Trump Has Not Lost (Yet)

Democrat Joe Biden is the favorite in the polls for the American presidential election, but as the Republican National Convention kicks off, the ostensibly outgoing current president still has something to say.

With the beginning of the RNC on Monday, President Donald Trump is making the final push in his campaign for reelection. He seems to be in a tough spot, his handling of the health crisis, the main concern for the American people, has been pathetic. The American economy, which, until now, had been his trump card, is in tatters. The country has also been worn down by issues of racial justice. Meanwhile, Biden “gets the job done” and has succeeded in uniting the Democratic party. All polls invariably put Barack Obama’s former vice president quite clearly out in front.

Does that mean the game is over? Is the election played out? That could be a bit hasty. Certainly, things bode well for Biden, just as they were at this point for Hillary Clinton four years ago. But Trump has some cards up his sleeve and a lot can still happen in 70 days. We could have a strike back from the virus, a gaffe from blunder-prone Biden or something unforeseen, as the billionaire Republican could do anything, even the worst he’s capable of, in order to win. The most recent examples include his attempt to dismantle voting by mail, supposedly beneficial to the Democrats, by making cuts to the American postal service. Then on Monday, he announced a “historic breakthrough” in treating COVID-19 using blood plasma, although its effectiveness remains to be seen.

The American electoral system, where the election largely hinges on the swing states, only reinforces this uncertainty. The key will be mobilization of voters, particularly the Black community and the pro-Bernie left, and the response of the white working class in the Rust Belt states of Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Michigan.

Besides, Trump is all dazzle, communicating through his personality and image. He doesn’t miss the chance to exploit the “fake news” pandemonium with which he inundates his core voters. For example, he does not hesitate to invoke the specter of a “Chinese threat” to American business and technology as this is an argument that carries weight with his base. In this context, as we are taking stock, the facts and figures that prove him wrong carry little importance to his loyal followers.