What is Donald Trump’s political and policy legacy? Nada Tawfik explores how four years of the Trump presidency has challenged US policy conventions and re-written the narrative of American political discourse.
The audio for this podcast was updated on 8 January 2021.
This is an unofficial transcript meant for reference. Accuracy is not guaranteed.
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do you think the BBC world service, I'm not a ten feet in the series, were profiling, the residents and residents to be of the white house commonly harris Joe Biden and first donald trump. This is a presidential profile done
trump, the political record? I know you pain in one tumultuous stay this week, but you have to go home now.
Trumps for years in office, reached a stunning conclusion, violent mobs, stoked and encouraged by the words of president trumpet
allies stormed the building, while the house and Senate were inside,
they were meeting to count the votes of the electoral college. It's no small challenge to compress the last four frenetic years into a thirty minute. Documentary.
Three years ago we launched the great american come back and our country is thriving and highly. We
did again so in this programme I am going to focus on his america. First agendas impact on three areas:
jobs are booming
incomes are sorry. The economy wants poor credit on economy that inherited. You want zero blame further.
And enmity ignore the environment. The united states will cease all implementation of
non binding, paris, a core and foreign policy. Donald trump is
Withdrawn us from just about everything, I'll also explore how he accomplished his goals by turning the republican party into what some see as a cult of personality, Joseph our biden, junior of the state of
Where has received three hundred and six about last november's? U s. Election is over my campaign vigorously
dude, every legal avenue to contest the election results. After a day of chaos in the capital, Donald trump acknowledged he will be leaving the white house on January twentieth as a one term. President now car
says certified. The results and new administration will be inaugurated on January twenty it. My focus now turns to ensure
bring a smooth, orderly and seamless transition of power. Trump is will remain a formidable force in american politics. He relished his role as a disruptor and provocative tour
stood about his record to Joe Biden during the election campaign in forty seven months. I've done more.
You ve done it forty seven years, Joe trump showed just how much his presidency would diverged from the past on the day
was inaugurated in january of two thousand seventeen, a small group
nations capital hazard,
the rewards of government. While the people have borne the cost, we will get our people,
of welfare and back to work
building our country with american hands and a man
in a labour.
Now arrives the hour of action to fill his campaign promises
and to undo many of president Barack obama's policies. He wasted no time exercising his new power to issue federal directives formally considered of last resort.
You see the approaches and it's a multi was first one hundred days. President trump issued a barrage of executive orders more than any proof
president of the few men they provided the theater and political impact. He does. I plan to defeat
state of iraq and syria
Isis. He signed and held up for the news cameras orders aimed at everything from overturning obama, signature, health care policy, review
will correct the cracking down on immigration and weakening
environmental protection, as well as efforts to reinvigorate the nation space programme and to fight the
wait epidemic and rising drug prices,
what amazing,
The truth is that he not only took one or two issues: stanley ranch on is a professor of political science. At the city university of new york, his books called the real psychology of the term presidency and he says trump
a different path, but he took seven or eight or nine and try to do the whole thing during one presidency, which of course is an enormous undertaking and not you know you, you just cannot expect to be fully or even partially success.
when every one of them, but what I think he won
the change, the dominant political and social narratives of the way
twenty years. Those who voted for president trump in two thousand sixteen believed he would bring back american jobs, an ailing industries and shrink the trade deficit with other
trees. China just took its gloves off. The chinese government is saying that it will put a twenty four hundred this keynote policies. Tariffs aimed at china would have consequences for the president's base. China is the biggest
both market for american soybeans. The BBC's knit bryant met some of those affected. Josh ogle has seen the prow
plans to a nine year low, but he voted for donald trump backs the president's protection protectionist fight way, the business
I am pleased that he knows how to negotiate and do things. So I've got faith in what he's doing is gonna work.
now. Is it going to work in the inward tommo tail? The trade war has almost certainly cost him votes nobel prize winning. Economists, Paul crewmen, is an outspoken critic of the president. In an interview with the bbc, he said that the trade wars caused president trump votes, the damage to american farm
has been really clear and visible in the benefits to: u s. Manufacturing are invisible. That's not how larry cutler director of the national economic council saw the policy troy. Thousands and thousands of businesses have implore the president to protect them against china's unfair trading practices and their ip theft and therefore technologies.
As far as and their high tariffs. I've heard him say this time and time again that couple years I've been working here, he said its individual businesses,
so the big business groups is asking now come on, come back home to america would give
new low taxes in law regulations and an entrepreneur
environment so we're president trump's supporters voting against their own interests when he pursued his trade war. Will Kathy Kramer is a politics professor in wisconsin, a swing state which voted for trump in two thousand and sixteen. She says that assumes people to find their interests in terms of policies, but there are,
other considerations the public that oftentimes we're not paying a whole lot of attention to specific so on policy, but instead we are
we're forming our ideas around the kind of people that we think we are and who we want
be in whom we think is is respecting. People like us
you can just convey to people, I'm I'm for you, I'm fighting for you, I'm not for those other people he gives. You
kind of leeway when I went to some of these,
It means an ad. These are recommendations for the president, and there are few times he didn't take. The recommendation that I I was rooting for the meetings casey mulligan is talking about. Are those he attended in the white house, as chief economist on the council of economic advisers from two thousand and eighteen to two thousand and nineteen he's since written
called your hired about his experience and then ass time passed. I started to realize: he's got another approach to this than than I do in and he's gonna try some
things you ve made a might not seem like a good idea even going to try it, but the whole idea is no way we smart guy said trot
A lot of to solve a lot of problems are watching. You haven't done it so some new I
Here was needed and one way you get new ideas is just try stuff that, maybe doesn't seem like it makes sense,
once I realized that was his method and I started to look back and painting
going forward what he was doing, I realize he really too I common experimenter gathering results,
is a blue collar boom.
throughout his term president trump boosted that he had done more for the economy than any other president, his state of the union address in early two thousand twin
It is typical, since my election, we have created seven million new jobs for
million more than government experts projected during the previous administration.
very incredibly, the average unemployment rate under my administration is low.
Than any administration in the history of our country,
two economist paul crewmen. The picture looked very different features. Looked at the charge of economic data starting around twenty ten, you would know
we know that you're been a change of management and in twenty sixteen pride is just a straight line: trend of growth of job creation.
began under obama and continued and there's another person for whom that point really wrangled about the time I left office household income was near. It's all time high and the uninsured rate hit an all time. Low and wages were rising and poverty rates were falling. That was former president Barack Obama in two thousand and eighteen deciding to publicly come out
criticise the sitting, president ahead of mid term elections. Much of all this, just someone, you dear how great the economist all right now, let's just when this request,
started with teasingly again says: there's another way of looking at those numbers
What every year in the obama economy, the washington people who are in charge of fork in new york and they are in charge of making their predictions what's going to happen next year in two years and three years, and they are always very optimistic about the obama economy and
I'm going to a actual obama economy, never lived up to their projections. I think eight years in a row or seven out of eight ah the actual economy fell short of their expectations, and then
when trump came along he's, like all his arrival person, our economies not gonna, grow and trumps economy, beat their exploitation three years in a row,
they underestimated him over and over and over again,
economic area in the political area, but this is the capper, because this is again the biggest tax cut biggest reform of all time, and we will sign this right yeah. This is something I'm very proud of grapes for our country,
great for the american people. Thank you all. I think it would be very
hard to defend trumps claim to be the best or one of the best precedents for the. U s economy it when looking at the historical record or comparing him to the historical record. Julia is the professor of the history of capitalism. At the new school in new york, even before
you get to the covert were session that were experiencing right now
if not had a strong labour market and, of course, the cove id recession. Deep and not just
unemployment and worse and growth and increased inequality from where we were before covered, but made
different kinds of disparities in inequalities, even more heavily borne by people of color
by women. Since, while our junior stock markets have soared seven deeper,
said adding more than twelve trillion dollars to our nation's wealth. She says that president trumps focused on tax cuts alongside us, surging stock market, distracted attention,
from the flaws in the american economic system. The fact that american corporations
American innovation system was unable to
he'll. Never you no response is quick, efficient, effective, technologically innovative responses to the cove and pandemic. It's a perfect example, and one of the way in which this supply side tax cut back
so you know theory of how to promote growth and enterprise
innovation- employment, where it really fails. The former republic and governor of new jersey and a critic of president trump christine todd Whitman says the economy is just one example. The word donald trump has moved the republican party away.
from its traditional policies. While republic has used to care about balanced budgets and deficit deficit has grown exponentially under trump
used to be a party that believed in of open and free trade and obviously with restrictions with within the boundaries of the various agreements. With we joined in the pool
asked and again we were a party and their national party that recognise the importance of international relationships. Donald trump is:
withdrawn us from just about everything and those who have been our allies in the past or not at all sure
still allies
The president trump had long been a critic of global climate change action, especially if he saw it as threatening american jobs.
The paris climate accord, is simply the latest example of washington entering into an agreement that disadvantages the
It states. Thus, as of today, the united states will cease all implementation of the non binding paris accord, not for the first time he was at odds with european leaders. Like french president emmanuel, my chrome, I respect that decision, but I do think it is
natural mistake both for the u s and for our planet, the environment is a republican issue. Was abraham
can who set aside the first public lands and richard Nixon, who established environmental protection agency and the clean water acts safe, drinking water, actor, clean air,
It all came under his tenure working with a democrat congress. This walking away from science at sciences sciences, the backbone of what e p a does, and why a policy always affects the final outcome of rules. For instance, it shouldn't be it shouldn't, be powered
it should be policy based on science, but there will always be a policy overlay on the science, but science is critically important and the one thing this administration has done very successfully as to denigrate science and scientists ignore it. I mean they dont ignore
just on the year on the environmental side, they ignore it with covert. That's a prime example of what happens when you look the other way and refuse to admit the importance of basic scientific research. Withdrawing from the paris accord is just one of a number of steps away from internet
institutions. We will be today terminating our relationship with the world health organization, a charming master who was president transnational security adviser, says that trump echoed in isolation is sentiment in america. Donald trump didn't invented. He embarked measure tat into that dissatisfaction with you. U s. Foreign policy
in the end, the the unanticipated length and cost of the wars in the middle east and and south asia for hr mcmaster. There is one foreign policy initiative that stands out countering china. The shift away from this assumption that China, having been welcomed in to the international community, would play by the rules were liberalized its economy. It has prospered, it would liberalize its form of governance. Obviously, that's not the case and therefore we needed to recognize that china is his arrival, a strategic competitor, and I think that has been a profoundly important shift in policy really not just by the united states, but across the free world. President trump came into
was believing american foreign policy had failed and therefore he was convinced that a different approach was necessary to problems such as north korea in the Middle east, considering himself to be the ultimate deal maker. He embraced relationships and even praised sum of america's enemies, listen to how he described north
yes Kim jong. When I did it and I was really being tough and so was, I will go back and forth
and then we fell in love. Can really. He robbed me beautiful letters and their great letters. We fell in love, critic, say. Donald trump is a chaos agent with no real alternative approach to the foreign policies he abandons, but his secretary of state might palm peo characterizes president trumps term knit differ,
way. President trump has put his america first vision into action and may not have made in popular in every foreign capital. But it's worked. This president has led
All the initiatives in nearly every corner of the world Julie says president trumps. Rejection of multilateralism repudiating treaties on nuclear weapons and trade has created avoid other countries have been.
All too eager to fill so we're missing. What's going on in you know china but
by china, in asia, in the pacific were missing. What's going on between china and africa, say, for example, by focus, but not only by doing these unilateral trail deals under trump, but talking
bout down on it, so much so that that we are not seeing again the relationships and the institutions that really may be the propelling force in the global economy in the twenty first century:
bad there, whether it is foreign affairs, the economy or taxes
There seems to have been an underlying motivation behind most of donald trump policies. He focused on appealing to those who voted for him in two thousand. Sixteen even bring very smart about picking office. Individual
groups of supporters and giving them each something that they may not
everything that he's done, but they can find one thing in there that they like and that's what's given him his face, those who were afraid of immigrants cease talked about the wall model
that's been built, but you know he's done some on it and he certainly been strong about keeping people out so that appeals to them
to care about wife and wanting very concerned
rid of justices. Who will undue a woman's right to choose how her body is used and whether or not you can ever
or should they ve gotten their judges. So there are happy group on this october evening and it is so beauty
The first lady- and I welcome you to the white house to bear witness to history, perhaps donald trump longest lasting legacy will be his appointment of not one or two, but three supreme court
This is it a few moments we will round.
wherein the newest member of the united states supreme court
justice, Amy coney barrett it
Thank you. Thank you. So very much. Thank you all for being here today and thank you, president tramp for selecting me to serve as an associate justice of the united states. Supreme court is a privilege to be asked to serve my country in this office. With the appointment of conservative judge. Amy coolly bear it. The bounds of justices of the court has changed with implications for a law making in the union,
he's gonna have an enormous impact and it s not just the supreme court. It's the judicial appointments, all down the line, because there, the feeders for the supreme court
fortunately that the problem I have it's not with conservative,
or liberal juris, its picking them because of their political persuasion and not seems to have been the driving force behind this administrations. Analysis of qualifications that shouldn't be it his promises to his based might have secured the president. A second term had coding
was struck in the spring of two thousand. Twenty president Tromp has just landed at walter, reed national military medical center after testing positive for
corona virus overnight as an unprecedented crisis and shut down followed. The economic good news, narrative of the early days of the administration of that operated as a president track record for dealing with the pandemic came under fire. So too did his prospects for a win. In november. He continued to minimize the impact of covert even ass. He and white house
first caught the virus. I stood out front. I led nobody, that's a leader would not do what I did and I know there is a risk. There is a danger, but that's ok and now I'm better- and maybe I'm immune- I don't know, but don't let it dominate your lives, get out there be careful. We have the best medicines in the world and are all happened very shortly and they're all getting approve and the vaccines are coming momentarily as election day approached. He roundly against the changes to voting play
It's due to covert mail in ballots in particular, and warned that he might not accept the result we're going to win this election. The only way they can take this election away from us is if this is a
The election wasn't a window select strike form
Its president, Joe Biden, will be the forty six point.
Of these united states for weeks after the result was called. He clean deal
she had been rigged. Encouraging legal challenges, and even for the vote to be changed
I just want to find a eleven thousand
nine hundred and eighty love coming.
Read. What are we gonna? Do we won the election and it's not fair to taken away from us like this, then
the tumultuous day he spoke
rally in Washington dc where he encouraged his soup.
Waters to march on congress, where the election count was being certified, we're gonna walked out and I'll be there with you, gonna walk down to the kapital,
and we get a cheer or brave senators and congress, men and women working hours. The heads.
the capital his wrist.
On video was initially equivocal, but the fund
day after congress had ratified the electoral count and Joe Biden,
Had been declared america's next president, there was acknowledgement of the end. My focus now turned stewart
during a smooth, orderly and seamless transition of power. Despite losing precedent, trunk continues to exert a powerful hold on the republican party. He still received more votes than any sitting. President in. U s history, Cathy Kramer says that's because republican voters expect someone to fight on their behalf.
There's so much more appetite for a fighter than there is for someone to encourage us all to get along, and I think, a republican candidate who
who comes along and is anything less than combative, with those they think are not working in their interests, and I don't think that kind of a candidate will fare as well. Those who follow the party closely say that president trump will haunt it for years to come, whether he
and again or not in two thousand twenty four. Without trump being the president s gonna be indifferent dynamic going into the next generation of elections, Christine taught with his hold on the party, is pretty strong. It remains to be seen whether he actually too
over the national committee. How much time and energy has for that? Whether he wants to get back to making money and getting,
tv show it's hard to know with him, because it's all about him. President trumps last,
Twelve months were dominated by the impact of covert and the staggering loss
american lives, but his last days season
office will be remembered by the storming of the capital, an event that
he saw a combination of donald trump, disruptive time in the white house when it comes to how much america and the
world view of america has changed under his presidency. The events of this
as january two thousand twenty one will dominate donald trump's political record calls for president trump's removal.
coming from both sides of the I'll, even after he acknowledges he will leave
on january, twenty and such is the unpredictability of the trunk presidency that we should
rule out more surprises between today and vienna
the on the twentieth of january, you ve been
listening to the first of a series of presidential profiles. Listen out for programmes about vice president elect Kamel, a harris and president elect Joe Biden, I'm negative fake. The producer was filled rival. Thank you.
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Transcript generated on 2023-08-06.