Trumps reflecting pool claims deepen global isolation as allies abandon him

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9 days · 11 summary articles
President Donald Trump’s second term has entered a new phase of isolation and controversy, as a cascade of diplomatic rifts, domestic scandals, and erratic policy moves on Tuesday deepened global unease over his leadership. The most immediate flashpoint remains the deteriorating state of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool in Washington, where Trump on Monday reiterated baseless claims that vandals had slashed the basin with a 350-foot knife wound, despite no visible damage reported by journalists and independent observers. Six people have been arrested and 17 police reports filed, according to a White House spokeswoman, though details remain unclear . The episode has become a symbol of the administration’s broader struggles, with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni publicly breaking her silence to warn that Trump’s rhetoric risks undermining transatlantic trust .
Across Europe, once-enthusiastic allies of Trump’s nationalist agenda are now distancing themselves. POLITICO reports that right-wing populist leaders who once saw Trump’s endorsement as a political asset now view it as a liability, particularly as major elections loom in 2027 . In Italy, Meloni’s government has sought to contain the damage, insisting that tensions should not derail the bilateral relationship, but her frustration was evident in a leaked audio recording of a call with a journalist, where Trump was heard saying, “I felt sorry for her” . The spat has overshadowed preparations for the 250th anniversary of U.S. independence, with Trump’s Freedom250 initiative clashing with the congressionally mandated America250 commission over funding and vision .
At home, Trump’s domestic agenda is equally embattled. After a violent weekend in Chicago, he urged Illinois Governor JB Pritzker to request federal military intervention to curb urban crime, a proposal Pritzker has rebuffed while urging Trump to spend less time on social media . Meanwhile, two of his most prominent former allies, Tucker Carlson and Marjorie Taylor Greene, have publicly abandoned the Republican Party, accusing Trump of abandoning core campaign promises and betraying U.S. interests .
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte is en route to Washington in an attempt to steady the alliance amid Trump’s repeated criticisms of European defense spending and his shifting stance on Iran, where U.S. and Iranian officials have agreed to a series of de-escalatory steps in Lebanon . Yet even within his own administration, aides quoted in a forthcoming book describe a president “untethered” from reality, operating on instinct and dismissing polling data that once constrained his impulses . As the Reflecting Pool’s algae-choked waters reflect the widening fractures in Trump’s second term, the question is no longer whether his presidency is in crisis—but how deep the fallout will be.
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![Haberman and Swans "Regime Change": How Trump became "untethered" in second term Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan tell me these are the top two themes of their book on President Trumps second term, "Regime Change," out Tuesday:His greater willingness to use power in his second term — like no other president, period.How four years out of office built up his determination to project that power globally.The latest: In the duos first live interview about "Regime Change," Haberman said Monday night on Lawrence ODonnells "The Last Word" on MS NOW that people got used to Term 1: Trump didnt really know his government, and he was surrounded by aides who saw his behavior as dangerous."Theres none of that now," Haberman said. "They believe there is something almost mystical about him, that he can hear frequencies that maybe they cant. And they hate the mainstream media more than they hate things they see him doing, that they have concerns about."Swan added during the MS NOW appearance, which ran an astonishing 46 minutes, that Trump wants to be "the capital G, Great Man of history.""He wants to reshape the world," Swan said. "I dont think he would have gone to war in Iran in the same circumstances in Term 1. I dont think he would have rolled the dice on what he did in Venezuela. … He wouldnt have started a trade war with the whole world. … But hes in a different mindset, and hes untethered from all of those domestic political considerations [of] the first term."Behind the scenes: Haberman and Swan write that some Trump aides told them they wished their boss "was more anxious about the dangers he was courting, and about his plunging poll numbers.""To the extent he still cared about polling at all, he was seeing far fewer polls than during his first term. His advisors knew he was not receptive to being briefed on harsh realities. In his second term, unlike his first, he was willing to take breathtaking risks, risks that could throw not only his presidency but the Republican Party and the entire world into chaos and carnage. More than ever before as President, he was operating on pure gut instinct." (p. 409)
Watch the interview … Book takeaways (NYT gift link).](https://images.axios.com/dvtceK2OaoLuzjrV_9JH2PMnhfI=/0x0:1280x720/1366x768/2026/06/23/1782210154478.jpg)
