‘old’ trump back

 

ONCE again, United States President Mr. Donald Trump has revived the ban on people from some countries from entering the US -- a move that he has picked up again from his last tenure. Reports also are afoot stating that the President would block en try for foreigners planning to study at the Harvard University. And all this is being done under his ‘America First’ programme that has received welcome as well as ridicule from the American and international communities. No matter the motives that may have spurred these Trump actions, it is clear that the US President appears set to alter the dimensions of the long-standing American policy of accommodation of foreigners -- that has stood it in good stead all these years. No matter the political implications of the President’s approach, it is reality that a very brig section of American public opinion favours Mr. Trump in this regard.

 

The common American people have seen what they tend to describe as negative effects of the age-old policy of accommodation. The biggest and realistic fear of the common American people is that smart people from different countries dominate the educational and social scenes in the US and displace the legitimate claims of the Americans to jobs and positions of responsibility and honour. It may be noted that even in the current Trump Administration, there are Indian origin people in good numbers occupying positions of importance. The common American people do not seem to appreciate this, as is commonly believed. During his previous tenure at the White House, President Mr. Trump has stirred a lot of social unease because of policies that did not favour accommodation of foreigners.

 

Despite that, he had continued with his stated policies and created both, fans and foes in the larger American society. The biggest effect of those policies was on the American job market where countless lakhs of people lost opportunities to study and then work in the United States. That policy had also affected adversely lakhs of jobs in other countries, too, particularly in the service part of the IT sector. Now that Mr. Trump is deciding to pick up on the old policies once again, many of those negative prospects appear to loom large in the distance. Of course, Mr. Trump appears least worried. He also does not mind his faith in his own policies getting branded as swagger. He has definitive policy ideas that he does not want to barter for anything. Even though he swore by friendship with Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modi, Mr. Trump did not mind asking his functionaries such Mr. Elon Musk to exercise restraint on their Indian business interests. That was one of the reasons of Mr. Musk’s disenchantment with the President.

 

Though both once claimed to be great friends, they now spare no word in criticising each other -- thanks mainly to their conflict of interests. All these developments are promising to leave a negative effect on the President’s political goodwill -- at home and abroad. Yet, Mr. Trump has promised himself and the nation that in his ‘America First’ policy, all the decisions he is taking fit well. He appears convinced that the American nation has taken upon itself and its exchequer a lot of unnecessary burden by the policy of accommodation -- and that burden now needs to be cut off the back. ‘America First’ means American people first, Mr. Trump is reported to have stated time and again -- eliciting much positive response from the common Americans. So long as that response favours him, Mr. Trump is bent upon pursuing his own policies -- no matter what his detractors may have to say in that regard. So, ‘old’ Mr. Donald Trump is back with a bang and is pursuing his old policies -- though one may wonder how he would handle much antagonism he has created right within the first six months in the remainder of his tenure.