Republican Donald J. Trump will become the next President of the world’s most powerful country. Though the final results have not yet been declared, Trump has crossed the majority mark in the electoral college votes.
It’s been a clean red sweep, despite opinion poll predictions of a close race with his Democratic rival Kamala Harris. The winner needs 270 electoral college votes, and as of now, Trump is at 277 and Harris at 224. Republicans have also taken control of the Senate, which will make it easier for Trump to govern.
Trump’s running mate, JD Vance called Trump’s win the "greatest comeback in history.’’ That is no exaggeration. Trump was convicted on 34 charges of felony, and would possibly be serving a jail sentence if he lost the elections; but despite all these failings, he has made a spectacular comeback.
An early telltale sign for Democrats was the fact that Kamala Harris is not speaking at her watch party at Howard University in Washington, where her supporters had gathered to celebrate in large numbers. The campaign announced that Harris would address them on Wednesday. The dejected crowd, some in tears, quickly left the grounds of the university.
Nobody saw this coming, as the liberal press celebrated Kamala Harris and her positive closing remarks on Monday night, when she refused to mention Trump. For women around the world looking to Harris to finally break the glass ceiling to become the first female president of the US, it is a major disappointment reminiscent of 2016 when Hillary Clinton lost to Trump.
Finally, the economy trumped every other consideration, including the abortion debate that had paid rich dividends for Democrats in every election to the US Congress following the overturn of the Roe versus Wade verdict passed by the US Supreme Court in 2022.
Trump dug into people’s insecurities, offering a different version of politics to those hit by globalisation and feeling left behind. Trump’s Make America Great Again (MAGA) slogan promising to bring back manufacturing and jobs to the US heartland resounded in rural America.
The fear factor also played an important part in the Trump campaign, with the Republican nominee often saying that the US is "occupied’’ by illegal immigrants and that he would "rescue every city and town that had been invaded and conquered."
He also thundered that if he is elected he would begin the "largest deportation program in American history.’’ All this possibly played into the fears of the electorate of the "other’’, the unease over resources going not just to illegal immigrants but people of colour across the country.
The White Christian dominance was under threat and that possibly played an important role, though the Trump campaign did not articulate this publicly.
"Trump was not an accident. He was the symptom of a deeper trend in US society and now has become a cause,’’ says Philip Golub, an academic and professor at the American University in Paris. What Golub meant was that many in America agreed with Trump’s vision, as the presidential results have shown.
Trump 2.0 And The Wars In Middle East And Ukraine
There is mixed feeling about a second Trump presidency for the rest of the world. What will it mean for Israel’s war on Gaza and Lebanon, and Russia’s Ukraine misadventure?
Prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu will be delighted at the outcome. Trump, unlike Joe Biden, is a friend and was responsible for moving the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem in an effort to boost Israel’s claim to the historic city.
Netanyahu could now be emboldened to take on Iran much more aggressively and perhaps strike its nuclear facility. For the desperate people of Gaza and Lebanon, neither Trump nor Harris makes a difference; they have little hope from any American administration whether Democratic or Republican.
Trump is anti-war and had promised to stop the war in Ukraine during his campaign. He did not disclose any details. President Vladimir Putin will be pleased with a Trump presidency as Trump, unlike Biden, is not a Cold War warrior.
NATO allies had hoped for a Harris win as she was likely to follow the Biden lead and rally Europe behind his leadership to take on Putin. Can Trump get President Zelenskyy and Putin to agree to a truce? What a candidate says at election rallies and what happens while in government don’t always coincide. Time will tell what eventually comes about. Europe and NATO allies would not be too pleased but will have to work with Trump.
China’s Xi Jinping will have a tough time dealing with the 60 per cent tariff he has promised to slap on all Chinese imports.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is often praised by Trump and India is unlikely to have any problems with a Trump presidency. There is a rare consensus on India between both Republicans and Democrats.
The Enemy Within
Speculation about what Donald Trump will do once he takes office in January is frightening many. Will he go after the "enemy within’’ -- fellow Americans that he believes have worked against him or harmed him in any way? Will his first 100 days in office become a witch hunt?
First on the firing line will be Jack Smith, special counsel appointed by US attorney general Merrick Garland to investigate whether Trump should face criminal charges for his role in the January 6 attack by his followers on Capitol Hil, and for his mishandling of security papers.
Trump loyalist Senator Lindsey Graham left a note on X to Jack Smith and his team:
“It is time to look forward to a new chapter in your legal careers as these politically motivated charges against President Trump hit a wall,” Graham wrote. “The supreme court substantially rejected what you were trying to do, and after tonight, it’s clear the American people are tired of lawfare. Bring these cases to an end. The American people deserve a refund,” he added.
Will Trump also go after his political opponents like Kamala Harris and other Democrats? Republicans who served him during his first term and failed to endorse him the second time also need to be wary. The worry in Washington is all about what an unpredictable President like Donald Trump will do in his second term.
