U.S. Democrats at the Munich Security Conference sought to ease European concerns over President Donald Trump by stressing his presidency’s brevity.
Marco Rubio, U.S. Secretary of State, took centre stage with his Saturday address. European leaders watched warily for signs of Washington’s direction. Rubio emphasised shared Western roots and NATO’s stand against threats like Russia in Ukraine, while pushing for tougher border controls—a message that won applause but offered no rapid conflict resolutions.
Unlike Vice President JD Vance’s sharp 2025 critique, Rubio signalled enduring U.S. alliances despite strains from Trump’s 10 per cent tariffs on nations including Denmark, France and Germany over Greenland resistance—potentially rising to 25 per cent by June.
Dozens of U.S. governors and senators attended, many Democrats eyeing 2028. California Governor Gavin Newsom was direct at a Friday climate panel. “If there’s nothing else I can communicate today, Donald Trump is temporary. He’ll be gone in three years,” he said.
New Hampshire Senator Jeanne Shaheen added, “The reason we’re here is to provide reassurance that we understand how important our European allies are.” Republican Senator Thom Tillis dismissed U.S.-Europe tensions as mere “rhetoric of American politics,” not a “civil war.”
Democrats highlighted domestic woes too. Virginia Senator Mark Warner attacked Trump’s election overhauls and voter ID push via the SAVE Act, threatening November midterms. “I never thought I would say that in 2026 America,” he said.
Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez drew crowds, linking wealth gaps—her focus since her 2018 win—to authoritarian rises.
“It is of the utmost urgency that we get our economic houses in order and deliver material gains for the working class. Otherwise, we will fall into a more isolated world governed by authoritarians who also do not deliver to working people,” she said.
This echoed Joe Biden’s democratic appeals, clashing with Trump’s “America First” return in 2024.
With midterms looming, Democrats cast themselves as reliable transatlantic partners beyond 2028.