Much will be said and written about Donald Trump’s phenomenal rise to power and America, along with the rest of the world, will watch as he begins to implement his agenda; one that remains a mystery to many. But Trump’s historic victory last week, heralding what is now seen as a second American revolution against the ruling establishment, was in fact a triumph for a movement whose core is largely made up of angry white middle class that has become disenchanted with the political and socioeconomic status quo.
It is a rebellion against globalization, the elite and a world order that has sucked the life out of America’s hinterland. Trump gave voice to voiceless millions and his detractors focused on the messenger when they should have turned their attention to the message.
But America is equally divided. Trump’s presidency will deepen the divide and his reign will be fraught with backlashes from the far-right and the far-left forces. His unrefined nationalist/populist message appealed to a diverse group of people; from the distressed white middle class to blue-collar workers in America’s rust belt states who believe they were abandoned by the system. This is why Republicans as well Democrats voted for him. It was not about ideology, but emotions, mostly anger, and this is probably why voters ignored Trump’s contradictory views on policies. He was anti-Washington and the corrupt, rigged system it espouses. This is why he, as a complete outsider, defeated veteran Republican governors and senators in the primaries, and this is why he pulled off a surprise victory last week when he defied the odds and the polls and defeated Hillary Clinton. After all is said and done his was a facetious triumph — and a proverbial slap in the face — against the Republican and Democratic institutions.
The Trump phenomenon has similarities with recent examples such as Narendra Modi’s spectacular victory in India in 2014 and, to a lesser extent, Rodrigo Duterte’s election as president in the Philippines earlier this year. One can look at Turkey’s Erdogan and his populist appeal, or at the British supporting Brexit and the influence of UKIP’s Nigel Farage and its right-wing message.
In recent years, the far right has been gaining ground in France, Germany, Austria, and The Netherlands among others. Playing on ethnic-religious fears most of these cases point to a new reality that we should get ready to accept, resist or cope with in the coming years and decades.
They are all reactions to and backlashes against globalization, the information revolution and the changing socioeconomic realities of our present age. Free trade and movement of people, immigration — legal and not — the domination of western, largely American, cultural values, the shifting economic balance of power and the transition into a new industrial, technology-based era have contributed to massive cultural shakeups especially in developed countries. Multiculturalism became the norm in many western countries and this was bound to trigger a populist response.
What we are seeing is a 21st century form of a non- ideological, pseudo-democratic, populist movement driven by an innate quest for survival in a fast- changing world. While it has no solid answers to today’s complex challenges — climate change, atheism, democracy, multiculturalism among others — the common denominator is a lethal mixture of xenophobia, racism, religious fervor and a confused belief in nationalism.
While Trump appears to be an unlikely bearer of such a message; he is after all a successful businessman who has made billions in a globalized economy, one cannot but credit him for eying a good deal and riding a populist wave that delivered him the White House. In the end, it’s about the true Donald Trump; the demagogue or the dealmaker. Trump will try to make America great again but he will not do it by waging wars, trade or otherwise or building real walls. He will redefine America’s role in the world and by doing so he will shift his attention to domestic issues. He will follow and implement a conservative agenda that will be backed by a Republican-controlled Congress, but he will also keep an eye on the core of his right-wing constituency. He will crack hard on illegal immigration, punish companies that move to Mexico or elsewhere by raising tariffs and invest heavily in America’s dilapidated infrastructure thus creating jobs. This will appeal to both Republicans and Democrats. It could make him a good US president.
The ultra-right movement falsely believes that it had found a voice in President-elect Trump. But Trump remains a quasi-pragmatist; a political animal in evolution. His early years will be controversial but he will soon move away from the extreme right and more toward the right of center; closer to his conservative allies in Congress. He has changed American politics forever and the movement he created will continue long after his is gone. What this means for democracy and universal values such as human rights, equality before the law and others in another issue.
• Osama Al Sharif is a journalist and political commentator based in Amman.
