Following the US midterm elections, in which results since Wednesday have pointed to a sweeping blue wave across the country, Foreign Minister Xavier Bettel has said the Democrats must now show that their intentions go beyond blocking the president’s decisions.
Trump, too, Bettel says, needs to compromise if he wants to avoid becoming a "lame duck" president ahead of the next election,
In the US, a "lame duck president" describes a situation in which political deadlock prevents the president from implementing policy. "In that case, everyone is lame, but then America is lame", Bettel said.
He also warned of uncertainty over how the US might react to international events, especially regarding Iran.
"What happens in the morning could be different by the evening", he said, advising a wait-and-see approach.
It would be in America's best interest, he stressed, if Democrats and Republicans found common ground. Given the personalities involved, he admitted this would be "a very difficult mission."
Bettel added that the results also send a signal to Europe: it is worth fighting extremism and discrimination, and the US has shown it no longer wants to engage in "culture wars."
Luxembourg Socialist Workers' Party (LSAP) MP and Vice President of the parliamentary committee on foreign affairs Yves Cruchten says Trump must now be held accountable.
"I expect that the president will no longer be able to act unilaterally and make one-sided decisions without consulting Congress", he said, citing Trump's approach to Iran. He sees this as a key reason voters opted for change.
The results show that right-wing populism can be countered, even in Europe, Cruchten pointed out, but he warned against complacency: Trump's "America First" policy is likely to continue.
Europe must therefore become more independent, focus on its own interests and stand on its own feet. He hopes the Democrats will not simply act as obstructionists, which would serve neither them nor the public.
Christian Social People's Party (CSV) MP Laurent Zeimet, also Vice President of the parliamentary foreign affairs committee, welcomed the midterm results as "good news" from the United States.
"It is encouraging to see that Americans have shown their democracy works: with a strong majority, they have slowed down the president and his policies. That gives people hope for the next two years", he said.
He hopes the Democrats can "restore reliability and trust" in transatlantic relations, but cautioned that the party is large and diverse.
Only if internal divisions do not undermine a united front towards Trump, he said, will "a number of course corrections" be possible, especially on relations with Europe.
