Bloomberg Television host Francine Lacqua asked leaders at the World Economic Forum Friday about how they would prepare for the very real possibility of Donald Trump’s reelection.
Lacqua hosted a panel on the "The Global Economic Outlook" on the closing day of the forum in Davos, Switzerland, where Trump's return is viewed with concern.
She first turned to David Rubenstein, the co-founder and co-executive chairman of The Carlyle Group, one of the world's largest private equity firms, and asked, "David, a number of leaders have expressed concern of what Donald Trump in the White House means for fragmentation, for foreign policy. Is there any way that the rest of the world can Trump-proof their economies?"
"Ummm, if somebody has a way to do that, I think they should patent it and probably sell it to somebody else," he began. "It’d be very difficult to do."
Representatives from Europe offered their views as well.
Lacqua then turned to Germany's Federal Minister of Finance Christian Lindner and asked how he thinks "Europe should prepare."
"I think we are talking too much about Donald Trump in Europe, and we should prepare ourselves for a possible second term for Donald Trump by fostering our European competitiveness," Lindner said. "Doing our homework is the best preparation for a possible second term of Donald Trump, and this includes our capabilities to defend ourselves."
He went on to argue that working to be an "attractive partner on eye-level" in terms of economics and NATO is the best way to ensure a good partnership with the United States, to the point that it won't matter whether Biden or Trump ultimately win the presidency in 2024.
European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde answered, "I think the best defense, if that’s the way you want to look at it, is attack. And to attack properly, you need to be strong at home. So being strong means to have a strong deep market, having a real single market."
She further argued for a transition for the European economy toward becoming a "greener economy, which relies, certainly for a period of time, on fossil fuel, but less so, as was indicated in the last COP28, and moves towards renewable, where investment is badly needed."
