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Reports from New York

 

vol.28 New York Report(April,2019)

It’s strange that the Presidential Election campaign for 2020 has started, with 16 Democratic politicians declaring their candidacy at the same time the Democrats are still contesting the 2016 election. The Mueller investigation and report are expected soon with no one knowing if the results will confirm that President Trump colluded with the Russians to win the 2016 election or whether he obstructed justice by firing the leader of the FBI, James Comey, who was investigating possible collusion.

To the average American, it feels that every day brings more conflict and anger as the 2 political parties fight their civil war in Washington. Actually I would say it’s more like an ‘uncivil” war because the language and tactics used are more insulting and hostile than ever. Just as President Trump declares a crisis on the Mexican border owing to thousands of illegal immigrants and illegal drugs flooding into the U.S., the Democrats are attacking Trump as if Trump’s presidency itself is a national emergency.
The Democrats won a majority in the House of Representatives in November 2018 so they have more power to start investigations into President Trump and his family. They do not seem confident that the Mueller report will have enough evidence to impeach the president so they are investigating every aspect of his personal and business life, notably his tax returns.

This vicious political fighting has divided Americans. Most would prefer to choose a president that is more positive and less controversial. But choosing a compromise candidate in today’s political climate seems impossible since candidates become their party choices by appealing to the more radical members of their political parties. The radicals are the ones most likely to vote in primaries where the national candidates are chosen.

As it looks now, the Democratic party seems to be moving to the left, or towards a far more liberal socialist-type agenda. Leading candidates and popular Democratic politicians such as Alexandria Ocasio Cortez and Bernie Sanders have openly supported a more socialistic form of government.  They believe in:

1) changing the U.S. health system from a reliance on private health insurance to a “Medicare for All” system or a single payor system;
2) open borders for immigrants, with the elimination of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement  (ICE); and
3) the Green New Deal program, which seeks to severely limit the use of fossil fuels in the U.S.

Changing the health care system radically to a single payer will remove private health insurance from 180 million Americans, many of whom like their insurance. Studies have shown that a single payor system will cost at least another $35 trillion while leading to lower quality, longer wait times and less doctor choice for people who currently have private insurance. (L. Kudlow, Director of National Economic Council).

Open borders will put an enormous strain on social services such as health care and education. The Democrats support open borders because most new immigrants register Democrat.

The Green New Deal is extremely radical and proposes enormous decreases in fossil fuel use and consumption of meat (since cows are blamed for large amount of methane released into the atmosphere). Analysts have estimated the total costs for the Green New Deal to be $51 – 93 trillion over the next 10 years (for comparison, the entire annual federal budget for 2018 was $3.8 trillion).

Trump will oppose the new socialist agenda of the Democratic party (led by Bernie Sanders but copies by others). He will also remind voters of the strength of the U.S. economy (higher GDP, lowest unemployment particularly for minorities and women in history). Many people are predicting that a major trade deal will be finalized with China within the next few weeks allowing tariffs to be eliminated as well.

President Trump will also brag about his foreign policy achievements, including the defeat of ISIS in
Syria and Iraq, the reduction of troops from Iraq and Afghanistan, efforts towards the de-nuclearization of the Korean peninsula and efforts to reduce illegal immigration, particularly across the Mexican border.

Americans expect the next 2 years to be even contentious than the last 2 years. As liberals battle conservatives every day, very little is being done in terms of labor legislation. People are seeing a boost to their income due to the new tax laws passed in December, 2017 and together with low unemployment, workers seem more content.

The Democratic debates will begin in just 3 months – June, 2019. Perhaps as many as 20 candidates will be fighting for the right to challenge President Trump in the 2020 election. It doesn’t look like things will be quiet in the U.S. for years to come.

END


 
掲載日2019年4月15日

「Reports from New York」はニューヨークでHRMに関する活動をしているPhilip S. Kozlowskiからのレポートです。
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