President Trump recently delivered a scathing address at the United Nations, criticizing Europe for allowing unbridled immigration and warning it would lead to the continent’s destruction. He contrasted this with his own record, noting his policies had reduced illegal entries into the United States to about 5 percent of the level under Biden.
Trump was criticized in Europe and elsewhere for his immigration policies, even though they were clearly better for the US and despite data showing how immigration is destabilizing Europe. Many world leaders not only rejected Trump’s recommendations but also wanted him to reverse US immigration policies, reopen the borders, and allow 20 million illegal immigrants to remain in the country. Global reactions to his speech reflected the broader belief that foreign governments should have a say in American domestic policies such as immigration.
On the first day of his first administration, in January 2017, Trump withdrew the US from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), a 12-nation trade deal. He argued it was a bad agreement that would harm American workers while benefiting special interests.
Trump declared that his administration’s policy would be to prioritize the financial well-being of Americans in all negotiations and to create fair, economically beneficial agreements that served their interests. He emphasized his intention to negotiate directly with individual countries on a one-on-one basis rather than through large multilateral deals.
Critics around the world accused him of undermining global trade, but his decision effectively ended the TPP, which was largely scrapped after the U.S. withdrawal. During the campaign, Trump had been blunt, calling the TPP “another disaster done and pushed by special interests” and “a continuing rape of our country.”
Also, during his first term, Trump was sharply criticized for withdrawing the US from the World Health Organization. Opponents claimed the move would damage the WHO’s credibility and weaken compliance among member states.
Trump defended the decision by citing the organization’s mishandling of the COVID-19 pandemic that began in Wuhan, its bias toward China, and its lack of independence from political pressure. He also argued the WHO demanded unfairly high payments from the US, while China, with a population more than four times larger, contributed nearly 90 percent less.
Similar criticism resurfaced in 2025 when RFK Jr. urged the US to reject new global health agreements, calling the WHO “moribund.” That May, 124 countries voted for the WHO Pandemic Accord, with only 11 abstentions, but RFK Jr. urged states to reject it. In September, he dismissed a UN declaration on non-communicable diseases, declaring the United States would “walk away” from the agreement.
Hellbound and Down 