The following is an excerpt from a feature article entitled "Only Trump Can Rebuild the U.S." on p. 222 of the September 26 issue of the monthly magazine WiLL. It was written by John Fonte, a senior fellow at the Hudson Institute and director of the American Center for Common Culture, and interviewed and compiled by Toshiyuki Hayakawa.
It is a must-read not only for the Japanese people but for people worldwide.
It is only natural that a nation should put the interests of its citizens first!
One of the main issues in the U.S. presidential election in November was the Biden administration's response to the record-breaking influx of illegal immigrants.
Underlying the debate is an ideological conflict over globalism, which views national sovereignty and borders as outdated.
Kamala Harris, the Democratic Party's vice president and Biden's successor, is said to be the most liberal presidential candidate in U.S. history. If Harris is elected, the large-scale influx of illegal immigrants will likely continue, and social division will accelerate even further.
In contrast, former Republican President Trump made it clear in his U.N. speech during his tenure that he "rejects the ideology of globalism and believes in the principles of patriotism."
If Trump is elected, there is no doubt that he will push forward with policies that prioritize the interests of his citizens over those of immigrants, based on his "America First" policy.
The book Sovereignty or Submission (not yet translated into Japanese) influenced the anti-globalism line pursued by the previous Trump administration. It stressed the importance of protecting national sovereignty from globalism.
The author, John Fonte, is a conservative political thinker and currently serves as a senior fellow at the influential Hudson Institute and as the director of the Center for American Culture.
This presidential election will be a "crossroads of fate" where the course of the nation will be decisively different depending on who is elected, Trump or Harris.
How does Mr. Fonte see the significance of this presidential election?
We visited the Hudson Institute in Washington to talk to him.
The most radical left-wing administration
- How did the Biden administration change American society?
Fonte:
The Biden administration became the most radical left-wing administration in U.S. history.
It is even more than the Obama administration.
President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris have continued to say that the United States is a structurally racist and sexist country.
They say that people of color, women, and LGBTQ (sexual minorities) have been oppressed and marginalized.
For this reason, the Biden administration is hiring people based on DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion) in all agencies.
It is a system based on race, gender, sexual orientation, etc.
It doesn't matter whether the person has the ability or experience.
They are being appointed just because they are black, female, or transgender.
In addition, the Biden administration has opened the borders.
It is said that 8 to 10 million people have entered the country illegally, but the exact number and whereabouts are unknown.
The president's first duty is to execute the law faithfully, but Mr. Biden refuses to enforce immigration laws.
No president has ever done that before.
President Obama didn't go that far, either.
What impact will the record-breaking influx of illegal immigrants under the Biden administration have on American society?
Fonte:
There is already a lot of chaos.
Because there is no immigration control, criminals are coming in, and there is a lot of crime in New York and Los Angeles, with women being attacked.
There are also more violent gangs from Central and South America, such as MS13.
Shelters and hotels are being provided for illegal immigrants, and vast sums of money are being spent.
Many illegal immigrants are low-income people with insufficient income, and the burden on social security, education, and medical services is increasing.
If they are hired at lower rates than American workers, it will become a factor in lowering American wages.
All of this is the result of the Biden administration's policies.
It has only adverse effects.
In the past, the United States had a tradition of "patriotic assimilation," in which new immigrants actively embraced American traditions and culture.
However, the mass influx of illegal immigrants, who have little desire to integrate into American society, could divide the United States.
Fonte
That's right. From 1880 to 1924, the United States legally accepted many immigrants, and "Americanization" was firmly established.
While immigrants were allowed to enter the country, they were also required to learn English, accept American history as their own, and become thoroughly American.
A law restricting immigration was passed in 1924, but in the mid-1960s, the acceptance of immigrants began again.
However, instead of Americanization, "multiculturalism" was adopted.
Immigrants were no longer required to accept English or American culture.
Not only did they maintain their language and culture, but they also became hostile to mainstream American culture.
- If the large influx of illegal immigrants continues, what will happen to American society if Ms. Harris, who is Mr. Biden's successor, is elected in the U.S. presidential election in November?
Fonte:
It will become a hazardous situation.
They want to get these immigrants to vote and overwhelm the American people, creating a new system of governance.
It is essentially a revolution.
It's the same as the Marxists and Communists of the past who tried to change the system.
It is the goal of the Democratic Party.
They see the United States as a flawed nation, and as Obama has said, they aim to "transform it from the ground up."
They are trying to achieve this through mass immigration.
If they succeed, the United States will no longer be the United States but become a completely different country.
It will not be a constitutional democracy but a new type of regime run by a vast bureaucracy.
So you're saying that the Democratic Party government is allowing a large influx of illegal immigrants for political reasons?
Fonte:
The goal is to gain political power.
Many of the immigrants are low-income earners, and they will become clients of the welfare state.
They will vote for the Democratic Party to receive welfare benefits.
The size of the government and bureaucracy will be expanded, and the welfare state will be strengthened.
In this way, the Democratic Party will seize complete power and create a socialist system.
It will develop into a global effort, and the nation's authority will be transferred to a supranational organization.
Ultimately, the goal is to seize power.
They hate the current U.S. and want to transform it from the ground up.
The world that globalism aims for
- How are the supporters of globalism, which calls for opening borders, trying to change the world?
Fonte
They want to weaken the nation's power and subordinate it to supranational institutions.
In other words, they are trying to transfer the authority to make decisions from the nation to the business groups and bureaucrats of international organizations at the Davos Conference (the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum).
In the United States and Japan, citizens elect representatives who make decisions.
Democracy is a form of government based on the consent of the people.
However, it is not democracy when supranational organizations make decisions without the people's consent.
The most important question is, "Who decides?"
Do the people or supranational organizations make decisions?
In a new infectious disease pandemic, will the nation or the World Health Organization (WHO) decide on countermeasures?
The WHO is not just making recommendations to individual countries but is also trying to establish specific rules.
In France and other European countries, right-wing political parties are gaining strength.
Can we see this as a reaction against excessive globalism?
Fonte
Yes. I call it democratic "national sovereigntists."
They are not extreme right-wing.
They are center-right.
It is because they represent what a lot of ordinary people want.
The immigration issue has become such a big problem that it is pushing European countries to the right.
The people see it as a severe problem, but the center-left parties in power have done nothing about it.
Another major factor is the measures to deal with extreme climate change.
The policies of decarbonization and the regulation of agriculture are causing fierce opposition from farmers.
- Japan is also moving towards actively accepting immigrants due to its declining population.
Fonte:
It depends on how many immigrants are accepted, but the more there are, the more problems there will be, and Japanese society will change.
Looking at Western countries, you can see that accepting large numbers of immigrants can damage society.
In France, around 10% of the population is Muslim, but radical Islamists and terrorists have also come in.
Completely changing society
- How do you see the "culture war" dividing American society?
Fonte
What is becoming dominant in significant institutions such as universities, the media, some large corporations, and the high-tech industry is called "woke" ideology.
Starting with "multiculturalism," various terms have been coined, such as "political correctness" and "identity politics," but they are all the same in that they are progressive visions based on Marxism.
It is a way of thinking that seeks to completely transform society by dividing the population along racial, ethnic, and gender lines rather than class lines.
On the other hand, the majority of the population supports the traditional United States and rejects the idea of transforming it from its roots.
This is also reflected in the fact that Trump was elected in 2016.
Therefore, there is a vast difference between most American citizens and certain significant institutions.
I call this the conflict between patriotic "Americanists" and anti-American "Woke Progressives."
These two groups have entirely different civilizations and completely different lifestyles.
The late Angelo Codevilla, a scholar at the Claremont Institute, described this conflict as a "cold civil war."
It is a situation in which two irreconcilable systems are hostile to each other without shooting at each other, as in the Cold War era.
This is similar to the situation during the American Civil War in the 1860s.
At that time, there were two different civilizations and two different lifestyles under one government.
This is a hazardous situation.
As President Lincoln said, it is a situation where we either win or they win.
Traditional America will survive.
Because things are starting to move in the right direction.
However, it will be a long and challenging battle.
The true nature of cultural Marxism
- The essence of Marxism is to divide and pit people against each other.
Fonte
That's right. Marxism divides people into two groups: the oppressors and the oppressed.
It was "workers" versus "capitalists" in the past, but now it's different.
It's "white people" and "male" Christians" versus 'people of color,' 'women,' and 'LGBTQ.'
This is not Marxism as it used to be, but what is called 'cultural Marxism.'
Antonio Gramsci, an Italian cultural Marxist, said that what was important was not economics but ideology.
Ideas change culture.
He argued that to succeed in a communist revolution, it is necessary to gain control of ideas, in other words, to gain ideological hegemony.
- "Cultural Marxism" is difficult to oppose because it uses opposition to racism and respect for diversity as a smokescreen.
Fonte:
We need to expose the true nature of Cultural Marxism.
Their goal is not freedom.
It is to seize power.
The people promoting this are bad.
In the United States, criticism of the main ideas of cultural Marxism is already being made.
For example, many conservative governors have stopped spending on the DEI program.
Trump also banned Critical Race Theory (CRT) training at federal agencies just before he left office, as CRT claims that the United States is structurally racist.
If Trump is elected, it will be banned again.
Another way to counter cultural Marxism is to assert that we are patriots.
They criticize the United States as an evil nation that has been systematically racist for the past 400 years, but we reject that.
We support the United States, honor our ancestors, and value common sense.
This is our goal and our strength.
The left-wing forces hate their own systems, traditions, and ancestors.
We are at war with the "Walk Revolution" they are promoting.
The same can be said for Japan.
A war over lifestyle and civilization
- What significance does this presidential election have for the culture war in the U.S.?
Fonte
This presidential election is about more than just culture.
It's a war over lifestyle and civilization.
Trump represents traditional America, while Harris represents the Walk Revolution, which aims to transform the U.S. from its very foundations.
In other words, it could be said that this is one of the most important elections in U.S. history.
If Trump wins, what will happen to this war?
Fonte
Trump will push back the Walk Revolution and it will be the beginning of the revival of the nation of the United States.
However, it will be a battle of back and forth.
It will not progress perfectly.
It is a long-term war that will determine the fate of American civilization.
It could continue for decades.
So you're saying that it will take time to change the current social trend?
Fontaine:
The current trend of the Walk Revolution has gradually spread over a long period of time.
It's true that Obama gave it a big push, but it didn't just suddenly appear.
Obama was trained as a socialist in the 1980s.
They've been working on it for 40 years.
So this trend won't disappear overnight.
If Trump is elected, that would be desirable, but we must also elect someone who will continue the fight after him.
It's not just the U.S.
In Europe too, the power struggle over decision-making rights for E.U. member states will continue.
In other words, the conflict between globalists and nationalists is the struggle of the 21st century.
It is a battle between those who believe that decision-making should be done by the Davos conference and international organizations, and those who believe in constitutional democracy.
It is a war over political systems and civilizations.
Trump is a clear anti-communist
- Trump is a clear anti-communist, as he declared in his campaign speech that he would "eradicate communists, Marxists, totalitarians, and far-left forces".
Where does his anti-communist ideology come from?
Fonte
Trump himself is actually a target of modern communists.
They are trying to imprison Trump and ruin him financially through "lawfare".
Trump has also seen how people's speech is suppressed through political correctness.
In other words, Trump has experienced the totalitarian and authoritarian elements of the Democratic Party first-hand.
It is highly understandable that he has become anti-communist.
Trump's "America First" policy is often criticized as isolationist, but isn't it natural for a country to put the interests of its own citizens first?
Fonte:
That's right.
It's normal for a country to put its own citizens first.
The citizens want that, too.
The Japanese people would want that, too.
The revival of the Trump administration will also be an excellent opportunity for Japan.
The conservative governments of the U.S. and Japan should cooperate with each other.
2024/10/13 in Umeda, Osaka
