One of the most prominent characteristics of American politics is the tendency to move from one ideological, ethical and political pole directly to the other, without any attempt to find common ground that can bridge – even if just partially – the divisions and rifts, and hence navigate the American ship in an integrative and collaborative manner to better shores.
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Thus, for example, President Woodrow Wilson led his country into World War I in 1917 on the basis of his utopian desire to establish a new European reality, based on the principles of liberal democracy and self-identity, which would ensure peace and stability. However, just a short while later, Wilson's apocalyptic vision crashed onto the jagged and uncooperative rocks of reality and gave rise to completely opposite paradigms of thought and conduct. Specifically, as it pertained to the lofty dream of a new and democratic European order, Wilson's successor, Warren Harding, detached abruptly and unilaterally from the global stage and launched the era of visionless isolationism focused entirely on the American sphere.
However, to the same extent that the notion of imbuing European political culture with American values quickly went up in smoke, the idea of "my house is my fortress," which formed the bedrock of the isolationist paradigm, also failed the test of reality and was proven calamitous. Indeed, America stood apathetically by as the dark forces of Nazism and fascism, which sought to tear down the world order, marched forward unimpeded until the American superpower was once again dragged onto the battlefields of Europe.
Today, too, we are seeing a similar and jarring change of course between conflicting orientations, as President Joe Biden quickly undoes Trump's approach of eschewing broad international security coalitions. And while Biden's desire to put American on a completely different track after four years of Trumpian neo-isolationism is understandable, his main test will be to try overcoming the prevailing grudges and animosity and even convince the Democrat-controlled Congress to help mend the wounds.
In particular, these efforts will focus on two areas. One is Trump's retroactive impeachment trial, which Biden has thus far avoided fully opposing but would likely behoove him, thus showing his weakness within his own part.
The second focus area pertains to the process of governance itself. Biden is undoubtedly looking back into history at Franklin Delano Roosevelt, who under the shadow of the Great Depression managed to create, within the first 100 days of his presidency, a revolution in the financial, economic and social systems and extend a minimal safety net to the millions of unemployed and broke citizens.
This time, too, the president is facing a severe crisis, the coronavirus pandemic, which has already claimed the lives of some 410,000 Americans. Amid this backdrop, we can easily understand Biden's desire to determine facts on the ground, especially in the war against the virus and in terms of canceling initiatives symbolic of the Trump administration. Indeed, in his first three days in the White House, Biden has signed no fewer than 30 executive orders to ensure a quicker and more effective response to the coronavirus. However, at least some of these orders (including those pertaining to another national relief package the new administration wants to pass), appear to be an effort to bypass the legislative process.
And while it's true that executive orders are meant to allow an immediate response to emergency situations, this doesn't justify wholesale shortcuts particularly because the courts are likely to throw out at least some of the orders, while the Democrat majorities in the House and Senate would probably ratify most of them.
Therefore, even though the majority of Democratic lawmakers are determined to erase all memory of the Trump era, the question is whether the new president will stay true to his operational compass, which is predicated on pragmatism and stateliness, to enlist support from both sides of the aisle in the fight against the invisible enemy, or – similar to the impeachment trial – he will position himself, even if unhappily, at the pole opposite to his predecessor, with all the dangers and pitfalls that entails.
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