Against the background of news from the United States that the domestic political situation in the country continues to get worse, GEOFOR turned to Dr. Paul Craig Roberts, Chairman of the Institute for Political Economy, US economist and ex-assistant secretary of the Treasury in the Reagan administration, to describe the real situation.
Serge Duhanov: Greetings, sir! Thank you for taking the time and energy to answer our questions. Especially in such a difficult time…
According to the media, today is not the best time for the United States: inflation, high prices at gas stations, the society is split, and so on. How much do you think this corresponds to reality? How are things really going in the American economy?
Paul Craig Roberts: The US is a geographical location, not a nation. The Democrat Party's Identity Politics has split the population. White heterosexuals are demonized as oppressors and are being marginalized. Employment and promotion of white males are limited by preferences for peoples of color, women, and what was formerly regarded as sexual perverts. White males in corporate employment, government, and the military are required to take "sensitivity training" which conditions them to atone for alleged white male mistreatment of women and peoples of color. In the schools and universities, white children are taught critical race theory which gives them a negative attitude of themselves, their parents, and white people in general and infuses them with guilt. When all is said and done, Identity Politics precludes unity, and without unity there is no nation.
Law has been politicized, and science is retreating. Gender is no longer a biological matter. It is self-proclaimed.
Money rules everything. The government regulatory agencies have been captured by the industries they are supposed to regulate. The Food and Drug Administration, the National Institutes for Health, the Centers for Disease Control have become marketing agents for the pharmaceutical industry. Most university research is financed by outside interests, such as corporations, and the researchers produce results that further the funders' interests. The consequence is that truth is subordinated to material interests.
The US economy has been offshored and financialized. High productivity, high value-added American jobs were lost when US manufacturers moved their production for US markets to Asia where labor costs were lower. The increased corporate profits flow mainly into the hands of the one percent who own most of the financial instruments, thus worsening the distribution of income and wealth. Having lost so many higher paying jobs, most of the working population's income is used up in debt service-mortgage interest, car payments, credit card payments, student loan debt-leaving them little discretionary income, thus curtailing aggregate demand in the economy. The current inflation is not a sign of a booming economy, but of supply limitations caused by Covid lockdowns and Washington's economic sanctions.
Serge Duhanov: The midterm elections are due to take place in November. Are those analysts right who predict a Republican victory? How do you assess the possible election results, and how will they affect American domestic politics?
Paul Craig Roberts: According to current polls, only 29% of voters approve of President Biden. As the Democrat leadership is in the hands of left-wing ideologues who are also warmongers, not even a majority of Democrats identify with the party's policies. Parents are tired of being told by Democrat school boards that they have no input into the schooling of their children. Risking wider war over Ukraine makes no sense to voters when there are so many unattended problems at home. It is beginning to dawn on Americans that government represents interests other than their own. All considered, the Democrats are likely to lose control of Congress.
This doesn't mean that things will improve. The president and the members of Congress are indebted to the interest groups that finance their election campaigns. It is their donors' interests that they represent. These interests seldom align with national interest.
Both the Republicans and Democrats are controlled by the interest groups that finance their elections. Consequently, it is very difficult for policy to change meaningfully. The main difference between Republicans and Democrats is that Republicans are not anti-white.
Serge Duhanov: Donald Trump, apparently, intends to compete for the White House again in 2024. How do you assess his chances, who can become his competitor in the election race? Joe Biden? Or will someone else join the fight from the Democrats?
Paul Craig Roberts: Biden's 29% approval rating eliminates him as a candidate. As of this time the Democrats do not have a candidate that generates enthusiasm. Perhaps a wild card will appear, as Trump did for the Republicans.
Serge Duhanov: And the last question, the American press is increasingly naming Trump's follower, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis as a possible GOP candidate. Do you admit the possibility of a scenario in which the teacher will help his student to take the highest post in the country? Or will we be waiting for a fight between two bright politicians during the primaries?
Paul Craig Roberts: I would describe DeSantis as an ally rather than as a follower. Florida is one of the most heavily populated states, and this makes DeSantis a credible candidate. DeSantis is also credible, because he protected Floridians from Covid mandates and lockdowns, standing up instead for civil liberty, and he has punished corporations, such as Disney, which tried to weaponize education against white people and normality. Florida stands out as a free state, and many of the residents would like independence from Washington. This, of course, will make DeSantis a target, as Trump's independence made him. The interest groups, the media, and the crazed American left will try to destroy him.
Trump woke up many Americans and showed them it was possible to have a leader who was not part of the ruling system. Perhaps his job has been done, and a second opportunity to elect a man of the people instead of a man of the interest groups, might be in the cards.
Dr. Paul Craig Roberts – Chairman of the Institute for Political Economy, US economist and ex-assistant secretary of the Treasury in the Reagan administration.
Serge Duhanov is a journalist, specializing in international relations and national security issues. Не worked as the NOVOSTI Press Agency's own correspondent in Canada (Ottawa, 1990-1992) and the US Bureau Chief (Washington, 1996-2001) of the newspapers Business MN, Delovoy Mir and Interfax-AiF.