Theme 1: Decline in trust in the United States due to Trump’s actions
- jmclnx: “This shows how much trust in the US has declined due to Trump. Netherlands is not the only or first country to do this, other countries have started this too.”
- appleappleapple: “And this lost trust will not suddenly reappear when he leaves office. He has damaged our reputation for a generation.”
Theme 2: Debate over whether voters can be held accountable for elected officials’ conduct
- dhosek: “He’s doing exactly what he said he would do when he ran. People who voted for him can very much be held accountable.”
- andsoitis: “Voters are responsible for selecting representatives, but they are not responsible for running things and making the kinds of decisions that elected officials need to and do make.”
Theme 3: How democracy assigns accountability (officials vs. voters)
- andsoitis: “In a democracy, it is the elected officials, who are meant to represent the voter, that are held accountable. Not the voter.”
- tgv: “If they could have known or suspected those things, then yes, they bear the responsibility. … You cannot disconnect yourself of consequences you helped set in motion.”
Theme 4: Countries moving gold reserves out of the US as a hedge against geopolitical risk/distrust
- andsoitis: “‘for more resilience against a backdrop of increased geopolitical risk.’ is just nice wording for ‘Trump is burning down all bridges.’”
- skrebbel: “Everybody’s tiptoeing around the orange idiot’s feelings and meanwhile working hard to make sure we’re never again so dependent on a country that’s so untrustworthy. This gold move is one of the many little steps taken in that direction.”