By French Vivienne T. Templonuevo (Editor-in-Chief Emeritus) | The Red Chronicles
Photo Courtesy: Nic Antaya | Getty Images
It is no stranger to the global scene as to how the “orange” US president orchestrates the crackdown on immigrants and legitimate citizens of the United States. The world knows how such political branding of a racist-purist and economic nationalist stance has cost the livelihood of the American masses. It is no secret to other nations how the MAGA (Make America Great Again) mass base cheered as it was about to happen. Now, ironically, the mass base imbued in Trump-fanaticism gradually decries the administration’s policies.
The downward-spiralling of the American Imperialist nation is reflected in its economic decline and decay of its political institutions, flocked by the right-wing purists. This once “untouchable” imperialist State that boasted powers of geopolitical dominance faces a decay in its economic base. Now, why should the Filipinos care about the politico-economic fiasco transpiring in a nation that is more than 7,000 miles away from them?
Foremost, the direct attack and potential threat of deportation, fear mongered by the US government, are posed against all immigrants and citizens. Earlier this year, the detention of an OFW green card holder ignited deportation fears among the Asian community. As the economic downturn of US monopoly capitalism happens, the US state would not bat an eye to push more than 2 million Filipino workers into the abysmal void. The rabid gestapos, cloaked in the uniforms of US Immigration and Enforcement (ICE), will continue their arbitrary arrests of its citizenry. The American State would not give a damn, much less a democratic space for the die-hard immigrant Trump supporters.
In an important note, Trump’s protectionist tariffs and deregulatory measures against nations will injuriously affect our global heroes—none other than the OFWs. By raising business tariffs on the US-allied states, imperialist monopolies would burden the working class and consumers. Meanwhile, the oligarchs-backed US institutions, would cascade the burden and crisis of monopoly capitalism onto the workforce.
Ironically, about 60-percent of the Filipino-American Trump voters in Nevada received a dire hit from the very administration they lauded. From 2024 until this year, the rate of joblessness soared to more than 30-percent.
The local scene is no exception as to the waning claws of the worsening US economy. Our country, being a semi-colonial and semi-feudal state, has been trapped in the web of US imperialist power since time immemorial. Undeniably, the Philippines is strongly dependent on foreign imports due to the absence of a national industry in our native soil. Furthermore, as the Rice Tariffication Law fangs its teeth into the wrinkled skin of the exploited Filipino farmers, the country is compelled to import more than 4 million metric tons of rice from China.
As trade wars and tariff dances intensify between China and the US, the cascading of product exports, including rice, would put the food security of the Filipino public into jeopardy. Thus, escalation of food prices would directly affect farmers and consumers, draining their pockets dry.
The unraveling of MAGA America presents a moment of reflection for us. While the U.S. grapples with internal contradictions, Filipinos at home and abroad are left to contend with the fallout. As global dynamics shift, so too must the country’s economic and political direction—towards an independent foreign policy and a genuine national industrialization scheme.
NOTE TO THE READERS: Volume XVIII, Issue 2, penned and published by The Red Chronicles, is a Back Issue for the Publication Year 2024-2025. Note that this article aligns with the events relevant to the previous Academic Year 2024-2025. For further viewing of the same, you may view the flipbook version or visit our official website at theredchronicles.net.