Herald View: Lessons from the US election 

US Presidential election went to the wire with voters split between Democrats and Republicans, between urban and rural areas, between liberals and conservatives

Representative Image (Photo Courtesy: IANS)
Representative Image (Photo Courtesy: IANS)
user

NH Web Desk

Donald Trump did not quite lose. Joe Biden did not quite win. A clear and decisive victory or defeat would have been less bruising. But the US Presidential election went to the wire with voters split between Democrats and Republicans, between urban and rural areas, between liberals and conservatives. The country stood divided. Significantly, almost half the electorate and the Republican establishment rallied round the incumbent. President Trump’s mishandling of the pandemic did not matter. Nor did growing unemployment in the US. They were not moved by police killing George Floyd and other Americans of colour in cold blood. Black lives and demand for racial justice left them unmoved. Devout Catholics and evangelists campaigned against Biden for supporting abortion laws and representation for transgenders. They voted for the President despite 26 accusations of sexual misconduct against him. The US President had survived an impeachment, an estimated four thousand lawsuits and multiple bankruptcies. Media chronicled as many as 20,000 lies he uttered from the White House.

The fact that he refused to reveal his tax record did not upset his supporters, nor did disclosures that he had evaded millions of Dollars in taxes and paid even less by way of Income Tax than the average American. A record number of aides that he first appointed and then sacked, wrote telltale books casting aspersions on the understanding and ability of the US President. And his frenetic tweets of late carry the warning that his claims are disputed and could be fake. And yet almost half the country reposed their faith in him. Possibly they approved of the President who claimed that he was more concerned about the economy and jobs than Coronavirus; or when he said that the Coronavirus was of no consequence. The fact that the President of the United States tested positive and bounced back to his normal routine within days may have reassured his supporters that they too had nothing to fear; that the hopeless obsession with the pandemic on the part of scientists, media and democrats was responsible for the slump in the economy and loss of jobs. Or they could have simply preferred a more entertaining President in the White House.


Right wing and authoritarian leaders have time and again displayed their ability to blame others for every misfortune. In the case of Trump also, for the past four years he riled against China, immigrants, the media, his own aides, ‘shithole countries’ like India with high tariff and later scientists for his failures to deal with trade, economy and the pandemic. He arguably hurt the United States by polarising the country, instigating violence, approving gun culture and by creating an ‘enemy’ within the country. There are lessons for every other country in the world on how popular demagogues grab power and abuse it. By questioning the electoral process itself and ridiculously describing it as a ‘fraud’ even before the counting ended, President Trump has made his position even more untenable.

While Americans grapple with Trumpism, democracy and the electoral system, no serious or significant change is expected in US policies. With Democrats failing to take control of the Senate, neither the US nor the World can look forward to serious reforms to address issues like inequality, racial justice, gender equality or climate change. If there is one winner in this US election, it is the establishment which has ensured continuance of the status quo.

Follow us on: Facebook, Twitter, Google News, Instagram 

Join our official telegram channel (@nationalherald) and stay updated with the latest headlines