Back to the Old Practices of President Trump’s Predecessors
By Khalid R. Siddiqui, MD
Huron, OH

Following the November 3 election, we will be back to the old practices of Mr Trump’s predecessors, i.e. unchanged domestic policy, indecisiveness and impulsiveness in the foreign policy.

The basic difference between the two parties is that the Republicans would cut the tax rate and the Democrats would raise the tax. No one has been able to prove conclusively which option is better for the public. Trump tried hard to implement his promised agenda verbatim. To that end he used all fair and unfair means. He was uncompromising, arrogant and disrespectful most of the time. However, during the first three years of his term the economy was booming, the unemployment rate was low, and there was a record surge in the stock market. Then Covid-19 hit.

First he ignored it and then wanted us to ignore it too. It didn’t work. Covid-19 did him in. Somehow, he was still able to bag more than 72 million votes in the losing cause. He won 8% to 12% of black votes this time compared to 6% in 2016. And his victory in Florida was powered by the Latinos in Miami-Dade County.

Trump is the only President since WWII who did not send US troops abroad and/or invade another country. Obama got a Nobel Prize on the ‘promise’ of changing the ‘tone’ in the White House. In turn, he sent more troops to Afghanistan; intensified the drone attacks; drew a Red Line in Syria but did nothing when Mr Assad violated it; then invaded Libya for no apparent reason or goal, thereby, destabilizing that country at the cost of the US Ambassador’s life. That country is still broken.

Many leaders and intellectuals of the Scandinavian countries have recommended Mr Trump for the Nobel Prize!! The beneficiary of all this fiasco has been Ms Kamala Harris. With little effort she became the Vice President of the USA, and with some luck and God’s help she may become the President in a year or two. If not, then she, for sure, will run for the President in 2024.

Hillary Clinton had started her planning as far back as 1992. She was the First Lady for eight years, Senator from New York state for eight years, failed, after a hard-fought campaign, to secure the nomination in 2008; and was the Secretary of State for four years. Finally, she got a chance in 2016, but lost to Trump. When Ms Clinton, despite her such an impressive resume, couldn’t grab the top job, I don’t think Ms Harris stands a chance. But who knows? After all Mr. Trump did become the President with no political credentials at all.