Trump’s closest friend in Europe was a strongman who spent a lot of time with MAGA Republicans. His loss — and the ‘cringe’ way in which JD Vance failed to prevent it from happening — will change a lot. Holly Baxter reports I t began on a mild day in April, five days before the election. JD Vance stood onstage in a blue suit, American flag on his lapel, and asked a gathered audience in Budapest whether they would “stand against the bureaucrats in Brussels”, “stand for western civilization”, and