Christine Lagarde was seated among prime ministers, presidents and European royalty in Davos, Switzerland, last month when Howard Lutnick took the mic. The U.S. Commerce Secretary launched into an attack on Europe, railing against the continent’s energy policies and declining place on the world stage. Lagarde had heard enough. The president of the European Central Bank stood up and left the opening dinner of the annual World Economic Forum. Others followed. “To have as a last speaker, without any rebuttal of any arguments, someone who just bashed Europe, right, left, and center. I thought it was just too much,” Lagarde said in…

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