Donald Trump Is Returned To Office

Regardless of who wins in November, Australia won’t escape the fallout from the presidential election

- Annette Sampson

CAN LIGHTNING STRIKE TWICE?

It would be a brave punter who ruled out US President Donald Trump after the failure of the polls to predict the outcome of the last presidential election.

In late August, most pundits still had the Democratic candidate, Joe Biden, in the lead but the margin was narrowing and Trump’s voting base was out and rallying behind him.

Left-wing filmmaker Michael Moore, who correctly called a Trump win in 2016 in key battleground states, has warned of a repeat in 2020 with enthusiasm for Trump “off the charts” in key areas.

On the face of it – a poor response to the Covid-19 pandemic, civil unrest over racism and pandemic restrictions, and a weakening economy – you might assume Trump was down and out. But he is a master salesman and has been going hard on “law and order” and the fear factor of a “radical socialist” Biden administration.

KEY DIFFERENCES

Many people, especially those in US-allied countries like Australia, see Biden as a steady hand on the wheel after the unpredictability and erratic behaviour of the Trump presidency. Biden has described himself as a “transition candidate” acting as a bridge to a younger generation of Democratic leaders as opposed to Trump who has jokingly (we assume) encouraged supporters to call for 12 more years rather than the permitted four.