For a president of United States (US) who declared before election that he would like to end all wars, Donald Trump's actions and declarations after he took office make him anything but a pacifist or a globalist. If economic confrontations are considered as close cousins of shooting wars, then the list of belligerent moves crafted by the Trump administration on the bilateral trade front reveal president Trump to be a pugnacious warrior on all fronts. In declaring trade war through tariffs against both friends and foes to resuscitate American manufacturing and vowing to use force for achievement of geo-political goals, Trump has made it abundantly clear that he wants to upend the existing world order violently, if that is what his grand plan requires. Judged by this narrow nationalist perspective, Trump appears no better than Adolf Hitler who waged a world war to retrieve and promote German interests, ignoring the safety and welfare of people of other countries. A brief overview of the policy declarations and actions taken by the Trump Administration so far may show whether this apprehension is reasonable enough to merit serious attention of all countries and call for their unified stand against the fascist display of national interests by America.
The transitional team, put together by president-elect Donald Trump with loyalists, knew what their taskmaster wanted as the agenda for his second term presidency, has prepared a detailed plan of action in each area of his interest. For this the team simply re-booted the programme of the neo-cons and extended the Trumpian political and economic agenda, as revealed during his first term in office. If there is little new in the plan of action unfurled so far, the urgency and ferocity of the policy push across the spectrum of governance is unmistakable. In every sector of intervention, policies are being articulated through presidential executive orders bypassing legislature and ignoring court orders. In internal policy actions the executive branch has thus assumed totalitarian authority, giving the go by to separation of powers enshrined in American constitution. There has been nothing gradual about this tilt towards arch conservatism and autocratic governance chosen to implement it. Everything has been outlined in details and carried out in one fell swoop as is the case with wars waged against enemies.
In the war unleashed on the home front, the values and programs adopted and pursued through policies and programmes by moderates and liberals are in the crossfire of Trump administration. Ditching the ideals of 'diversity, equality and inclusiveness' (DEI), purges of civil and military functionaries have started with a missionary zeal. The policy of affirmative action that somewhat ensured equality in education and employment for groups disadvantaged because of gender, race and sexual orientations, has been denounced under the rubric 'woke' and replaced with the blue print of a divided society. In the polity also, various changes in the electoral process (restricting voting rights, amending powers of election officials etc) through executive orders, democracy as practiced before (free and fair election, accountability of the executive branch) is under serious threat. Even the constitutional limitation on a person elected as president only for two terms may be set aside to suit the ambition of the incumbent president.
The war being waged on the home front includes reversal of policies on such scientific matters of grave import as climate change. As he did during his first term in office, president Trump has pulled America out of the 2015 Paris Climate Accord once again, on the grounds that concerns about climate change are not based on scientific facts and that controlling carbon emissions is not in the interest of America. Simultaneous with the withdrawal from the Paris Accord, Trump administration has terminated all financial incentives for industries to transition into green technology. Furthermore, the cap on drilling for new oil and gas reserves has been removed, followed by the slogan 'drill baby drill'. The Environment Protection Agency (EPA), tasked to protect environment through enforcement of regulations and sponsor research has been effectively dismantled.
On the pretext of reducing the budgetary debt burden public expenditures on such vital areas as federal grants for scientific research have been drastically slashed. The entire Department of Education has been abolished, terminating its beneficial role in various areas of education promotion. Using the same argument, thousands of federal employees have been dismissed or sent on early retirement putting pressure on the job market.
Tech and media giants having backed president Trump in the last election have got their wish about a loose and weak regulatory framework fulfilled as previous rules and regulations controlling their activities have either been whittled down or abolished. Same holds true for financial institutions like banks and institutions linked to the Wall Street.
Unabashedly ushering in a plutocratic regime, president Trump has met the demands of industrial and financial institutions for reduced tax burden. Corporate income tax has been slashed to 20 per cent, while capital gains tax has been brought down to 15 per cent. It is estimated that extending the expiring 2017 Tax Cut and Jobs Act would decrease the federal revenue by $4.5 trillion from 2025 through 2035.
To help investors and industrial titans, president Trump is determined to have the basic interest rate lowered from its present level of 4.25 - 4.50 per cent and has been putting pressure on the Federal Reserve Bank. The Fed wants to reduce the base rate after inflation comes down to 2 per cent from its present 2.9 per cent and has kept the pause in rate hike for the present. President Trump, livid with anger, has fumed against the Fed chairman and may be plotting for his removal.
The abrupt and global reciprocal tariff imposed by Trump administration on 60 countries on April 2, from tiny Madagascar to economic giants like China and European Union (EU,) has brought sharp response from leaders of most of the major economies. In response, China has slapped 34 per cent retaliatory tariff in addition to the existing 20 per cent on all American exports to China. EU is likely to respond with tit for tat tariff soon.
Together with the domestic economic policy decisions, the backlash of the new tariff will fuel recessionary pressure in the American economy. It is estimated that the cumulative effect of the policy decisions on American economy will result in 2.5 per cent less growth in GDP. The global economy is now in the same stage as it was in the decade of '30s of last century when tariff war led to recession in all the industrialised countries. The IMF has made the forecast that as a result of the widespread tariff imposed by president Trump, the global economy faces 'significant risk'.
If president Trump's economic policies are full of dire consequences, both for middle and working class Americans and people belonging to those classes in other countries, his foreign policy harks back to the days of imperialism, gunboat diplomacy and world wars, all wrapped together. His penchant for deal making with a big stick may prove to be disastrous for global peace and security, unless held in check domestically or internationally.
Soon after assuming office president Trump declared that he would like to take over Panama Canal and Greenland from their present administration by the governments of Panama and Denmark. The whole world was in awe and amazement hearing this declaration of intent by the leading light of democracy. Ignoring disbelief and shock by the whole world president Trump sent his secretary of state to Panama and vice president to Greenland to press home the policy of taking over. The Panama government has seemed to placate the Trump administration after agreeing to replace the ownership of Chinese companies managing the canal with Blackstone, an American investment company. In Greenland, the idea of ownership by America has been seen as tantamount to a blatant aggression and roundly condemned by Denmark and the people of Greenland.
In respect of Gaza, the Palestinian strip in middle-east under Israeli occupation undergoing genocide for over one year, the policy announced by president Trump envisages it being taken over by America and developed as a Mediterranean Riviera, with the Palestinians relocated in other countries. The ruthlessness embedded in this idea has come as a shock to world leaders and peace loving people everywhere. The cruelty and greed revealed in this policy declaration has shown president Trump as a person obsessed with the spirit of aggrandizement and hate even when it may spell catastrophe for a nation or the people of the whole world, including the average citizens of America. His latest move into foreign affairs in pursuance of narrow geo-political interests in the middle- east may prove to be the most dangerous, leading to world war three. In presenting Iran a choice to make a deal on its nuclear program or else be bombed by America, president Trump has thrown diplomacy of mutual respect by the window. His sabre- rattling over Iran's nuclear programme may turn out to be the most dangerous and consequential policy declaration for world peace since the second world war.
By his words and deeds during the first quarter of his term president Trump has left no doubt that he is a megalomaniac and a warmonger who can only cause pain and suffering to the vast majority of the peace loving people in the world, including America. He is a clear and present danger to the world and has to be stopped in his tracks by populist protests and warnings by world leaders.
Trump is the face of all evils, the like of which the world saw only a few times in the past. As in the case of past monsters, Donald Trump has to be defeated.
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