In New York, thousands filled streets in midtown Manhattan as they made their way to Trump Tower, Trump’s gilded home on Fifth Avenue. Hundreds of others gathered at a Manhattan Park and shouted “Not my President.” In Los Angeles, protesters sat on the 110 and 101 highway inter-section, blocking traffic on one of the city’s main arteries as police in riot gear tried to clear them. Some 13 protesters were arrested, a local CBS affiliate reported.
An earlier rally and march in Los Angeles drew more than 5,000 people, many of them high school and college students, local media reported. A demonstration of more than 6,000 people blocked traffic in Oakland, California, police said. Protesters threw objects at police in riot gear, burned trash in the middle of an inter-section, set off fireworks and smashed store front windows. While public protests are not unprecedented events in the US — they normally occur due to the killings of minorities by police or something similar to evoke such anger. This is probably the first time so many protesters have come out to decry the results of a free and fair election, which is a normal part of the democratic process in the US. Some 2.4 million Americans have petitioned for Electoral College to do the most unusual thing – reverse the result of Presidential election by voting against Mr Trump.
Meanwhile after the President and President-elect met at the White House, Mr Trump said that he and Mr Obama had discussed “some of the difficulties” the country faced but also “some of the really great things that have been achieved”. Some took that latter remark as a reference to Obamacare and perhaps other policies, and a potential suggestion that Mr Trump may be won around on what has become one of Barack Obama’s flagship policies but also one hated by much of the Republican Party. Mr Trump also mentioned that he would look very strongly at immigration and healthcare, while strengthening the border with Mexico and ensuring that banks don’t face regulatory hurdles so that they can lend again.
Going strong on immigration means that Trump will crack down very hard on illegals of all stripes. He may build a wall but Mexico certainly will not pay for it. Deregulating banks, on the other hand, can also end up in a situation which is reminiscent of the last recession, which mainly occurred due to the fiscal laxity of banks in dealing with customers — which also occurred due to weak regulatory oversight.
Perhaps Mr Trump’s strongest play will be to nominate a Supreme Court justice. Right now the Court is evenly packed between Liberals and Conservatives. Ultimately, it’s a near-certainty that the court will soon return to its now-familiar 5-4 conservative majority; it’s probably going to take at least several more vacancies for the Supreme Court’s balance to shift far enough to the right to overturn landmark decisions on issues like abortion or capital punishment. Additionally, a conservative court could help liberals by providing a check on President Trump, curbing a rapid expansion of Presidential power, and the new President likely will have more than one shot to put his stamp on the Bench.
So President-elect Trump will have to lay his cards very close to his chest. Initially that means abandoning many of his campaign promises, which may have been good soundbites but will wither in the political reality that is Washington DC. He can’t annoy his own party; even worse, he can’t irritate the opposition, or any reform which he chooses to enact will wither under the crossfire of filibusters and delaying tactics employed by his own party when in opposition. Will he become an astute politician or will he be swamped by the delicate fine tuning needed to become the President who has to make compromises to get anything done. Only time will tell.
The protesters all over America are expressing their anger and saying they do not want to be the Americans Mr Trump so arrogantly and divisively proclaimed them to be. Great changes and big adjustments will be necessary for the President-elect to run and rule the super power America. The people all over the world like many Americans are worried about the unpredictability of Mr Trump. The going ahead of Mr Trump in his own-way will be punishing both for the people of America and the President-elect. But how much change is realistically possible for Mr Trump to become President of all Americans remains a grave doubt.
