Trump left Biden without power before he even took office. Parsing

US President-elect Donald Trump has gained more influence than incumbent head of state Joe Biden. The next owner of the White House has already achieved the desired funding of the government and is negotiating with other world leaders, while Biden has almost ceased to appear in public and conduct active politics. How Trump intercepted power even before the inauguration - in the material "Izvestia".

How Trump influences politics

- Formally, Trump will receive presidential power only on January 20, but already now the media, the political elite and world leaders are paying attention to him. He is not running the country directly yet, but he is doing so indirectly as he is already perceived as the future for America. This is an unprecedented situation for the US, as during the transition period when the transit of power is underway, the outgoing president was still the protagonist of politics and his successor had to wait for his time.

- The fact that Trump is already determining US policy without having yet entered the White House is evidenced by the story of the nearly failed shutdown. Under pressure from the president-elect, a bipartisan deal to fund the government through mid-March collapsed. Trump has said it is unacceptable to pass a budget that includes Democrat-dictated spending while failing to raise the national debt ceiling. The Republican Party, despite its heterogeneity, listened to Trump and refused to vote in favor of the proposed legislation.

- The pressure on Congress was preceded by Trump's careful work to build influence in the Republican Party, which has developed a so-called Trumpist wing. Even if Trump had not won the election, his supporters would still continue to sit in the House and Senate implementing his policies. This is a tool Trump has decided to use now to show his capabilities.

- Republicans cannot refuse Trump to implement his policies now because the alternative would be to end their careers in politics. There are few of them who can decide to change party affiliation - whatever their reasons for disagreeing with Trump, switching to Democrats or independents is unacceptable. That said, Trumpism is capable of taking root among Democrats, ex-Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard, Trump's choice for Director of National Intelligence, is a case in point.

- Trump's influence is especially felt internationally. He negotiates with leaders of other countries and organizations and allows his entourage to comment on the world agenda. Trump regularly voices intentions to impose tariffs, revise bilateral relations, and even extend US control to new territories, and these statements directly affect the domestic politics of other countries, up to and including power crises in Germany and Canada (we wrote more about the causes and consequences of the government crisis in Germany here).

Why Trump is in a hurry

- No matter how Trump builds his public image of a president ready to rule the country single-handedly, his power will still be limited to some extent. Even with a Republican majority in Congress and a proven team in the administration, he will have to listen to his inner circle, which will have its own opinions on various issues. Trump does not want a repeat of his first term, when his decisions were met with resistance. Therefore, it is important for him to impress not so much the voters and outside observers, but the nomenclature, so that they see the possibilities of their leader.

- In addition, Trump's tumultuous transition activities should illuminate to him and his advisers the reaction of the bureaucracy to certain moves in order to gauge its sentiments before handing over the presidency. For Trump, the approval of his actions met now will mean that one or another official will be on his side during the coming second term.

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- Trump also needs the rush to spread influence because he made overly sweeping promises during the campaign that will take a long time to fulfill. Deporting migrants, curbing inflation, solving international crises, fighting liberal ideology - all of these cannot be solved overnight. Therefore, Trump needs to be convinced of the seriousness of his intentions as early as possible, so that after the inauguration, the state apparatus already understands what needs to be done in the near future.

- It should not be forgotten that so far Trump has not only no powers, but also no commitments. In this regard, his hands are free to allow statements of any level of impact on the masses. Right now he can still exert informal influence for which he is not accountable, but from January this will cease and he will return to the usual methods of high ranking politicians to govern and achieve their goals.

- Trump has also achieved that the image of the incumbent US president has changed strikingly against him. The activity of the future master of the White House once again highlighted the age limits of Joe Biden. After the election, he literally withdrew himself, became much less likely to appear in public and give detailed comments, and narrowed his field of activity to domestic policy issues, such as the pardon of his own son Hunter Biden. Although Biden still retains his credentials, Trump has shown that the major actors in American politics prefer to bet on him. In this way, he once again tries to confirm his victory in the election.

Why Trump has influence

- The phenomenon of Trump having an advance influence on politics is explained by the fact that he is not a systematic politician, acting according to the rules and traditions accepted in American society. He allows himself to disregard procedures in order to achieve his goals faster, and for the American establishment, this behavior has proven to be acceptable. Trump relies on his charisma, drawing his early legitimacy from it.

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- Trump's influence is also growing due to the fact that he has built a good relationship with American business, including its most prominent representative Ilon Musk. When Trump announced that he was putting economic development at the top of his list of priorities, he accumulated strong support from businessmen who were ready to invest their resources in giving their representative the levers of power to make their interests a reality. A demonstration of this support was the rally on the stock, cryptocurrency and gold exchanges. It was as if investors handed Trump their mandate to act immediately.

- Finally, the fact that Trump has already occupied the White House in the past does not give reason to speak of him as an inexperienced politician who will first have to "get used to" the new position. It didn't take him long to form his second administration. Although it also has no powers yet and must also wait until January, but the fact that Trump has already selected a team convinces the public once again that the reins of power can already be handed over.

In preparing the material, Izvestia communicated with and took into account the opinions of:

• political scientist-Americanist Konstantin Blokhin;
• American political scientist Malek Dudakov;
• political scientist-Americanist, publicist Mikhail Sinelnikov-Orishak.