The World is Changing
By SAMAIYA JULY ‘28 and DIYA SANDEEP ‘28
Over the past few months, American politics have taken center stage as the presidential election season came and went. With the inauguration having passed a few days ago, several concerns have cropped up about the state of affairs—not just within our nation, but across the world.
Political instability isn’t something new, however with so many widespread movements having taken place recently, such as the recent Jan. 18 People’s March in protest of Trump taking office, it is more important than ever that we draw attention to all governments that are currently on the brink of collapse or otherwise under political upheaval and the impacts those government have on the United States government situation.
Currently, Austria is in a state of decline as the far-right Freedom Party is slowly coming into power. Led by Herbert Kickl, they have long been a part of the Austrian government, but now they have recently had the opportunity to form their own governing coalition, the first time a far-right party has established major control since WWII. Their strong stances, including their views on immigration and their distaste towards the Western European Union, may have major impacts.
Germany’s lower house of parliament has been dissolved, leading to early elections which will take place on February 23 — seven months earlier than previously planned. The center-right party, CDU, is seemingly in the lead right now, followed by the far-right AfD, according to a survey recording voters that came out of Jan. 8.
However, unrest is not just halfway across the world. Our neighboring country, Canada, has similarly seen a rise in power from conservative parties following Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s implicated decision to step down in the coming year. Pierre Poilievre, populist leader of the Conservative Party, seems to be the current favorite, despite his fervor for “confrontational politics.”
Countries in Western Europe and North America share deeply interconnected political, economic, and cultural ties. It’s no wonder then that the collapsing governments over there have been affecting the United States. The rise of conservative populist movements in European countries such as France, Germany, Austria, etc. often mirror political trends in the U.S. and vice versa. An example of this in the past is when Brexit fueled nationalist rhetoric in America, while the Trump administration inspired similar movements across Europe. These changes in Europe’s political and economic landscape prominently affect U.S. markets and trade. Similarly, the deterioration of Western alliances like North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), due to populist skepticism of multilateral institutions affects America’s global leadership and strategic partnership. The European skepticism towards NATO under populist governments put pressure on the U.S. to bear the financial and strategic burden of global security. The eroding trust in Western alliances reduces America’s ability to respond to global crises properly and effectively.
Considering the U.S.’s own current right-leaning political state, we can see that this isn’t just a foreign problem. It’s happening right here, right now, and it affects all of us. As these Western governments and alliances collapse the job market and industry, especially those that rely on global trade, will falter leading to job insecurity within communities. The failure to look into and resolve these problems sparks outrage, specifically targeted at Trump as he comes into office. Despite being backed by several of the so-called elite, from Elon Musk to Mark Zuckerburg, there is still no denying his failures in solving these issues and his biased ideology that is stopping the U.S. from progressing forward.