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Putin-Trump Romance: What do we need to fear?

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It is official. Donald Trump is the new occupant of the Oval Office.  But the recently uncovered ‘golden shower’ fiasco and the alleged election scandals against him need not be proved. The mere possibility of an anti-thesis to the Cold War times is equally disturbing, and dangerous.

We tell you how.  We also tell you how this couple is similar to the infamous Hitler-Stalin duo.

Soon after the American elections, The Guardian came out with a report citing that the Federal Bureau of Investigation had applied for a warrant to look into contact between four Trump campaigners and Russian officials. We later came to know of memos penned by a former British spy about Donald Trump’s Russian links. Taking lead from Trump’s preference for obscenities, Putin called those ordering the infamous dossier, the documents which investigated Trump’s Russian ties, as nothing less than prostitutes.

Some of these allegations might just be a hysteria against the Trumpism. But an undeniable product is the fact that Vladimir Putin has developed his interests in America’s internal affairs, with Donald Trump, the real-estate-mogul-and-not-a-politician president as his ally. He knows that the novice will trust him in spite of all odds, and together they would make Russia great again.

Mr. Putin, though cynical about everything western, has had a particular disdain for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).  With Trump, he will strongly cut short the Western European alliance in the western Russian front.  He surely will love to lessen the European influence in the Russian periphery and the Arctic circles by flexing his muscles and trashing the Article 5 of Washington Treaty which says that war for any European nation means a war for America. With America checked and EU neutralized, he shall plan doing to many more parts of the world what he recently did to Aleppo.

 

Tom Tugendham opines in a leading English daily that as Donald Trump shall remain hypnotized by the allurements of economic possibilities, Putin shall slowly make his way into the American system. Dismantling the Paris climate deal and hence revoking the $500 billion Exxon oil and gas drilling sanction in the arctic region will be among his premier agendas.

One thing for sure, Putin shall never care for American greatness. He cannot be America’s or for that reason any other nation’s ally. With Trump already been compromised, as reports say, Putin may use cyber attacks, energy and economic pressure, psychological warfare, targeted use of bribery, disinformation, military intimidation and espionage at all diplomatic levels. With the premier infiltrated, the rest does not seem impossible.

For the global environmental, economic and security concerns, let us hope that these two don’t walk down the aisles.

 

Feature Image Credits- NYbooks

Nikhil Kumar

[email protected]

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Uncategorized

What does a Trump Presidency entail for the Environment?

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While the issue of climate change was treated as real and dangerous by President Obama, the same cannot be said for the new President – elect Donald Trump who believes that climate change is a hoax perpetuated by the Chinese. Studies show that poor countries like India, Pakistan, Vietnam and others would bear the brunt of climate change mostly because of their tropical location but also due to their greater reliance on agriculture, lower income of people, and less resilient infrastructure.

The current situation in India is smoggy, with four out of the ten most polluted cities being Indian, and the capital city’s poisonous air. In the past, US and India have shown commitment towards energy security and fighting climate change. USA joined the Paris Agreement and India followed.

Donald Trump has been adamant about scrapping off the Clean Power Plan and removing the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). While the EPA doesn’t handle all of the environment related issues (some of which are covered by other federal, tribal, state or local agencies), it does have a major role in the protection of environment. The EPA has been hit again and again by budget cuts and any further cuts would make it impossible to enforce laws like the Clean Water Act and Clean Air Act. Shutting down the agency isn’t the answer either.

Image credits: Business Insider
Image credits: Business Insider

The transition team of Donald Trump, according to Politico, has recruited GOP energy lobbyist Mike McKenna , who has ties to the industry backed American Energy Alliance, and vocal climate skeptic  Myron Ebell, the director of Energy and Environment at the Competitive Energy Institution (which is funded by Koach brothers, and oil & gas companies). According to Ebell ‘any small increase in the global temperature is nothing to worry about’.

Mr Trump has offered his support to the construction of the Keystone XL pipeline, protested against wind turbines (because the wind farms were visible from his golf course in Scotland), has close financial ties to the Energy Transfer Partner – the operators of the controversial Dakota Access Pipeline (according to his financial disclosure) that will lead to potential harm to the environment, effects on climate change, and the destruction of sacred Native American sites.

The 45th president of the United States of America has signalled his opposition to any restrictions on the development of oil, coal, or gas, making it clear that he doesn’t have plans to go green anytime soon and instead believes in reviving the coal industry, which according to experts won’t work due to tough competition from declining priced alternatives like natural gas and renewable energy sources. This, in fact, moves the attention away from the real proposal that is the transition of coal workers into new jobs in a new industry. While Trump’s call to ‘back out’ of the Paris deal won’t be possible, Lux Research modelled the impact that Trump’s policies would have, and it leads to an extra 3.4 billion tons of CO2 emission when compared to Hillary Clinton’s proposal.

Clearly, Donald Trump’s presidency would be a setback on the environment front unless he decides to change his proposal, which is unlikely to happen.

Feature Image: Chicago Tribunal 

Adarsh Yadav

[email protected]

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DUB Speak

A new wall :Trump’s victory comes exactly on the same day the Berlin Wall fell 27 years ago

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Today is an eventful day. Donald Trump becomes the new President of the United States the same day the globally abhorred Berlin Wall fell in the year 1989. We draw a parallel between the two phenomenon and examine how 27 years from the historic incident, we have got our new wall maybe.

Twenty seven years ago, one of the most pronounced symbol of inter-community segregation was demolished. The Berlin Wall, which had been separating western Berlin from Eastern Berlin and the rest of the nation right since 13th August, 1961 fell today in 1989.Unfortunately for the global community, with popular consensus, a new wall has been erected.
Taking the world, media and market by storm, America has a new POTUS in Donald Trump. He is the billionaire who has been calling all through his campaign black Americans as the miscreants, the uneducated and unemployable section who stop America from being great, Mexican Immigrants as criminals, Muslims as terrorists and boasts about grabbing women “by the pussy”. But America does not care. America does not mind if half of the national population is either thinking about leaving the nation or else is prepared to live the next few years in a constant threat.  America does not care if it becomes the next Germany after it has found its new Hitler.
The Berlin Wall was erected to outcast a certain section of society who posed threat to the German Democratic Republic(GDR). It restricted the immigration of a population hit by the WWII. At that time, America stood against the GDR, making clear statements against any such divider.  Today, the world watches in delirium as USA is constructing its own ulta-conservative and  fascism, xenophobia, hatred made wall. The very American version of “The wall of Shame”. As Paul Waldmen writes, ” Eventually, his voters will figure out that it was all a scam. But by the time they do, the damage will be done”.
Ladies and Gentlemen,  welcome to the original America, which is neither blue collared, white collared nor is brown or black. It is a sick white America.

 

Image credits: The Guardian 

Nikhil Kumar

[email protected] 

 

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Arts & Culture

Donald J. Trump is USA’s President-elect: Twitter’s coping mechanism

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Donald J. Trump is going to be the United States of America’s 45th President. We’ll give you a moment to let that sink in.

Amidst all chaos and an unexpected turn of events, the former (really, former?) business tycoon managed to sail the Republican boat to the shore of victory. And while this was certainly the least expected beginning to 9th November for most Americans, they and the rest of the world are relying on their best bets as coping mechanisms on Twitter.

Here’s a peek into how the social media exploded in the last twelve hours celebrating anxiety and confusion.

Let’s begin on a light note- 

 


There are some we know are voicing our worst fears-

 

We, here at DU Beat, have had our share of apprehension as we believe no nation shall be left unaffected with this huge turn in power. Here’s a glimpse of what the team had to say-

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How did you deal with the ground-breaking news today? Let us know in the comments section!

Featured Image Credits: the guardian.com

Arushi Pathak
[email protected]

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DUB Speak

When the press thinks of itself as the ‘Trump’ card: The Media coverage of US Elections

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After the third and final presidential debate, mainstream web and print headlines covered how Senator Hillary Clinton’s debate is historic and epic, while Mr. Donald Trump apparently ‘destroyed himself’ and ‘insulted American democracy’. Ever since Trump has been elected as the nominee of the Republican Party, the media has increased attacks against him, operating as Clinton’s mouthpiece. Their bias is clear, transparent and they are not even trying to deny it.

The Quinnipiac University poll found that 55 percent of voters felt that Mr Trump was right when he charged the media of this claim, which included 20 % Democrats. Bernie Sanders, Ben Carson, Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio too had all accused the media of biased coverage during party nominations.

These claims are not baseless, as revealed by the leaked DNC emails published by WikiLeakes. The mails revealed that Politico’s Kenneth Vogel sent an advanced copy of his story to DNC national press for “approval”. Journalism to the commoners was a weapon against the powerful but here, the battle cry that is being heard is against the media and by a powerful man, when did the tables flip?

According to Harvard’s Shorenstein, “From the time he started his candidacy until the start of the conventions, Trump has not experienced anywhere near the press criticism directed at him during the final two weeks of the convention period”. The coverage, the study notes was “two to one favourable”. Had the media finally awakened to the negatives of Trump’s presidency that they ignored before?

Journalist Glenn Greenwald told Slate that “the U.S. media is essentially 100 percent united, vehemently, against Trump, and preventing him from being elected president”. Journalists approach towards Trump’s presidency is not only countering their whole movement that they think will lead to his defeat but also distancing undecided voters from the voting. The media’s rosy eyed view of Clinton’s stance on certain issues like Syria and failure to press her on the issue of NSA surveillance amongst others will go against the average citizens who rely on mainstream media for information and America which we hope, does not end up electing the unfavourable to power.

 

–Adarsh Yadav

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The low-down on the US Election 2016

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The country that everybody’s watching with hawk eyes goes to poll on 8th November, 2016. We give you a low down on what’s in store for you over the next year, so that you can make better sense of that international column in the papers.

The US Election System

The President of the United States is elected indirectly by the people of the country, and holds office for a period of four years.The citizens vote for an electoral college, which in turn elects the President. Each state is allowed to elect a fixed number of representatives to the Electoral College. This number is equal to the number of its representatives in the Congress, the American Legislature.

The political parties (primarily the Republicans and the Democrats), put forth their nominations for the electoral college candidates before the public. These nominations are usually done over the summer. The party also nominates a candidate who will run for President, after the candidates who wish to stand have made their ‘Presidential Convention Speech’ before the members of the party.

The citizens then vote for their candidates to the electoral college. Once the electoral college has been constituted, the people are assured a more or less clear idea of who is to be the next President for, the members of the electoral college, prior to being elected, have promised their vote to a particular party’s Presidential candidate. Depending on whether the Electoral College is predominantly Republican or Democrat, the President is almost unoffically decided even before the electoral college votes in November.

The election day, since 1845, has always been the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November and the term of the new President will begin on the following January 20th, after the elections.

Presidential Candidates, 2016


 US ELECTION 2

 

 

 

 

 

According to the Constitution of the United States, an individual can hold the office of the President of the United States for only two consecutive terms, which debars Democrat, President Barack Obama from standing for a third term. A number of Republicans and Democrats have already stated whether or not they are running for their party’s 2016 Presidential nomination. Bobby Jindal, the Governor of Louisiana, is the first Indian-American to declare his candidacy for the Republican nomination. Hillary Rodham Clinton, former Secretary of State, has announced that she is running for President on a prospective Democratic Party candidature. Business tycoon and reality television actor, Donald Trump, has also, rather controversially, declared that he will be running for the Republican nomination for President. According to public opinion polls, Trump has garnered high levels of support, with his promise to “make America great again.”

For those of us watching from the outside, the election procedure that is to unfold over the next year looks like it’s going to be an interesting spectacle.

Abhinaya Harigovind
[email protected]

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US Elections and impact on India

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India and the United States have not always been partners in adverse situations and the relationship has seen its sweet as well as sour periods during the course of history post 2nd world war. The current stream of a stabilized period in the US-India relations which started right at the advent of this century with Clinton’s visit to India still continues and the credit for maintaining the friendly status quo goes to leaders from both sides. The question though is, will the sweetness remain with the coming of a new president post the US elections which take place early next year?

To answer this question, let’s take a look at the most popular republican and democratic presidential aspirants and their perception towards India.

Well, for the democrats, it’s someone who is popular not only in US but in India as well. Yes, I am talking about Bill Clinton’s wife, Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton, who is the most likely presidential candidate from the Democratic Party. Mrs. Clinton has not only been a friendly acquaintance of India but has also supported the country during its standoffs with neighbor, Pakistan. This became pretty evident when she stood beside former Indian foreign minister S.M. Krishna and urged Pakistan to end terrorism on its soil. Her election as the next presidential candidate will also help in advancement of the important India-US nuclear deal which has always been backed by the Democratic Party.

When it comes to the Republican Party though, there is no single stand out candidate yet for the presidential elections next year, more so after Donald Trump’s rating backed down last month. This however does not impact India directly. We have in the past seen a mixed relationship between Indians and the republicans which kind of came on track after George Bush’s election as the president. The republicans though have always been critical of the H1B visa which they say hampers employment possibilities of Americans by outsourcing jobs to professionals from India and other countries. Certain republicans have also shown apprehensions about the unfair trade practices in India.

Thus what we can clearly see is that by large, there won’t be any direct but issue based impact on India and its relations with US post the 2016 US presidential elections.

 

To know more about US Elections 2016, watch the Youth Forum on Foreign Policy’s interview with State Senators from the United States of America here:

[youtube url=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=abe2PP4c50I” width=”500″ height=”300″]

 

Image Credits: cnn.com

Brij Pahwa

[email protected]

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