This time, Donald Trump is not only better prepared for his term as president, but everyone else's attitude towards him is also much different than in 2016, notes the German public media ARD. Instead of waiting and standing aside, many of the most influential politicians and company bosses are looking for a conversation with him and even courting him.
"In my first term, everyone argued with me. This time, everyone wants to be my friend," Trump said at his first press conference after winning the US election.
"Everybody's looking for him"
In this statement, the 78-year-old future president refers to heads of state and government from all over the world. And no, he doesn't have to look for them himself: "They literally call me", Trump explains. He has already spoken to "over a hundred" leaders, he assures, adding: "You wouldn't believe how many countries there are in the world."
The national security adviser-elect Michael Walz is very impressed by the number of requests to speak with Trump. "It's unbelievable, the whole world is looking for him and reaching out to him. It's stunning," Waltz told the American channel CBS.
The courtship by the heads of American technology giants is particularly evident. For months we have watched Elon Musk donate to Trump's campaign, and in the meantime he is almost everywhere with him. Now the heads of Apple, Amazon, Meta and Open AI are also lining up to meet with Trump at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida.
There is no trace of the criticism that was heard before. "Tim Cook was here, Jeff Bezos will be here," Trump explains. The future president has already spoken with Mark Zuckerberg and Sam Altman. "Top executives, bank heads - they all come."
"He likes to be liked"
But why do the heads of big tech companies want to be close to Trump? "They want to make money - their interests are focused on their shareholders," says journalist Kara Swisher. "And we should know that when each of them offers Trump $1 million for his inauguration ceremony, that's nothing to these people. Elon Musk's companies have increased their value by many billions since he invested $250 million in Trump. "
Each of the heads of the big tech companies has their own reasons for courting Donald Trump, Swisher tells CNN and gives examples: Google is currently under the scrutiny of the Department of Justice, Jeff Bezos would like to have "some of those nice space contracts" with the government that Elon Musk has, and TikTok is desperately trying to prevent its sale or ban in the US. "So now everyone goes to dinner at Mar-a-Lago and does what needs to be done - no matter what the cost."
Trump's policy is based on personal relationships and deals, Swisher adds, quoted by ARD. According to the journalist, the heads of tech companies are now demonstrating how best to work with Trump. "They will send him cheerful and friendly messages. It works. He likes to be liked. And they will do just that."
Author: Ralf Borchardt (ARD)