The competition for the most hated living person in 2026 is probably the stiffest it has been in decades.  I mean, with North Korea’s Kim Jong Un, Russia’s Vladimir Putin and Elon Musk in the contest one might think President Donald Trump’s chances would be slim.  I believe, however, that he would win this title hands down.  And here are just a few of the many reasons why Trump would achieve this dubious distinction and how he is failing as a result.  

Trump loves to have leverage over friend and opponent alike and he wields it unmercifully.  For example, he uses his fanatical base of supporters to threaten and control Republican politicians, and I am certain that most of them seethe about it behind his back.

Trump tries to use tariffs and U.S. military power as leverage over every nation worldwide, including America’s closest allies and neighbors and they are appalled by it.  When he attempted to use these powers to force Denmark to cede Greenland to the United States, however, the European Union stood firm behind their NATO partner and quickly backed him down. 

This debacle made Trump and the United States virtual pariahs in Europe.  In fact, YouGov surveys found that large majorities in Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Spain and Great Britain all had an unfavorable opinion of the United States because of Trump.  Vice President JD Vance was even booed at the recent opening of the Olympics in Italy.  

Trump has used tariffs and other coercion to bully our good neighbor and second largest trading partner, Canada.  I believe he wants this vast country as the 51^st state just so he can claim that the U.S. landmass makes it the largest country in the world.  But he has angered most Canadians and their leaders, who are turning to China and Europe to achieve more diversified trade relations.  To make matters worse, last week Trump threatened to illegally block the opening of a much-needed Canadian funded bridge into Michigan that he had earlier approved. 

Trump’s focus on the Americas as the U.S. sphere of influence is causing the Koreans, the Japanese and other Pacific allies to wonder if they can trust America to side with them against behemoth China.  They also fear that Trump’s trade deals are not reliable and might be reversed at any time, which is causing them to seek other trading partners too.

Here at home, Trump is angering almost everyone except his most avid MAGA supporters.  Perhaps he thought that the rest of us would cave in to his authoritarian extortion like the cowardly leaders of some major U.S. law firms, large media corporations and prestigious universities. It is becoming quite clear, however, that most Americans, like foreign leaders, are not about to kneel to an arrogant, untrustworthy, and stupid man like Trump. 

I believe the Trump inspired surge of 3,000 ICE and border patrol agents into Democratic-led Minneapolis was intended to stifle the city’s opposition to his administration’s inhuman and frequently unconstitutional immigration enforcement and deportation sweeps.  He evidently hoped that this invasion would set an example and discourage resistance to these efforts in cities nationwide. Well, fortunately, the opposite occurred.

Thousands of Minneapolis residents displayed America’s best neighbor for neighbor character by pushing back hard against the federal thugs that were ravaging their city.  I think these heroes are the major reason Trump’s border czar, Tom Homan, announced the end of the 10-week Minneapolis surge last Thursday.  And I believe there are tens of millions of Americans like them, ready to stand up to and defeat Trump and the cowardly Republican politicians who support him. 

After federal judges ruled that Trump’s deployment of federalized national guard troops was unlawful, the White House quietly removed them from all cities and retreated from this blatant intimidation effort.  Moreover, federal judges in Michigan and Oregon, one appointed by Trump, have smacked down the Justice Department’s efforts to seize voter files from states.  The Oregon judge flatly stated that the department cannot be trusted with this sensitive data.

In fact, Trump is failing in so many ways that I cannot cover all of them in one post.  

• Nationwide, over 300 federal judges, Democrat and Republican appointed alike, have rejected the administration’s mandatory detention policy that was initiated last July. 

• The House passed a resolution rescinding Trump’s tariffs on Canada after six Republicans defied GOP leadership and voted with the Democrats. 

• Democrats easily won seats in the Texas and Louisiana state legislatures by double digits in districts that Trump won handily in 2024.

• The bipartisan pressure on the DOJ to release all the Jeffery Epstein files – which will likely show that Trump was frequently involved in Epstein’s depravity – is continuing unabated.

A February 6-9 Economist/YouGov poll shows Trump’s job approval among young voters dropping an unprecedented 51 points in just one year.   His handling of the economy approval among the critically important independent voters is down an eye-watering 53 points when compared to the same point during his first presidency.  If it were not for Fox News, and the like, extolling everything Trump is doing while totally ignoring the horrific harm he is causing, I think his approval ratings might be in single digits.

Citing the resistance of Minneapolis’ citizen heroes, famed political analyst, Nate Silver, advises “Don’t discount American democracy’s resilience.”  I agree.  But I believe it will also soundly defeat Trump’s authoritarian agenda. 

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