A global tradedy by Ghazi Salahuddin

Ghazi Salahuddin

In our political experience, we are very familiar with collective bereavement and betrayal by a rigged system. A large number of Americans are going through a somewhat similar surge of pain and sorrow over the outcome of Tuesday’s presidential elections. What does this really mean for the US and the world?

What we witnessed this week is a political earthquake and its
tremors are being felt across the globe. American politics is always a spectacle and excites the interest of people in other countries, partly because it is sometimes so incomprehensible. Thanks to the media, there usually is a lot of drama in how the leading characters execute their moves on the stage.

It was a genuine thriller this time. Even an inventive Hollywood screenwriter may not be able to build a plot with such twists and turns and such a stunning ending. Incidentally, one of the most evocative immediate responses to Donald Trump’s entirely unexpected victory came from an Oscar-winning screenwriter, Aaron Sorkin.

In a letter to his 15-year-old daughter Roxy, he said: “Well the world changed last night in a way I couldn’t protect us from. That is a terrible feeling for a father. I won’t sugar coat it – this is truly terrible”.

Let me quote how Sorkin has described Trump and it is not unlike other descriptions by liberal commentators: “...with dangerous ideas, a serious psychiatric disorder, no knowledge of the world and no curiosity to learn”. And now the Americans and the world have to contend with this person as the democratically elected leader of the superpower.

There naturally are questions that demand answer. Some conclusions seem obvious. The American society is deeply and abrasively divided. Trump’s victory is being interpreted as the victory of white supremacy, though he will be replacing the first non-white president in America’s history who was elected twice and who has made a success of his difficult assignment.

For that matter, Hillary Clinton was set to create another historic landmark by becoming to the first woman to be elected president. In any case, she became the first woman to be nominated by a major party. And the great irony here is that, while Clinton was seen to be the most qualified candidate for the presidency, Trump is recognised as the least qualified for the job. In addition to that, his outrageous behaviour and statements were unprecedented for a candidate of high office.

We can be sure that serious attention will be paid to the meaning and possible consequences of the forthcoming Trump presidency by experts and by foreign governments. However, the focus this week has been on the emotional and subjective aspects of this tectonic shift. The elections were held on Tuesday and the results began to emerge late in the evening. Then, as Sorkin said, the world changed.

Because of time difference, audiences across the world were watching the show at odd hours. I was up all night and was totally groggy when the unpredicted reality began to assert itself. There were dire exchanges of shock and grief with members of the family residing in the US. Little girls had to be consoled. Clichéd words of wisdom – ‘this is not the end of the world’ – were thoughtlessly offered.

Obviously, the pain was felt more deeply in the US and Clinton’s supporters, mainly the women, were overwhelmed with grief. In her speech the morning after, Clinton confessed: “I know how disappointed you feel because I feel it too. This is painful and it will be for a long time”. There have been demonstrations in many American cities, some attended by violence. It is significant that Clinton was ahead in popular votes but the system requires electoral votes from separate states.

Meanwhile, it is necessary to see who actually has won this election. This is Sorkin’s version: “And it wasn’t just Donald Trump who won last night – it was his supporters too. The Klan won last night. White nationalists. Sexists, racists and buffoons. Hate was given hope.”

I have alluded to the emotional involvement of people like me in American politics. In my interaction with the Pakistani youth I have been defending democracy by giving the example of Obama’s presidency. Was this not a miracle? Now I may need to explain why a person like Trump can triumph in an advanced democracy. What does this say about the system of democracy and, specifically, about the meaning of the proverbial American Dream? What will this mean for the immigrants in America, including Muslims? And why wasn’t Trump seen coming by the media and the trained pollsters?

In many ways, Trump is seen to be a global phenomenon. There is a visible shift towards the right. Inversely, you may describe it as the decline of the left. Immigration is a big issue in the US and also in Europe, with refugees from Syria and other war-torn countries desperately looking for security and shelter. Nationalistic forces are coming to the fore and becoming violent. We have Modi in India, riding the wave of Hindu nationalism. The most recent example is that of the citizens of Britain voting to exit from Europe.

Writing for The New Yorker under the title ‘An American tragedy’, David Remnick said: “The election of Donald Trump is nothing less than a tragedy for the American republic, a tragedy for the Constitution, and a triumph for the forces, at home and abroad, of nativism, authoritarianism, misogyny, and racism”. To Remnick, Trump had all along seemed “like a twisted caricature of every rotten reflex of the radical right”.

There is this debate about how the US will now deal with its own conflicts and with the rest of the world where it has a big role to play. On our part, we have to consider the US’ future relations with Pakistan. Trump has shown his admiration for India and for Modi. But more crucial will be Trump’s relations with Europe and with China and Russia.

Yes, speeches made during a political campaign do not remain very relevant when the candidate is inducted into office. After the result, Trump said that he would be a president for all Americans. But how can this be possible when he has to live with the support that he has harvested with his message of hate and bigotry?

For those who opposed Trump, this is what Paul Krugman said in The New York Times: “So if you’re tempted to concede that the alt-right’s vision of the world might have some truth to it, don’t. Lies are lies, no matter how much power backs them up”.