Trump Administration's 2019 Agenda

E. Wichmann

The Trump administration in 2019 has been extremely controversial - due to the President’s 38% approval rate and debatable policies. His government was further destabilised once his campaign chairman was sentenced to 47 months in jail. This article will be tackling the key aspects of this administration's endeavours in Domestic and Foreign policy.

Domestic Agenda

To understand the Domestic policy of the current administration, it is vital to remember Trump’s campaign aim of building a wall at the border with Mexico and having them pay for it. This promise would supposedly reduce the illegal immigration from Mexico to the United States and stop immigrants from ‘stealing’ jobs from the American people. In December of last year the President of the United States said he would be ‘proud’ to shut the government down in order to acquire the necessary funds to build the wall at the border. Trump argued that around $6 billion was needed to end the “humanitarian crisis” at the border. Such "crisis" had prevented around 50,000 annual illegal immigrants from entering the United States, and led to the seizure of 8 tons of smuggled heroin. On the 22nd of December, Trump announced the partial shutdown of the government. 10 days later, Smithsonian museums started closing and state workers did not receive their salaries. On January 25th, a temporary agreement was reached between Trump and the congressional leaders, which stated that the longest government shutdown ever would end with a temporary bill that partially funded the building of the wall on the border. During this period of government shutdown, the TSA recorded an all time high of absent passengers and delayed flights nationwide. Overall, it is clear just how impacting this shutdown was, and how disastrous a future shutdown might be.

Foreign Policy

One of the highlights of the administration's foreign policy is the meeting between Kim Jong Un and the President of the United States in Hanoi, Vietnam. Both nations entered the meeting with the hopes of officially declaring end to the Korean War and achieving a reduction in both nations' nuclear arsenal. However, quite shockingly, Trump walked out on the second day of the meeting. Plainly saying that “sometimes you have to walk”, he suspended temporary negotiations between the nations. North Korea also recognized how the meeting ended with a disagreement. In another extremely controversial decision, the administration withdrew the United States from the Nuclear Arms Control Treaty with Russia, breaking one of the agreements of the Reagan presidency in the United States due to disagreements with the Federation. This decision also has the potential of initiating another massive increase in both the nations' nuclear weapons. Still, this time another power would be dragged into the problem: China. The nation was never required to sign Cold War-era treaties which suspended the nuclear arms race, and is therefore prone to escalating their stock of ballistic missiles.