DONALD TRUMP AND IR THEORY: REALISM VS. LIBERALISM IN CONTEXT

August 7, 2018

Is Donald Trump a realist or a liberal? This is the question which this dissertation will 
tackle through careful analysis of each school of thought, while cross examining the key 
concepts of each with current issues in global politics which Trump has reacted to. From the 
relevant policies and comments a distillation of theoretical underpinnings will be attempted to 
some degree of success. However, given the vagueness and oft perceived confused nature of the 
Trump administration, a strong enough correlation to say that Donald Trump is certainly one or 
the other will not be found. Instead, it shall be posed that a reframing of the question is in order if 
the academy is to make any progress towards understanding the Trump administration from a 
theoretical perspective.