The long and acrimonious US presidential campaign is over, the counting of votes is almost done and we are relieved that Joe Biden has been elected president. But Donald Trump’s unjustified legal battles are just beginning and the deep fissures in American society he was partially responsible for are troubling.
As most of the democratic world is relieved to see the back of Trump, the hard work for the new president will begin. Trump’s disgraceful vulgarity and illegality may have earned him the contempt of many Americans. But his unprecedented tactics are also admired by a little less than half of those who voted in the last election.
The political legacy of Trump will not go away when he is no longer president. He speaks the language of a large section of American society. His message resonates with the nationalist and xenophobic electoral bloc. He appealed to blue-collar workers in the rust belt states who saw their jobs disappear as a result of globalisation.
The fact that these sectors of society are far from just being fringe elements is a challenge to traditional politicians who aim to put American politics back on track.
The most urgent challenge for Biden is to handle the pandemic responsibly. But even if a vaccine miraculously resolves the problem in the coming months, the deep fissures in American society will persist. The Democrats tried to turn the presidential election into a referendum on the mishandling of COVID-19 by Trump. This strategy somewhat failed.
A number of senate races are not yet over but there is a strong possibility that Biden will have to govern with a hostile senate. The Nobel economist Paul Krugman argues that a Republican-controlled senate may make America ungovernable. He even went as far as to express fear about the risk of the US becoming more like a failed state.
It is now up to Congress to find a way of functioning peacefully for the good of the American people.
Serious social issues linked with increasing poverty, institutionalised racism, evolving anti-liberal trends, and affordable medical care for all cannot be addressed without both Democrats and Republicans toning down the harsh language of the last four years and agreeing on compromise solutions for the good of the people.
The complex issues of global warming, the fight against terrorism, and the threat to political stability that may come from other significant nations with expansionary ambitions cannot be resolved without the active involvement of the US.
Europe is still too weak to take on the mantle of leader of the free world. The rise of populism in EU member states remains a threat to the survival of the Union.
This is just one reason why European leaders should be enticing back the US to actively participate in international fora like the World Health Organisation, NATO and the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate.
The US, like the EU, faces formidable challenges like economic reform and universal healthcare for all. These challenges can only be overcome if the fissures in American society are filled in with political action that aims to unite rather than divide people.
Trump will go down as quite possibly the most divisive and reckless president in American history. It’s time to start undoing his legacy and rebuilding the country’s credibility.