The Trump Establishment vs. the US Empire: The Serious and Comical Sides

I emailed Prof. Norman Finkelstein to ask for his ideas on the US election, to which he answered: "Fasten your seatbelt.  It's going to be a bumpy ride." - Bette Davis, All About Eve.

Actually, no one can deny that all forms of lobbies within the US (the pharmaceutical lobby, the Zionist lobby, gun lobby, etc.) were strongly supporting Clinton and funding her campaign. The triangle of the US establishment (the military, mainstream media, and political system) recognized very well that Clinton was an element of the system and the only chance to extend the lifetime of this unjust neoliberal capitalist structure. So, on the one hand, it was only natural that the NYT, WP, FOXnews, CNN, CBS, and all the other traditionally mainstream media outlets were doing their best to prevent Trump from becoming president-elect. On the other hand, we witnessed how the Trump Movement gained more and more fans and followers on social media such as Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, etc. 

This reminds me of what Art Olivier, the former mayor of Bellflower, California and the Libertarian candidate for Vice President in the US presidential election in 2000, told me more than 2 years ago:

 “You’re hated in America if you’re going to talk about 9-11 with a 50-year-old person for whom it is very hard to accept in his mind that has been washed by US mainstream media since his youth, and therefore he can’t understand any other narrative than the official version. While speaking with a 25-year-old citizen is more effective as the majority of those young men and women have started to view and reviews other reports and info sources than CNN and FOX, and they’re more connected to social media.” 

Olivier is also a producer of Operation Terror, a movie on the untold realties of 911. 

Even within other Western Societies, we can easily see this fact. For example, in France, more & more people are following the anti-establishment comedian Dieudonné. His videos on YouTube are seen much more than several shows on France TV. What is happening within those countries? 

Recently, Chomsky said "Trump is winning because white America is dying.” In my interpretation, white America is not only the people, but means more the US’ traditionally corrupt political system.

Of course, we cannot summarize all of Trump’s positions in one article. He has expressed his ideas on different topics such as immigration, abortion, guns, foreign policy, gay marriage, health care, the economy and jobs, civil liberties, crimes and safety, the environment, education, the budget and spending, national security, Medicare and social security, veterans, energy, etc.

But when he says the following sentence, following the American mind will discover something which has never been told to him for years:

 “I try and pay as little taxes as possible, because I hate what they do with my tax money. I hate the way they spend our money.”

As an Iranian "by nationality”, I don't wish to see undocumented immigrants in my country. Why should the same cause shock in the US or France?  That said, those who have legally immigrated to another land are totally welcome as they followed and respected the institutionalized process. But I actually recognize that those immigrants or refugees suffer from what the US and France have caused in their homeland. 

So some would consider Trump’s election to be a sign of the end of the era of the US empire while some others will be waiting to see his actions and the decisions he will take once he is in the White House.

There are also those analysts who believe that Trump is anti-system but are skeptical that as to the guarantee that he will not create his own establishment or will be imprisoned within. 

Actually, whatever Trump’s domestic policies may be, the US-Russia relationship is one which he is capable of modifying as a question of world significance, as well the different geopolitical situations in Ukraine, Syria etc. I personally believe the US’ behavior towards the Iranian nation will significantly change but maybe via Russia, and of course the Syrian crisis, the US will open its eyes to the realities of the Middle East and consider Iran to be what it actually is: an undeniable regional power. 

That being said, compared to other puppets such as Obama, Bush, Clinton, Reagan, etc., I personally like Trump and feel that he will be the most honest president that America has ever had. He is actually revealing to the world what the previous so-called US leaders were covering up. So together let’s “Make American Great Again”

In a more comical spirit, I like Trump just for the sake of changing a little bit of the US atmosphere. Imagine the upcoming 4 years of laughs - it will be wonderfully amazing.

Trump actually represents a slice of the US which is more and more a minority and acknowledges that. In the 1990’s, we had some anti-Clinton reactions too, and now Trump is the deputy of the anti-Obama reaction - a side of America which knows that it is dying, an America which is nostalgic for the 1950’s, an America which is Christian, an America which is white, an America that is less educated, an America of workers  who are now suffering under the economic crisis.

As we know, Brexit in the UK was one of the first steps towards collapsing imperialism, and the next surprising event was the election of Trump, which was a great shock for not only the US political class and media but also for many governments across the world who still believed in the so-called international community. What is the coming surprise? Marine Le Pen as French President?  

Are we so close to what Immanuel Wallerstein, Emmanuel Todd, James Petras, Jacques Sapir, Alexandr Dugin, Michel Onfray and other prominent theorists, sociologists, historians, economists, political scientists or philosopher call the ''Decline of the US Empire’', which means the end of the capitalist, neo-liberal imperialist establishment?