals, shackled and chained aboard a U.S. military plane. One Indian lawmaker called the episode “an international disgrace.” The message from New Delhi is unambiguous: the U.S. under Trump cannot be trusted.

Meanwhile, Russia continues its campaign of destruction in Ukraine. Just hours after peace talks in Istanbul, a Russian drone strike obliterated a civilian bus in Sumy, killing nine. President Zelenskyy, visibly angry, accused Moscow of deliberately targeting a clearly marked passenger vehicle and called on the West to impose stronger sanctions. “Without tougher pressure,” he said, “Russia will not seek real diplomacy.” Trump, naturally, declared that peace could not proceed until he himself met with Putin, because nothing says global stability like making it all about him.

In Eastern Europe, far-right parties aligned with Kremlin messaging are gaining ground. Presidential elections today in Poland and Romania, two key NATO members, are being shaped by Russian disinformation, cyberattacks, and populist rhetoric. Romanian nationalist George Simion, who refers to Ukraine as a "fictional state," is calling for military aid to be cut and for Ukraine to pay Romania back. In Poland, Telegram-linked Kremlin bot farms are attacking pro-EU candidates while nationalist firebrands like Slawomir Mentzen push revisionist history and anti-Ukrainian narratives. What’s happening isn’t just political drift, it’s ideological consolidation, and it’s happening across borders.

And if all that weren’t unnerving enough, Warren Buffett is now publicly saying what many economists have whispered for months: the U.S. fiscal trajectory is “unsustainable,” and the government’s long-term tendency to debase the dollar should not be underestimated. Berkshire Hathaway is now hoarding over $300 billion in cash and Treasuries, not because Buffett is scared, but because he’s waiting for the crash that always follows reckless governance. “If something can’t go on forever,” he said, “it will end.” And from the look of Washington, the end may already be penciled into someone’s calendar.

All of this, the economic uncertainty, the democratic backsliding, the global unease, feels like a fast-moving train, driven by a man who doesn’t read the map and thinks the horn is a weapon. And just when you think you’ve hit the bottom of the absurdity barrel, along comes the watch.

A couple spent over $600 in Rhode Island on a Trump-branded wristwatch. Instead of “Trump,” the watch face said “RUMP.” Yes, really. When they tried to return the watch, they were ignored until local news got involved. Was it a factory error? A cosmic prank? Or just another reminder that everything touched by Trump eventually turns into a punchline? Either way, if you ever needed a metaphor for the man, there it is: overpriced, defective, and missing the first letter of leadership.

So here we are, buffeted by storms, lied to by the loudest, undermined by the most powerful, and mocked by timepieces. The war against the far-right isn’t some distant abstraction anymore. It’s local. It’s global. And it’s already well underway.