THE TRUMP-et THAT BLEW AWAY THE TICKET

President Donald Trump lost in a cliff-hanging election in key states, demonstrating both his enduring appeal among his keen supporters and his inability to amplify his sphere of support. Going into the election night, the world over appeared to have the doubted the Trump's admirers who turned out in sheer force to re-elect him. Unfortunately, stirring up his supporters wasn't enough to win, especially Trump had flicked off key constituencies since 2016. The close margins in key-states don't only show how close Trump was to reelection, they also reflect on how he let opportunities slip through his fingers.

After assuming office in January 2017, Trump wasted no time in building a campaign operation that his campaign team ironically nicknamed the Death Star. The campaign embraced a Star Wars- a related metaphor for his 2020 reelection effort in the form of the second Death Star, the evil Empire's failed superweapon from Return of the Jedi. Brad Parscale, Trump 2020 campaign manager, tweeted “It is firing on all cylinders. Data, Digital, TV, Political, Surrogates, Coalitions etc. In a few days, we start pressing FIRE for the first time.”The American economy had improved in the past four years and that alone was strong enough to keep faith in Trump's handling of it. And his team exhibited confidence that they would win. but then the Corona struck.

When the pandemic arrived in March, national polls showed Trump was behind Joe Biden, the Democratic nominee by four per cent. Trump had always been unpopular, as we saw him earn few votes than Hillary Clinton in 2016. Instead of him reaching out to the disaffected Republicans and Independents, Trump pushed a 'xenophobic agenda' that pushed to exclude migrants and Muslims; alongside a conservative economic agenda that betrayed his 2016 populist appeals. This pandered his base, and he went on approving the white supremacists and his bullying attitude immediately turned off voters who hoped he would become 'president' once in office.

Since Biden didn't have a landslide victory, it's easy to judge that the result could have been different if the world was not experiencing a global pandemic that has killed more than 230,000 Americans and affected the economy in the span of just eight months. Once the pandemic came ashore, it was inevitable that the coronavirus would shape the outcomes of the 2020  American contests. And it's unfortunate that Trump was caught up in the middle. The pandemic didn't have to drag Trump's reelection, if he had responded responsibly, it could have been his golden ticket to a second term by proving his leadership skills to voters who were already slipping from his grasp. Jesse Ferguson, a Democratic strategist says “Trump’s best opportunity to get reelected was in his handling of the pandemic, particularly in the spring when it hit. We saw early data where people wanted him to succeed because they didn’t want the virus to be this bad. But he failed so miserably that he squandered the opportunity.” The pandemic was an opportunity in a silver platter, that provided Trump with a chance to do something the country liked- handling the corona responsibly. Already Trump had two unpopular policies; the Tax cut which disappropriately benefitted the rich and his attempt to ward off the Affordable Care Act, first through the Congress and currently through the courts. But in response to the coronavirus, he could have focused on health care and demonstrating an agenda responsive to the working class. He showed little interest in passing a recovery package during the summer.

Moreover, in late May, he lost grip on something else that could have been his best hope for reelection. Following the videotaped murder of George Floyd under the chokehold of an officer, an estimated 26 million protestor hit the streets of United States, demanding an end to anti-Black police brutality. The movement became well known under the banner 'BLACK LIVES MATTER'. To Trump, it was a chance to transform the election into a referendum on, as he began incessantly tweeting, 'Law&Order!'.The protestors were fighting for a just cause, with the country known for its systematic racism. Trump misjudged the uprising which was not a moment of Black protests, but rather a multi-racial coalition against longstanding injustice. The pleas by the Trump campaign were too late to ease the pain and perceptions of people. Trump’s desperate message of racial fear wasn’t enough to win Republicans and other minority groups back.

To conclude, the result suggested that the strategy applied by the Trump campaign was enough to win something under half the votes cast, but not quite enough to win him a second term. With his failure to get reelection, he is now the first president since George Bush Sr. And he joins the second term 'curse'  crew of  William Taft, Gerald Ford, George Bush Sr, Herbert Hoover, and Jimmy Carter who failed to get reelection for the U.S Presidency. Richard Nixon once said; ''The important thing is the presidency'' he continued saying; 'If need be, save the presidency from the President.'' In this election, the American 'Presidency'' was saved.