If man was created in the image of God, then this American administration was created in the image of Donald Trump. His lieutenants are loyal to his aesthetic, worldview and unusual morality. The president believes corruption is not really corruption if he is the one that benefits, and that principle, if we can call it that, extends down the branches of his administration. In other words, for all his faults, at least we can say that the president leads by example.

That is not the case across all territories. Britain rattles through prime ministers who routinely lash out at Whitehall when they realise they cannot make it obey. On various supranational matters, European leaders are subordinate to the bureaucracy in Brussels. The same goes for Trump’s first term, which saw him rage in vain against Congress and the Republican establishment.

Subscribe to the New Statesman and save 40% for 1 year!