Editorial: Knives out

CHENNAI: In what appears to be one of the most fiercely-conducted presidential elections in American history, the race between Democratic leader Kamala Harris and her Republican rival Donald Trump for the White House threw up its fair share of melodrama, pathos, political boomerangs, fierce rhetoric and a historically razor-tight contest. As the fight reached its epoch on Tuesday, political observers billed the unpredictable race for the 47th President of the US as the most consequential one in decades while appearing to project a bleak picture for the country's future under a Trump presidency.

On the domestic front, there are a few issues that have occupied top billing. Chief among them happens to be the question of reproductive rights. Harris has promised to ensure that abortion rights remain protected for all women, a promise that has had a domino effect on college educated women, and professionals in the corporate sector, who had grown tired of Trump's virulent, sexist and misogynistic tirades. The other major action item involves the problem of illegal immigration.

This is where Trump garnered adulation from his MAGA brigade, as he has promised his supporters to shift massive portions of the existing federal law enforcement apparatus to immigration enforcement. Harris has received the shorter end of the stick as during the Biden administration, 1.7 million known 'gotaways'— illegal immigrants who have evaded Border Patrol — ended up living in the US without documentation and without having undergone any vetting by immigration officials.

It's a deep-rooted issue that has implications on America's inflation-bogged economy, employment, and housing crisis. While Harris has planned on passing a middle-class tax cut to benefit over 100 mn citizens, Trump has reminded his followers of his track record of even steeper tax cuts in his first stint as President, with promises of more to come. An import tax of 20% to boost his Made in America dream is something that is sending jitters down the spine of policy watchers. There are implications to the appointment of the next occupant of the Oval Office.

Two raging wars have thrown global supply chains into disarray and spiked fuel prices, owing to which the outsized impact of America's military posturing cannot be ignored. With regard to the Ukraine-Russia conflict, nations in Europe are waiting with bated breath for the declaration of the US poll results. In the probability of a win for the Putin sympathiser, these nations might have to contend with the former reality TV star's ‘pragmatic’ decision to want to withdraw from the first world military alliance — NATO. Trump has remained hypercritical of membership in the grouping where America spends a huge chunk of its taxpayer dollars to fund a war machine that 'seemingly' does nothing for America.

Similarly, in the case of the conflict plaguing Israel and Gaza, Trump has been vocal about Jerusalem's right to defend itself, a stand that could impact voter turnout in a swing state like Michigan, which is the home ground for the bulk of Palestinians and Lebanese-Americans in the US, who had helped craft a victory for Joe Biden in 2020. As far as India is concerned, New Delhi isn’t pinning its hopes on a sea change, considering how Washington accords India a low priority, far behind Israel and UK, its two major strategic partners, followed by the Five Eyes grouping and NATO. The chances of the White House adjusting its strategic partnership with New Delhi and elevating India into that elite band is highly unlikely.