With the end of the Cold War in 1991, which brought with it the fall of the Berlin Wall, the collapse of the Soviet Union and the collapse of the people’s democracies of Eastern Europe, the United States emerged as the sole power in world.
Then there was the end of history, the triumph of capitalism and democracy, and the unipolar moment in the United States on the international scene.
What would have happened in the United States or around the world since then if President Joe Biden expressed in his inauguration address that American democracy, while fragile, had triumphed?
There is no doubt that the newly elected US president recognized in his words the existence of a crisis that affected what could never happen: the legitimacy of the North American democratic political system.
That, of course, happened on the occasion of the January 6 attack on the Congress building by a mob of bandits who, instigated by President Donald Trump, tried to forcefully change the results of the presidential election, which they considered false. However, this action, considered unimaginable, was just the last episode in a chain of events that began in the post-Cold War period and exposed the economic, social and political decline of the United States.
Correcting or changing this situation is the strategic goal of President Joe Biden’s government agenda, acknowledging in his recent inaugural address the existence of six types of crises that are currently converging in American life. The first, of course, is the Covid-19 pandemic, poorly managed by its predecessor. This has resulted in more than 20 million infected and more than 400,000 deaths, a higher figure, the latter, than all American casualties during World War II.
Then there is the economic impact generated by the pandemic, economic downturn, high unemployment and corporate bankruptcy.
Likewise the crises of social inequality, racism, climate change, trust and credibility in the system, as well as the role of the United States in the world.
All of this boils down to the fact that the colossal task that awaits President Biden to put his country back in a position of world leadership must address both internal American and global factors.
WRONG ADJUSTMENTS IN GLOBALIZATION
To carry out his government plans, the newly inaugurated president has begun to dismantle the legacy of Donald Trump, who has been the one who brought the American crisis to its current state of cooking.
But reversing the foolish policies of its predecessor is no longer enough to reactivate the US economic, social and political system, nor would it simply be a return to what was done in the days of Barack Obama.
The situation is quite complex; and it is that after the end of the cold war, the phenomenon of economic, commercial and financial globalization began to dominate the world.
In principle, it was the left-wing movements, at the international level, that fought the new globalizing wave and demanded a solidarity globalization with a human face.
But over time, in a paradoxical way, it was the political movements and parties of the right and the far right that eventually adopted the anti-globalization discourse.
The reason for this was that global value chains caused several companies to leave the United States to move to other places. This is the case to reduce labor costs and thereby increase profits for companies.
Thus without setting itself as a goal, globalization gave rise to a phenomenon of deindustrialization, resulting in a significant white segment, the middle class and the worker, of the North American population with high unemployment and thus economic and social instability.
Added to this was the trade deficit, the global financial crisis of 2008, the global recession that followed for nearly a decade, and the propaganda that the massive migration of Hispanics harmed them in the sense that it resulted in a more labor-intensive workforce. cheap that drove them from the labor market.
It was, among other things, those sociodemographic, economic, and cultural factors that led to discontent and served as the basis for creating a social base to support Donald Trump’s election in the 2016 election, as he received more than 70 million votes in the 2016 election. past presidential election.
CHANGE OF COURSE
Immediately after his inauguration, President Joe Biden signed 17 executive orders, memoranda and proclamations to overturn Trump’s policies, both nationally and internationally.
He obeyed the criterion outlined in his speech that in the United States at this point, “there is much to be repaired; much to restore; much to heal, much to build, and much to gain. “
He ordered the construction of the wall on the border with Mexico to be suspended, leaving behind the isolationist and unilateral policies of the past four years.
He reintegrated the United States into the Paris Agreement on Climate Change, as well as the World Health Organization, restoring that body’s authority and prestige in its role as global coordinator of health policy.
Biden has identified that during his tenure the United States will again play an active role in multilateral organizations, which is a major point of progress in addressing and resolving major global problems and conflicts.
But he will undoubtedly have serious difficulties in conducting his foreign policy. This is the case, for example, in regaining the confidence of the traditional North American allies in Europe.
During the previous Republican administration, the US administration treated its traditional allies in the transatlantic world in a humiliating manner. Their considerations about the role of NATO’s military alliance led France and Germany to reflect on the need to design strategic autonomy with regard to security.
But the same is true of Iran. How can that Muslim country believe in the United States, when what is negotiated and agreed upon with one government is unknown by the next, unilaterally?
How to approach the relationship with China, with which, regardless of the commercial, geopolitical or technological competitive differences that exist, it should not be treated with a tone and rhetoric inconsistent with its status as the second economic power in the world. world?
How will negotiations with Russia on the signing of a new nuclear weapons reduction treaty proceed?
What will your policy be on Latin America and the Caribbean, outside of Cuba and Venezuela?
Ultimately, President Joe Biden’s agenda, both domestic and global, to overcome the current multidimensional crisis in the United States will be difficult, complex and difficult.
But in any case, for the good of his country and the world, it will be superior to whoever left his predecessor in the position of White House tenant.