The stability and prestige of the United States, which have been lost during the four years of the administration led by President Donald Trump, must be restored. It is also urgent to return to international cooperation from his "America First" policy. Strong leadership will be put to the test.
In the U.S. presidential election, former Vice President Joe Biden, the Democratic candidate, has secured a victory over Trump, the Republican candidate. Biden will take office on Jan. 20 next year.
Trump has refused to concede to the defeat and has insisted that there was election fraud. He has not provided specific evidence. He should gracefully accept the outcome and cooperate in a smooth transition of power.
-- Virus a major factor
The main point of contention in the election was whether enough voters approved of Trump to allow him to stay in office. There is no doubt that the response to the novel coronavirus was the most important criterion for evaluating his administration's policies, and had a major impact on the outcome of the election.
Trump has consistently downplayed the danger of the coronavirus and continued to express an optimistic view that the situation in the United States would improve, without showing any concrete grounds for such statements. He did not listen to experts' opinions and focused on maintaining and resuming economic activities. He has not shown any attitude of making efforts to balance economic activities and infection prevention measures.
The United States has recorded the world's highest numbers of infections and deaths. Trump has blamed China and the World Health Organization (WHO) for their failure to deal appropriately with the coronavirus, but he cannot evade responsibility for the consequences of his own nation having the highest numbers. It can be said that it was unreasonable for him to push ahead with his own style on issues directly related to the lives and livelihoods of the people.
His approach of breaking through conventional politics as an "outsider" from the business world has brought about many negative effects. "Twitter politics," or incessantly sending out messages full of propaganda and exaggeration, can be seen as emblematic of the adverse effects.
-- Repair social division
Trump's behavior, which lacks the qualities and dignity of a president, has further deepened the confrontation between his supporters and opponents.
It is obvious that Trump's self-righteous policymaking process has led to a decline in the functioning of the bureaucracy and Congress, deteriorating the quality of U.S. politics.
Biden's victory may have been a result of his collecting ballots cast by voters who expressed their opposition to Trump's approach. It must be noted that Biden's policies did not necessarily win their broad support.
Biden said in his victory speech, "I pledge to be a president who seeks not to divide, but to unify," urging the public to cooperate. But it will not be easy to spread the message of reconciliation among the more than 70 million voters who cast their votes in favor of Trump.
Structural problems lie behind the growing divisions in society and a sense of stagnation in the United States. Only a limited number of sectors have benefited from the progress of the global economy, free trade and information technology, which has made many people feel that the gap has rather widened.
White workers in industrial and rural areas, among others, became Trump's rock-solid supporters because they felt abandoned by politics for the elite. The "American Dream," the idea that people can win success by hard work under equal opportunity, is a fading value.
Making efforts to correct excessive disparities and expand the number of middle-income earners will be the first step toward repairing the division of the nation. Efforts to expand the ranks of politically moderate centrists and raise more people into the middle-income bracket surely will lead to the elimination of the biased claims of the right and the left, and the stabilization of politics and society.
In foreign affairs, it is a challenge to maintain the international order led by the United States.
It is important for the United States itself to reconfirm the significance of such alliances as the Japan-U.S. alliance and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.
-- Strengthen alliance unity
Biden holds the reasonable idea that the United States and its allies should work together against forces, such as China and Russia, that try to alter the international order through their authoritarian politics. It is vital to consolidate the unity of countries that share such values as freedom, democracy and the rule of law.
In particular, it is necessary to strengthen cooperation between Japan and the United States in dealing with China's maritime advance and North Korea's nuclear and missile development.
On the other hand, there has been a trend toward reducing U.S. involvement in overseas conflicts, reflecting the idea that "America is not the world's policeman," since the administration of former President Barack Obama, in which Biden served as vice president. The new administration led by Biden will not change the trend of the United States asking its allies to increase their financial burdens as well.
It is essential for Japan and other U.S. allies to expand their roles and make efforts to effectively reduce the burdens on the U.S. military.
Biden's policy of international cooperation is of great significance when different countries are cooperating with each other to develop and distribute vaccines and take other countermeasures and restore the global economy amid the coronavirus crisis. His intention to reverse Trump's move to withdraw the United States from the WHO will be the first step toward his international cooperative policy.
The United States also needs to return to the Paris Agreement to tackle global warming as soon as possible. In order to put pressure on China to abide by the rules, it also should consider joining the Trans-Pacific Partnership free trade pact.
-- The original Japanese article appeared in The Yomiuri Shimbun on Nov. 10, 2020.
Read more from The Japan News at https://japannews.yomiuri.co.jp/
.png?w=600)
