Donald Trump’s win: What does it mean for domestic policy in America

Washington: Donald Trump’s aversion to either reading documents, or writing them, is well known among his aides and advisors. But in a rare departure the now President-elect personally vetted, edited and partly drafted the Republican platform adopted at the Milwaukee convention in July. The document, marked by policy statements in upper case, hyperbole and rhetorical flourishes, bears Trump’s unmistakable signature and offers the clearest glimpse into his vision for America.

While Trump’s disdain for deliberative policymaking and reliance on “instinct” makes policy prediction risky, the party platform, combined with his first term record and campaign speeches, outlines five key domestic priorities:

Battling inflation

Trump’s anti-inflation strategy centres on expanding American energy production, despite oil and gas output already being at record levels. His “drill, baby, drill” policy and plans to boost nuclear energy production are key to his plans. The platform promises regulatory cuts and reduced government spending - though it’s unclear how this squares with commitments to maintain social security and welfare. It also emphasises geopolitical stability as key to price control.

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Immigration overhaul

The immigration agenda is perhaps Trump’s most ambitious. It includes completing the border wall, redeploying overseas troops to the southern border, implementing a naval fentanyl blockade, and launching “the largest deportation exercise” in American history. He plans to invoke 18th-century legislation to remove illegal immigrants while introducing strict policies against what he terms “Christian-hating communists, Marxists and socialists”. The approach favours merit-based immigration while significantly tightening overall entry rules.

Manufacturing revival

Given Trump’s political commitment to domestic manufacturing, the platform has a section on the administration’s priorities to achieve this aim. This includes deregulation, tax deductions, “fair and reciprocal trade deals” that bring back supply chains to America, encouraging crypto, repealing Biden administration’s AI regulatory framework and encouraging a more Laissez-faire approach to it, and creating a manufacturing industry in the near-earth orbit.

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Government reform

The platform promises to stop government “weaponisation” against rivals - though Trump has elsewhere promised retribution against opponents. It calls for declassifying all government records and firing “corrupt employees,” potentially signalling a federal bureaucracy overhaul. The agenda includes protecting online free speech and combating “censorship,” which could mean removing hate speech regulations.

Religious liberty features prominently, with plans for a task force to investigate “anti-Christian bias”. The platform also promises to ban what it calls “left wing gender insanity,” including restricting transgender participation in sports and prohibiting schools from “promoting gender transitions”.

National security focus

The domestic aspects of foreign policy emphasise homeland defence. The platform calls for modernising the military, building an iron dome missile defence shield, reviving the defence industrial base, and protecting critical infrastructure. This suggests a more selective approach to international engagement, prioritising domestic security.

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A fundamental shift

Trump’s term will change American domestic politics and society in ways that are hard to gauge at the moment. For the first time, a party that stands squarely against American liberal internationalism, that is opposed to the foreign trade policies that America itself promoted, that views immigration not as a strength but as a vulnerability, that sees political rivals and bureaucrats as deep dark forces out to subvert the next president, and that frames the “protection” of Christians as a fundamental political objective is about to come to power. This will mean that Trump will reinterpret the constitution, exercise power and shape laws in ways that America has never seen. But for now, what’s key is understanding the policy objectives for which this power may be exercised. And the platform offers a glimpse into that world view.

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