The World Needs America to Stand Strong, But on Whose Side Will It Stand?
Nha Trang, Vietnam, January 4th, 2025.
Salaroche

Matthew Kaminski, the current Editor at Large for Politico Magazine (see here), is proposing in a recent article that Trump’s second presidency may present an opportunity for America to show its strength and decisiveness. In so doing, he says, America would be again ensuring the stability of the world as a whole (see here).

In the face of Russia’s bold expansionist moves and China’s menacing project for total dominance in the Pacific Rim, a strong, assertive America might probably serve as the right deterrent to keep any of the ongoing wars and skirmishes from escalating to global proportions. Just maybe.

Kaminsky also refers to the perils inherent in a second Trump Adninistration, but there still remains a serious flaw in his vision. He may see Trump’s second advent to the US Presidency as an opportunity for his hopeful scenario to come true, but he fails to consider a crucial factor that could turn his whole proposition upside down: President-elect Donald Trump is a convicted criminal, insurrectionist, authoritarian individual with a strong proto-dictatorial streak in his blood.

This means that, depending on his authoritarian whims, a strong, decisive, assertive America could end up causing more harm than good to the stability of the world. If Taiwan, South Korea, Japan, and the Philippines would welcome a more assertive America in the Pacific Rim it is in the hope that America would always stand on their side, meaning, on the side of Democracy.

The same goes for Ukraine, the Baltic States, Sweden, Finland, and all of Europe as well. They would surely welcome a strong and assertive America, but ONLY provided that America stands in defense of Democratic values. Unfortunately, however, any American pro-Democracy stance can no longer be taken as a given.

In case you have not noticed, the President-elect of the United States does not hold Democratic principles in high regard. He does not even have much respect for the Democratic processes of his own country. He believes in American Democracy ONLY when he wins, otherwise he says the whole system is rigged. As of January 20th, therefore, no one will be able to take America for granted as a defender of Democracy any more.

Trump might easily ask President Zelensky of Ukraine to cede territory to Russia as the only means to achieve peace. He might also ask Lai Ching-te, the President of Taiwan, to accept the status of his island as a special administrative zone ruled by China, just as Hong Kong currently is, or else he may allow Xi to overtake the island as he best sees fit.

Elon Musk himself, the closest, most influential counselor to Donald Trump, has actually advocated in public for the two land handouts I just mentioned (see here and here). As the situation stands today, therefore, wishing for a strong and decisive America looks like a double-edged sword that may cut one way or the other.

An understanding between Putin, Xi, and Trump is NOT an out of the question possibility. A “keep-your-hands-off-my-turf-and-I’ll-keep-mine-off-yours” sort of unwritten treaty between those two seasoned dictators and their American apprentice is in no way unthinkable.

And if you think these are farfetched propositions you haven’t yet properly envisioned the magnitude of the changes American domestic and foreign policies stand to undergo.

No doubt the incoming insurrectionist, convicted-criminal-president-elect intends to assert America’s dominance over the rest of the world in all possible ways. Trouble is, there is no longer one single shred of guarantee that such dominance will be exerted to uphold Democratic values, which means that what all those concerned countries expect to get out of a more firm and assertive American presence might end up being a curse rather than a blessing.

In the face of such ominous but plausible possibilities, the future of Democracy looks like a coin toss more than anything else: Heads, the Republican-dominated Congress stands up to Trump and draws an anti-authoritarian line in the sand that they will not cross or, Tails, Congress surrenders to Trump’s will and allows for Democracy to be fatally undermined at home and, as a logical consequence, be seriously undermined in the rest of the world.

As fate would have it, the coin is already flipping up in the air, so, there is not much you and I can do about it.

Salaroche