It pays to pivot

Trump’s willingness to switch track on policies is a good thing. All leaders should take note

You can disagree with Trump’s ideology, if he has one, and you can frown upon his methods, but you can’t deny the man can pivot. Like he did on Saturday at the Pope’s funeral. Having told off Zelenskyy at their last face-to-face on Feb 28 – “you’ve done a lot of talking…you’re not winning this…you’re gambling with WW-III” – he sat down again with the Ukrainian leader inside St Peter’s Basilica. Videos show three chairs were hurriedly placed but only Trump and Zelenskyy sat, drawing closer into what psychologists would describe as a sub-4-foot “friendly” range. 

What Trump said afterwards about Putin was the real surprise. He’s been accusing Zelenskyy of starting the war, even when Russian strikes killed over 30 Ukrainians in Sumy on April 13. And again last Wednesday – “It’s inflammatory statements like Zelenskyy’s that makes it so difficult to settle this War.” But after Saturday’s meeting, Trump sounded doubtful about Putin’s intentions – “maybe he doesn’t want to stop the war, he’s just tapping me along, and has to be dealt with differently”. 

It’s a clear shift, and Trump has rapidly changed position on other matters too in recent days. For instance, he’s become less strident on the China tariff issue. Last Tuesday, he said tariffs will “come down substantially. But it won’t be zero”. He’s already backed off from his threat to fire Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell. For now, his department of Homeland Security has also paused the campaign to deport foreign students. Altogether, some would say, Trump isn’t looking like the strong and decisive leader his MAGA voters wanted. Yet, flexibility might be his greatest strength. After all, he was elected to deliver, not sink under the weight of his bluster.

If tariffs are backfiring, there’s no point persisting with them while American firms and consumers suffer. Brexit, for instance, was a huge mistake – UK’s per capita GDP has risen just 4% over the 2016 level, as against 8% across the eurozone – but the country’s been too proud to change course. Trump is smarter that way, and other leaders shouldn’t become hostage to their own rhetoric either. While Indian leaders spoke hot words after Pahalgam, and rightly so, India’s actions should be governed by cold self-interest. Unlike Pakistan, India has a global stature and a promising future. There’s no point in jeopardising both with rash actions.