The Trump presidency | What is in store for the US and the world?

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By BENJIE OLIVEROS
Bulatlat perspective

The shocking victory of Donald Trump in the US presidential elections – despite the lies that he dished out, his racist, xenophobic, homophobic, anti-women statements, and his blunders during the debates – has been attributed to the rise of the “populist right” in the US and Europe. Understandably so because the messaging of Trump’s presidential campaign and the Brexit, as well as rightist parties all over Europe, had a common theme: stem the tide of the influx of refugees and immigrants.

In Europe, ultra right-nationalist parties have been gaining ground. For example in Austria, the share of votes of the Freedom Party of Austria steadily increased, even doubled from its 10 percent share of votes, landing 18 seats in Parliament in 2002 to 20.5 percent of the votes landing 40 seats in 2013. This coincided with the steady rise in immigration and unemployment in Austria.

The same trend could be seen in France where the National Front saw its share of the votes rise from 14.9 percent in 1997 to 27.7 percent in 2015; in Britain where the United Kingdom Independence Party’s share of the votes rose from 0.3 percent in 1997 to 12.6 percent in 2015; in Germany where the anti-immigrant Alternative for Germany, which, when formed in 2013, got 1.3 percent of the votes increased it to 4.7 percent in 2015. Even in the Netherlands, the anti-Muslim, anti-immigrant Party for Freedom has been making a strong showing in the past two elections. These were also accompanied by high immigration rates and a bad unemployment situation.

However, the term populist right appears to be an oxymoron. Populism is defined as support for the concerns of ordinary people. While indeed unemployment is a legitimate concern of ordinary people, and rightist parties and movements are able to mobilize mass, fanatical following, the leaders and platforms of ultra-nationalist, rightist, fascist parties are far from addressing the concerns of ordinary people. The most conservative, reactionary faction of the ruling elite is leading ultra-nationalist, rightist, fascist parties.

Donald Trump
Donald Trump speaking at a campaign stop at the Mid-America Center in Council Bluffs, Iowa. Dec 2015. (Photo by
Matt Johnson)

Take for example the appointees of the incoming Trump presidency. The appointees, so far, have been described as the richest in White House history.

A number of them are billionaires or have represented the interests of big business. The incoming Trump Cabinet includes the former CEO of Exxon Mobil Rex Tillerson, who will be the Secretary of State; Gary Cohn, who will be the National Economic Council Director, was president and COO of Goldman Sachs; Andrew Puzder, incoming Secretary of Labor, is the CEO of CKE Restaurant Holdings, which owns fast food chains Carl’s Jr and Hardees; Linda McMahon, head of Small Business Administration, is a billionaire, the co-founder and former CEO of WWE; Steven MNuchin, incoming Secretary of the Treasury, was a partner in Goldman Sachs until he formed his own hedge fund; Wilbur Ross, Commerce Secretary, an equity investor who specialized in buying troubled companies; Betsy DeVos, another billionaire, will be heading the Education department.

Trump also has military hawks in his Cabinet namely, Gen. John F. Kelly as Secretary of Homeland Security; retired Marine Corps Gen. James Mattis, who sees “political Islam” as a significant threat, will be Secretary of Defense; Michael Flynn, a retired Army Lieutenant General who believes that the greatest threat to the US is “radical Islamic terrorism,” will be the National Security Adviser; and Republican congressman Mike Pompeo who supports the CIA’s use of torture will be its director .

Don’t forget the racists in Trump’s Cabinet, namely, Jeff Sessions who will be Attorney General and Steve Bannon, former chairman of Breitbart News, a far-right-wing website, is Trump’s Chief Strategist and Senior Adviser.

Of course it has always been the same: the US government, whether it is the Republicans or Democrats at the helm, has been working for the interests of big business, especially financial investment houses, oil companies and the military-industrial complex, at the expense of the working classes. It’s just that the Trump administration portends to be the worst of it all.

In the final analysis, these developments could not be accurately attributed to the rise of ultra-nationalists, fascists, and rightists. It could be attributed more to the failure of the proponents of neoliberalism. They pursue the same goals and interests as that of ultra-nationalists, fascists, and rightists. It’s just that they hide behind the trappings of “liberal democracy.”

It’s time for the people to take their destiny into their own hands. (https://www.bulatlat.com)

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  1. WHY DONALD TRUMP WON THE US PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION?

    MOST AMERICANS CHOSE BETWEEN THE LESSER OF TWO EVILS: THIS WAS THE COMMON STATEMENT MADE BY FELLOW AMERICANS. AND DONALD TRUMP WON FOR OTHER REASONS AS WELL.

    Kill-ary/Hitler-y has so much scandals on her back: Benghazi cover-up and fraud involving the CLINTON FOUNDATION PAY-FOR-PLAY MULTI-MILLION $$$ WITH FOREIGN STATE LEADERS.

    Most importantly, many evangelical Christians voted for Donald Trump for FAITH reason.
    Under Obama’s era, the USA was ruled by an invisible government whose agenda is to dominate and subject all nations under the One World Government (OWG). And thank God that by His WILL, Kill-ary Clinton lost the 2016 Presidential Election.

    Obama and Clinton are minions of the OWG or the New World Order. The USA and the world would have been on fast track toward total globalization for all citizens of the world and also TO CONTROL the world commerce.

    The Holy Bible speaks about the One World Government. Revelation13:16-17 “And he causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads:” “And that no man might buy or sell, save (except) he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.” This is the Mark of the Beast,” one of the most often quoted and least understood end time prophecies of the Bible. The word translated “Mark” means, literally, “graven.” It conveys the sense of being “branded.” Mark of the Beast The custom of the Hebrews, when they took a slave for life, was to mark them by driving an awl through their ear. (Exodus 21:6). During Apostle John’s time, slaves were branded by their owners in a similar fashion.

    Accepting the mark of the Beast means you are sold into slavery, to Satan. Without a mark, a person will be unable to engage in routine commerce. Notice here, it does not say you cannot live. It says you cannot buy or sell. DO NOT TAKE THIS MARK; Jesus will help you. Anyone who accepts this mark during the Tribulation has already made his choice, and that choice will permanently disqualify its wearer from heaven. Remember when you get the mark you MUST swear allegiance to the Antichrist as god. It isn’t merely economic, it is a worship system. Accepting the mark is a permanent, irreversible rejection of our Lord Jesus Christ. Without Jesus in God’s Final Judgment, the Bible says in Revelation 20:15, “And whosoever was not found written n the book of life, was cast into the lake of fire.”
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  2. I’m trying to understand why no one ever comments on the stories on this blog. Maybe because they are not allowed to?

  3. “It’s time for the people to take their destiny into their own hands.”

    Considering the fact that poor of the world vastly out number the rich, one would think this would be a fairly easy thing to do: “The two richest Canadians have the same amount of wealth as the poorest 30 per cent of the country combined … the world’s eight richest people have as much wealth as the poorest 50 per cent of the world’s population.”
    https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2017/01/15/two-richest-canadians-as-wealthy-as-poorest-30-per-cent-report-says.html

    Yet the poor continue to vote against their own interests, as the US election clearly shows. Perhaps it is out of desperation that some new demagogic leader will change things for the better, as seems to have happened in the Philippines. But all see there, as here in Canada and the US, is more of the same failed neo-liberal policies and broken promises.

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