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When Donald Trump was first elected to the presidency of the United States in 2016, the democratic world watched with a mixture of bewilderment and caution. For many in the international community, it was a moment of profound surprise—a realization that the American electorate was willing to break entirely from established political norms.

However, when the U.S. voter returned him to power for a second term in 2024, that surprise transformed into a deeper, more resonant disbelief. From the vantage point of Sri Lanka, a nation separated by thousands of miles but bound by the shared experience of volatile executive power, the spectacle of a second Trump administration offered a chilling case study in the dangers of an unfettered executive.

A second term of disruption

The first year of Trump’s second term has been a “roller coaster” of executive actions that have bypassed traditional legislative scrutiny. Whether these actions have truly benefited the American economy is a matter of debate within the U.S.

From faraway Sri Lanka, where people watch U.S. politics from a great distance both physically and culturally, making definitive judgments about Trump’s impact — whether on the American economy, society or policies — is not only difficult but imprudent. Within the United States itself, opinions remain deeply divided. Some Americans credit Trump with economic strength; others argue his governance has aggravated social fractures and eroded norms that once underpinned democratic practice.

Controversial milestones of the second term

To understand the alarm felt by both Democrats and uneasy Republicans, one must look at the specific, often impulsive actions that have defined the last year: The “Mass Deportation” Infrastructure: Domestically, the administration’s hardline stance on migrants has reached a fever pitch. Reports of ICE agents entering private homes without judicial warrants—authorized by internal memos—have led to allegations of flagrant human rights violations. The Venezuelan “Capture”: In a move that stunned the diplomatic world, U.S. forces conducted a raid in Caracas in early January 2026, resulting in the capture and rendition of President Nicolás Maduro to face federal charges. This outrageous action went far beyond standard foreign policy, resembling a personal trophy-hunt rather than a reasoned geopolitical strategy. The Greenland Obsession: Trump’s renewed, covetous focus on acquiring Greenland resurfaced in late 2025. When Denmark and the EU resisted, the administration responded with punitive tariffs, treating a sovereign territory as a real estate transaction and alienating long-standing NATO allies. The Bombing of Iranian Nuclear Facilities: In June 2025, during a brief but intense escalation between Israel and Tehran, the U.S. joined in bombing Iranian uranium enrichment sites in a high-stakes gamble that pushed the Middle East to the brink of a regional war. The Gaza “Board of Peace”: Trump’s approach to the conflict in Gaza has been described as “transactional” at best. By creating a “Board of Peace” staffed with personal loyalists and business associates like his son in law Jared Kushner, he has effectively sidelined traditional UN diplomacy in favor of a plan that emphasizes “waterfront development” and private investment over a sovereign Palestinian state.

The dysfunction of the American system

Perhaps the most alarming aspect of these developments is the apparent inability of the American governance system to restrain the executive. The U.S. Constitution was designed with a system of “checks and balances,” yet the second Trump term has demonstrated that these checks are only as strong as the individuals who uphold them.

The fact that major policy shifts—from mass tariffs to military strikes—have been embarked upon without explicit Congressional authority suggests a system in crisis. It supports the
view that when excessive power is vested in a single individual, the result is not a government of laws, but a government of personal whims and ego.

The Sri Lankan parallel: The cost of absolute power

For Sri Lankans, this narrative is hauntingly familiar. We have learned to our great cost that a country with a fragile economy cannot afford the “luxury” of an unrestrained executive presidency. The era of Gotabaya Rajapaksa serves as a grim reminder.

“My words are the official circular.”

This infamous statement by Gotabaya Rajapaksa to government officials captures the same mindset currently being exhibited in Washington. It is a mindset where the “I” becomes the state. The “Api thamai hondatama keruwe” (We did it the best) rhetoric of the Gotabaya Rajapaksa era was a precursor to the Trumpian brand of governance, where personal ego blinds the leader when making governance decisions.

In Sri Lanka, this concentration of power led to a catastrophic economic collapse, proving that while a wealthy superpower like the U.S. might withstand the “shocks” of an erratic leader for a time, a nation like ours will be brought to its knees.

The responsibility of the citizenry

There is a common saying that “people get the government they deserve.” While this statement can be applied to the choice made by the American voter, this cannot be extended to the rest of the world. The global community does not deserve the instability generated by a dysfunctional American presidency.

With the United Nations and the international community largely powerless to stop the roller coaster of the current U.S. administration, the burden of a “reset” falls squarely on the shoulders of the American people. The voice of the citizenry must be more than a whisper in an opinion poll; it must be a corrective force at the ballot box.

Looking ahead

The upcoming mid-term elections on November 3, 2026, offer the American people their first major opportunity to fire the first “salvo” for responsible governance. It is a chance to reassert the authority of Congress and place the necessary guardrails back on a runaway executive. Whether even such a message will have a sobering effect on President Trump’s decision making is however doubtful.

Only a protracted impeachment process can result in any change in the United States unlike in the case of a country with a Westminster Parliamentary model where a no confidence motion passed by a simple majority will do the trick. This would mean the United States and the World will have to live with Donald Trump’s presidency for a few more years. Unless of course the people take a leaf from Sri Lanka’s book and launch an American Aragalaya.

The dangers of the Executive Presidency—whether in Colombo or Washington—are now undeniable. When a leader believes his word is the law, democracy is in jeopardy. The world is in turbulence due to the exercise of untramelled power in Washington. Sri Lankans have learnt to their cost how the Executive presidency bled and fractured the country during the 30 year war as well as plunged the country into turmoil during the economic crisis of 2022.

The process of abolishing the Executive Presidency cannot be delayed any longer. The time for action is now.

(javidyusuf@gmail.com)