Donald Trump the Megathread part II - Mod Warning updated in OP 12/2/26

I would personally say, if I dare to take a look into the future, is that the US is in the beginning of a slow decline.

This will only be strenghened if say, Trump goes and Vance is the next president.

However even if a democrat came in, rebuilding trust will be difficult. And then there would still be the totally polarized US society getting at each other all the time. This would lead into the famous "united we stand, divided we fall", and the US is very much a divided and polarized society.

Northern Ireland and the Troubles would be that prime example of a polarized society, but also the UK as a country seems very polarized ever since Brexit. Labour and Starmer or not, it's not going to go away. Imagine a UK under Farage. That would even be worse as the UK is way to small as a country compared to the US.

Also the political slogan "make something great again" is obsolete, especially if things are not good and will certainly not get better.

The ROI would be well advised not to be too dependent on US investment. Foreign investment yes, but not too much US investment.

We need to start worrying about our own house not what’s happening 3000 miles away. We know his intentions- are we gonna cry foul at big bad orange man or start planning for a future now without depending on US fdi

I think we can probably do a bit of both. Trump won't be around forever, nor will his idiotic policies or ideas of returning all manufacturing to a country that's moved on from that years ago. It's right to highlight his idiocy and fight for our beliefs but also we need to look to lessen our dependency on US direct investment. We're far too reliant on it and have been for years.

"Weakness: He's bald."

So is Trump...

The trend judging by the increase in US fdi in Ireland since Trump returned is more US multinationals are spreading their risk in order to stay relevant in global markets. There's a growing market for weight loss drugs outside the US.

Btw, that fdi trend is separate to the pre tariff spending splurge.

Ireland is always a safe bet for US foreign investment. Language is understood and the legal background is understandable, Irish business culture is straight and without fuss, taxes are low, trade unions are limited. All good basics to catch the interest of the US Americans. And with Trump's isolationism they would look overseas.

It's like British Easyjet registering airplanes in Austria due to Brexit to stay in the EU.

They will, though. They're not a radical party by design and the best example of a party in a two party system opting for a left wing radical candidate is the British Labour party choosing Jeremy Corbyn who ultimately led his party to its worst result since the 1930s. It's not a course many Democrats will want for their party. The left is too obsessed with ideological purity and internecine squabbling to do anything. Mamadani is an impressive figure, no question but so far he's been running in friendly territory. It's one thing to win metropolitan New York, quite another to win the Presidency.

It doesn't matter how good anyone's ideas are if they can't convince their party and the public. Even if they do, they have to execute their plans on a national level. Anyone wanting to actually change things for the better is going to have the overwhelming combined might of lobbyists, corporate media, churches, corporations, politicians and oligarchs against them.

I think you've been a little harsh on Biden. It was commonly believed that sensible policies would help reduce Trump's appeal. Biden passed important legislation which benefitted the poorest Americans and it wasn't enough. There were mistakes and God knows he had problems but it's a bit much to describe his presidency as "four wasted years".

Easy. You vote to keep the other guy out. We have the same problem here in the UK and Labour know full well that if they win, it'll be for this reason so there's no impetus to reform the system that handed them a stonking victory.

Polling doesn't matter. Well, it does but it doesn't when the system is so secured from competition with stunts like this:

The Democrats are a less stable coalition than their opposition so it makes no sense for them to risk internal division. The right find it easier to vote for Trump than the left will for Sanders or Biden. The left have a habit of staying home if they don't like the candidate. The right will pinch their noses and cast their ballots.

The healthcare example is a good one. Your average Senator or Congressperson is going to spend much longer listening to a corporate lobbyist explain why reforming the healthcare system would be expensive, ineffective and harmful than some working class person who doesn't get why their United plan won't cover their chemo.

Then of course, there's corporate media. If the Democrats pledge to spend big on a new green economy, the Republicans will pretend to care about sound finances and win that few percent they need to clinch the presidency. Such a tactic shouldn't work but it does every single time and I'm well aware that the Republicans love running deficits themselves.

A better Democratic party is possible but not in the current environment. FDR only got his New Deal through because it followed the Wall Street crash of 1929 for example. I doubt most New Yorkers respect OANN, Fox or Alex Jones but many people in red states do. It's a fair point. Plenty of people in England's post industrial north, midlands and west voted for Brexit and ended up worse off. Nobody asks questions so it's just ignored.

whoever the candidate is , even if straight and white, will be painted as some radical lunatic who wants to destroy America.