Trumpism on Trial

The principles behind Trump’s political and economic program could once again dominate U.S. politics.

The legal case against against former President Donald Trump presents only two possibilities: either he goes to jail, or he emerges strengthened politically. Unfortunately, his administration is not on trial for their great social crimes, as a result of which inequality and poverty became more acute, thousands of U.S. residents died because of the way the COVID-19 pandemic was managed, and society became polarized through a narrative based on racism and fear of The Other.

His stated objective was to relentlessly attack the idea, institutions and legality of the public interest and the common good, such as that representing issues like free social security and anti-hunger programs and other global issues such as climate change. Trump categorically refused to recognize climate change to the extent that he pulled the U.S. out of international agreements to mitigate it. His approach was the opposite of collaboration: He reversed all restrictions on the use of fossil fuels in the U.S. in spite of the scientific studies that have demonstrated that is among the causes of global warming.

The principles behind Trump’s political and economic program could once again dominate U.S. politics. These ideas include the deconstruction of the regulator state, an all-out offensive against state social commitments and services. Trump justified his offensive with racist rhetoric and speech that stirred up fears about Mexican and Islamic immigrants, among others from other cultures not affirming white supremacy.

Steve Bannon, a senior adviser to Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign, revealed the administration’s hidden objectives when he stated that it aimed to deconstruct the administrative state as it pertained to the rule of law and institutions charged with protecting the people and their rights.

Instead of protecting social rights, the idea was to protect the huge transnational corporations, which were given unrestricted power without government interference and accorded complete freedom to act over the public interest. Big corporations blatantly seized power under Trump to promulgate laws and policies for their convenience.

It should come as no surprise that among developed countries, the U.S. economy is the most unequal, with the greatest number of poor people; its wealth distribution index is considerably worse than Europe’s and now even worse than Russia and Central Asia. According to the World Inequality Lab’s 2022 World Inequality Report, Trump reduced taxes on the richest 1% of U.S. residents, from 21.8% in 2017 to 20.08% in 2019, the most recent available year.

To advance his profoundly unjust policies, Trump made use of the well-known tactic of dividing and conquering. If the formula is politically valid, it becomes abhorrent when it advances racial or misogynist arguments, or the idea that “torture works.” This language sought to inflame irrational hatred among white workers who believed at the time that they were losing wages and social services.

The Trump administration acted outside prevailing law and norms, convinced that it would emerge unscathed. The charges against Trump are serious — he could go to jail for 20 years — but so is the economic and ideological-political polarization that Trump contributed to during the four years he governed his country. Neither the country’s political parties, its press or the public acknowledge the case against Trump. Trumpism can return to power.