Make America Great Again is the motto on newly elected Republican president Donald Trump’s cap. And to achieve his goal, Trump on his first day in office signed countless executive orders reversing the 78 signed by the previous Democratic president, Joe Biden, plus countless new ones, especially on immigration. Such a move has been considered as dictatorial by some, and that too much power lies with the Executive arm of government. No wonder, then, that some political commentators have referred to him as a Category 5 storm, or a tornado in trousers! Fireworks began with his inauguration speech on January 20th in the Capitol building in Washington. During his speech, he came across as someone who was proud, pompous and arrogant. Across the ocean, the UK also held an election in 2024 where the ruling Conservative party, led by prime minister, Rishi Sunak, was heavily defeated by the Labour party. The new prime minister, Sir Keir Starmer, did not launch a scathing attack but gave Sunak credit for that he had achieved whilst in office, especially since he was the first UK prime minister of Asian origin.
And here in Botswana we also saw a change in government following the victory of the Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC) over the Botswana Democratic Party (BDP) which had been in power for close to 60 years. The new president, Duma Boko, credited former president Masisi for the peaceful, seamless and orderly transfer of power which showed that the country was a true. He repeated the remarks during the recent World Economic Forum at Davos, Switzerland.
Throughout his entire speech, Trump showed that he is the only one who is right and everyone else is wrong. He was going to be the only one who could begin “The complete restoration and the revolution of common sense.” Everything was about Trump the infallible!
He also lied that the US has defeated communism and has overcome every challenge that they have faced. Not true! The US was defeated by the communist Vietcong forces when they invaded South Vietnam from communist-ruled North Vietnam during the Vietnam war in the 1960s. Also, despite the Korean war in the 1950s, half of the Korean peninsula is still in the control of a communist government – Kim Jong Un’s North Korea. Plus, communism is still alive and kicking both in China and Cuba!
Many conservative Republicans see Trump as God’s servant to save America and the world. Trump, who had been president from 2016 to 2020, was defeated by Biden in the elections in November 2020 but he refused to concede defeat. And to prevent the new government from assuming power, his supporters on January 6th 2021 stormed and ravaged the Capitol building, the centre of government in Washington. Much damage was caused and some 200 police officers were injured and five died. That is treason!
But he has now released some 1500 of these rioters from gaol, claiming that they were ‘patriots’ who were peacefully demonstrating and that any damage done was ‘very minor.’ One of their leaders calls himself the ‘Qanon Shaman’. Now shamans in some countries are witchdoctors who can control good and evil spells; they are demonic!
Trump wants to rid America of the ‘millions of criminal aliens’ who are residing in the US. Already Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials are rounding up suspected aliens and deporting them. And Trump is boosting US military presence along the southern border with Mexico to prevent immigrants entering from that country. Despite his claims that Biden did little to curb illegal immigration, ICE is now arresting only 700 immigrants a day whilst Biden deported an average of 743 each day last year. And Trump is now facing some lawsuits from 24 Democratic states and cities over this hot potato. Also, he has revoked the right of immigrants born in the US to have American citizenship, something that is enshrined in the constitution. Such people might then become stateless. Trump claims that all immigrants are criminals – prostitutes, drug traffickers… How xenophobic!
The US is a violent country as statistics show. In 2024, the Global Peace Index ranked the US in position 132 out of a total of 163 nations, and even nations such as Libya, Brazil and South Africa fared better. Also, it is ranked far below all other developed western countries. And US citizens account for a staggering 46% of the worldwide total of civilian held firearms, despite only being home to 5% of the world’s population. That is 120 firearms for every 100 American residents! After all, it is very easy for anyone to buy a gun – gunshops exist in every town across the US! In theory, a buyer should be subject to a background check but, in reality, it may not be carried out – gunshops want to make money! Furthermore, the US is the only developed country where any resident is allowed to own one, and gun sales have risen sharply in the US since 2000.
No wonder, then, that we hear so often of people being gunned down in public places and schools in the US. And only a few days after his inauguration, there were shootings in Nashville, Tennessee. But we did not hear of any message of sympathy for the relatives of the deceased; Trump only found sympathy for the Capitol rioters, despite the fact that some of the rioters smuggled guns into the Capitol. And Trump is very unlikely to enforce stricter gun control laws since he is a buddy of the National Rifle Association, a gun rights advocacy group in the US.
It may be true that some immigrants smuggle drugs into the US. But Mexican drug cartels only make money if there is a demand for drugs in the US. So, Trump has to admit that the US is also part of the problem. He needs to enforce much stricter penalties against those who use and distribute drugs, and young people need to be informed more of the dangers of drug abuse.
Trump attended an inauguration church service on January 21st. And the preacher, the Archbishop of Washington, chastised him saying that he has polarised America instead of unifying the nation. In his speech, he made no attempt to reach out to Democrats but only rubbished them. She then told him that leaders should be honest, humble and people of integrity; characteristics sorely lacking in Trump. And she said that “We are most dangerous to others and ourselves when we think that we are absolutely right and others are absolutely wrong.” But that was not all. She then asked him to show mercy to those who are now scared in the US, especially immigrants, even if they are undocumented. She told him that the vast majority of them are law abiding, and pick your vegetables, serve you in hotels and restaurants, work night shifts in hospitals, and pay their taxes. Many of them come from war or persecution in their homelands. Of course, Trump cannot feel for such people since he is highly privileged, and a multibillionaire owning mansions, hotels, golf courses and jumbo jets.
All the while Trump was feeling distinctly uncomfortable in his pew, and after the service condemned the archbishop saying “She was nasty in tone and not good at her job” and that she must apologise to him for her comments. What cheek; Trump must realise that no one is above criticism! God says that those in authority will be judged more severely. And in his inauguration speech, Trump claimed that he would bring back free speech to America. But according to Trump, free speech is fine if you do not criticise him!
Trump is also planning to change the world map by renaming the Gulf of Mexico the Gulf of America, invade Panama and take over the Panama Canal, and even invade Greenland for ‘strategic reasons.’ And on the international stage at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Trump was once again on his high horse telling world leaders what they must do: follow me or pay! He expects everyone to follow him without question. They should invest in the US or else they may face sanctions, taxes and tariffs. This is blackmail! And he insisted that he would impose tariffs on goods from other countries, in particular, China, Canada and Mexico since this would ‘protect’ industries in the US. However, such a move may be met with those countries also imposing tariffs on American goods – tit for tat!
And trade wars may result which benefit no one! He also threatened to impose tariffs on Colombia if they did not accept deportations of their nationals from the US. Trump also claimed that he would end the war in Ukraine on this first day in office but a public communique issued by the Kremlin stated that ‘nothing has changed.’ Trump is likely to get a frosty reception when he finally meets Vladimir Putin. He has also suggested that the Gaza Strip be cleaned out of Palestinians; such comments promoted outrage across the Middle East. Also, the Iranian foreign minister has warned the US not to attack nuclear facilities in his country otherwise Iran would take action and a dangerous situation could develop in the region.
Trump has also withdrawn from the Paris Climate Accord, which focuses on ways of dealing with climate change, and also the World Health Organisation (WHO). The latter action will have likely negative consequences for the health sector in the US since WHO member states receive much vital information concerning medical issues, including any pandemic outbreaks, etc. In so doing, the US is increasingly becoming isolationist – but we live in a global village where countries are dependent on one another!
Trump has also been criticised for his choice of cabinet members. His first choice for Attorney General has been charged with defiling an under-age girl. His Secretary for Defence, Pete Hegseth, admitted in Congress last week that he paid US$50 000 as part of a confidentiality agreement with a woman who alleged that he had sexually assaulted her, and he is also well known for drunkenness. But that is not surprising since Trump is well known for his sexual adventures in the past, and has been labelled a sexual predator and an insurrectionist. Birds of a feather flock together! Members of Cabinet should be well vetted before being appointed since they hold high office and should be exemplary in their conduct.
Trump may be bad news for Botswana and Africa. No mention of the continent was made in his speech and no African leaders were invited to his inauguration. Furthermore, he has now cut almost all foreign aid. He has snubbed Africa big time!
The US under Trump faces a turbulent journey over the next four years, and it remains to be seen if the president will heed the Biblical warning that pride comes before a fall. Trump is putting down a lot of markers that could be seen later by large chunks of the US electorate as overreach and more than they bargained for, and so he may be trumped by the Democrats in 2028 if he does not come up trumps in the meantime