Congratulatory Sikh Message to President-Elect Donald Trump
On 20 January 2025, Donald Trump will return for the second time to the White House as the 47th President of the United States. Previously, he served as president between 2017 and 2021. He has won the Electoral College vote as well as the popular vote. With his Republican Party majority in both, the Senate and the Congress, he will be one of the most powerful presidents in history.
Reports suggest that strict immigration controls, high trade tariffs on all imports, a restrained foreign policy backed by increased defence spending are the core parts of his agenda.
It seems his tough stance on immigration has won him the popular vote even from integrated immigrant communities in the US. He has promised to launch the largest domestic deportation in US history and to use the National Guard to carry out deportations of hundreds of thousands of immigrants who came to the US under the Biden administration. He wants to end automatic citizenship for the children of undocumented migrants born in the US.
He has promised to cut billions of dollars in US international aid, end the war in Ukraine and is even thinking of US withdrawal from Nato. That is unlikely but he can make other NATO members pay more. He also intends to double-down on protectionist policies, is calling for a universal baseline tariff on all imports from countries that engage in unfair trade practices.
Yet, constitutional democracy means democracy with constraints, checks and balances. His election rhetoric is likely to be watered down by the realism of office and the democratic constraints through the Congress, the courts, fear of impeachment, fear of prosecution, government bureaucracy, and the financial market and press and public opinion. Admittedly, with such a sweeping election victory the constraints this time are weaker than ever before.
With Trump in power, his relations with countries like India cannot be assumed on the basis of his personal relations with heads of states but are more likely to be transactional and businesslike. He is likely to seek clarity of the geo-political positioning of countries like India at present having a foot in opposing political and financial blocs like BRICS. China will continue to be seen as the biggest trade threat to the US if not military as well due to Taiwan.
So, with the above background, diaspora Sikhs who are continually in the news, need to steer their influence carefully in a complicated and unpredictable world, more so with the sweeping election victory of Donald Trump. The global Sikh community, especially Sikh Americans need to work out a strategy about their relationship with Trump and how to strike the right note with him.
Like any other head of a democratic state who has won fair elections, Donald Trump should be sent congratulatory messages by national and global Sikh organisations &ndash if not already done. They should extend a hand of friendship to the next President as an influential global community. They should also take this opportunity to brief the next President about their traditional loyalty to the countries they live in. That they have a proven track record as law-abiding net contributors to the economy due to Sikh work ethic and way of life.
At this stage, perhaps it is best not to touch Sikh issues. That can be taken up later. We hope that one day, Sri Akal Takht Sahib will be in a position to guide the global Sikh Qaum about such matters.
Gurmukh Singh OBE
Principal Civil Servant retd (UK)