THERE WILL BE two rather different gatherings of the world’s most powerful people on January 20. In the luxury ski resort of Davos, Switzerland, the 2017 meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF)—the annual four-day coming together of political and business leaders—will be wrapping up. If there is a global clubhouse for establishment figures, Davos is it.
Meanwhile, as WEF delegates attend their final cocktail parties, avowed anti-establishment Republican Donald Trump will be sworn in as the 45th president of the United States in Washington, D.C. Attendees at Davos will know that Trump’s presidency threatens to uproot the norms of diplomacy and trade and sweep away the ethos of international cooperation at the heart of the WEF. This year, the global elite won’t just be exchanging business cards; they’ll be seeking reassurance.
The anger at the establishment among Western voters may have scared some leaders away from attending the invitation-only gathering in Switzerland. German Chancellor Angela Merkel decided in early January that she would not be going. French Prime Minister François Hollande will also be a no-show. British Prime Minister Theresa May might attend, but she’s shepherding her country out of the European Union, which is not a very Davos thing to do.