Final Davos forecast: Sunny, lows of -19C/-3F, highs of -7C/19F — perfect for hitting the slopes. THE DONALD WEIGHS ON DAVOS YUP, WE HEAR YOU CHRISTIAN: “We’re talking too much about Donald Trump in Europe,” declared German Finance Minister Christian Lindner during the final WEF panel Friday, bringing some welcome Teutonic bluntness to the debate that has dominated discussion this week: the upcoming U.S. election. Fending for ourselves: Lindner added that “doing our homework is the best preparation for a possible second term of Donald Trump, and this includes our capabilities to defend ourselves.” Real worries: Linder captured a truth few want to publicly acknowledge: Europe is terrified a second Trump presidency will leave the EU holding the baby when it comes to helping Ukraine. TODAY’S POLITICO MUST READ: My colleague Alex Ward has this excellent wrap-up piece from Davos, writing that top U.S. officials and lawmakers found themselves constantly reassuring foreign counterparts that the United States had everything under control, despite the mess in the Middle East, the Ukraine wobbles, and the Donald looming over it all. NOTABLE QUOTABLES Here’s a sample of what the Davos crowd had to say about the coming US election … AUSTRIAN FOREIGN MINISTER ALEXANDER SCHALLENBERG: “We should refrain from treating elections, whether in Europe or in the U.S., as a source of insecurity and instability, as a problem,” Alexander Schallenberg said, in reference to the upcoming U.S. ballot. “Elections are the very heart of our democratic system.” Don’t despair: The Austrian foreign minister insisted EU support for Ukraine would hold regardless of what happens in the U.S. — and despite minimal progress in Kyiv’s counter-offensive. “Europe understands perfectly well that we have to stand by Ukraine, we have to support Ukraine and we will continue to do so. We should be very cautious about saying that the campaign didn’t achieve the results people didn’t expect — there was probably a mismanagement of expectations in the first place. We shouldn’t despair — we need the longer lens.” EU TRADE COMMISSIONER VALDIS DOMBROVSKIS: The three-term former Latvian prime minister urged Europe to seize the moment. “We need to ramp up our own capabilities,” Valdis Dombrovskis said. “We need to clearly be at a much higher level of preparedness as regards military capabilities but also as regards economic security and economic resilience.” Background: The U.S. is not the only Ukraine-ally struggling to agree funds for Kyiv — the EU is locked in discussions about releasing a €50 billion aid package promised to Ukraine, amid resistance from Hungary. JPMORGAN CHASE CEO JAMIE DIMON: But it was the view of the business community that grabbed attention this week, with top CEO Jamie Dimon making waves with his supportive comments on Trump. Though Dimon’s point was a good one — Democrats shouldn’t repeat the mistake of patronizing Trump supporters — his claim that the former U.S. president was right on a range of policy issues has gone down badly with Democrats. Brushing off the CV? The comments have sparked speculation about Dimon’s potential game plan. Could he fancy himself the next Gary Cohn or Steven Mnuchin? Is he eyeing a job in a future Trump administration? Let’s see next year, when the World Economic Forum is likely to take place just after the U.S. presidential inauguration. BANK OF AMERICA CEO BRIAN MOYNIHAN: Speaking to my colleague Zach Warmbrodt, Brian Moynihan took a long-term view, noting that his bank — the second-largest in the U.S. — dates back to 1784. “There have been some interesting elections in that time,” he said. “We just have to be ready.” Democracy alert: But another executive described “a lot of hand-wringing about what a Trump presidency would mean.” The executive told Zach: “There are certainly people who believe that the Democrats have gone too far in different areas of regulation. But also, people are very fearful of the anti-democratic notions that would come along [under Trump], what that would mean for American business.” UK CHANCELLOR OF THE EXCHEQUER JEREMY HUNT: Britain’s top finance minister Jeremy Hunt was more direct, issuing a warning to Trump that a return to U.S. protectionism would be a “profound mistake” if he wins the U.S. election in November. Reality check: With a U.K. election on the cards this year and Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s Conservative Party tanking in the polls, who knows if Hunt will still be in his job by the time the next U.S. president takes office.
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