LETTER: Donald Trump imperils democracy

What happens in the US doesn’t stay in the US. That is why the world is following the US election campaign with such intense interest.

If there was not so much at stake, especially for the democratic world, one could see the nonsensical utterances and conspiracy theories of Donald Trump and his ventriloquist, JD Vance, as light entertainment. However, he has devoted followers in his cult, including large portions of the evangelical churches, who applaud his racial supremacy and hate speech against immigrants and political opponents and are enthusiastically buying Trump bibles and shoes.

Trump also has a large following among South Africans, in SA and in the US. This should not surprise anyone. Race and gender are the two silent key factors against the candidacy of Kamala Harris in this election. But how does the rest of the world see it?

Vladimir Putin, Kim Jong-un and right-wing governments in Israel and Hungary hope to see a Trump victory. Democratic governments shudder about such a possibility. Nato leaders are already preparing for less US support should he be re-elected. This is a watershed election for the US and the democratic world.

Trump’s declared aims include:

• Revenge against his political opponents, even with military intervention.
• The release of prisoners that participated in the efforts to violently overthrow Biden’s election on January 6 and to execute former vice-president Mike Pence.
• Mass deportations.
• Trade wars with competitive markets.
• Pressure on Ukraine to make peace on Putin’s terms.

Opinion polls show Harris and Trump in a very tight race. What counts in her favour is that people now know more about Trump than ever before, and top Republicans openly support her campaign.

Dawie Jacobs
Pretoria

JOIN THE DISCUSSION: Send us an email with your comments to letters@businesslive.co.za. Letters of more than 300 words will be edited for length. Anonymous correspondence will not be published. Writers should include a daytime telephone number.​