26 AUGUST

Continuing to break convention

It is the midpoint of the Republican National Convention 2020 (RNC) and, while the event is following the online format of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) last week, in many ways it couldn’t be more different. A key point of contrast is the preference for live speeches, rather than pre-recorded segments – which United States Studies Centre (USSC) Non-Resident Fellow Kim Hoggard referred to as “performances” in our DNC Wrap-up discussion on Friday. Where presidential candidate Joe Biden met with frontline workers virtually last week, President Donald Trump met with some in person, standing a few feet apart.

Donald Trump Jr, former Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley and campaign strategist Kimberly Guilfoyle all spoke from the Andrew W Mellon Auditorium in Washington DC. Guilfoyle made waves with her impassioned condemnation of the Democratic ticket as socialist and dysfunctional and pointed to Democrat-run California becoming, “a land of discarded heroin needles in parks, riots in streets and blackouts in homes.” Florida Congressman Matt Gaetz echoed similar sentiments, warning that a Democratic government would "disarm you, empty the prisons, lock you in your home" and the "defunded police aren't on their way." Read more on how law and order looks under a second Trump term in the analysis section below. Other speeches throughout the night included Donald Trump Jr and Republican National Committee Chair Ronna McDaniel, both of whom responded to calls from liberal activists to defund the police and the push from Democrats to legislate widespread police reforms.

Looking beyond politics, the USSC published its latest report last week, The role of US innovation in securing Australia’s economic future by Senior Advisor Jared Mondschein. Notably, he points out the Australian over reliance on goods industries rather than service industries, leaves the economy at particular risk of being left behind more advanced economies in the years to come.

VIRTUAL EVENT

A conversation with former National Security Advisor Ambassador John Bolton

Our conversation with Ambassador John Bolton will focus on elements of Trump administration policy — and changes in US strategic thinking — of relevance to Australia’s national interests: strategic competition with China as a foundation of US policy, evolving expectations of alliance partners, US leadership, the likely direction of US policy under either a second Trump administration or a Biden administration.

Please join us for a webinar event featuring Ambassador John Bolton in conversation with United States Studies Centre CEO Professor Simon Jackman and Perth USAC CEO Gordon Flake. To ask Ambassador Bolton a question, please register and join the live event.

WHEN:
Australia: Tuesday, 1 September 2020, 9pm AEST and 7pm AWST
US: Monday, 31 August 2020, 7am EDT

COST:
Free, but registration is essential

REGISTER NOW

You and I both know when we dial 911, we don’t want it going to voicemail, so defunding the police is not an option.

Donald Trump Jr.
2020 Republican National Convention address
25 August 2020

NEWS WRAP

A Trump political dynasty?

Trump Jr speech sparks talk of Trump Dynasty
On the opening night of the Republican National Convention, Donald Trump Jr delivered a passionate speech, reigniting discussions of a “Trump political dynasty”. Speaking with the New Daily, USSC Senior Lecturer Dr David Smith said there will “definitely be an attempt to establish a dynasty” and explained if Trump wins the election in November it would “set Don Jr up for a run in 2024”. READ MORE HERE
Trump issues presidential pardon live on air
In a surprising first for US political convention history, President Trump issued a pardon to convicted bank robber John Ponder during the live stream of the second night of the 2020 Republican National Convention. Mr Ponder, who now runs a non-profit that helps former prisoners re-enter the workforce, was described by President Trump as “a beautiful testament to the power of redemption.” READ MORE HERE
Electoral fairness still called into question
While the Democrats spoke at length during their national convention on protecting the US Postal Service and cautioned against President Trump’s attacks on vote-by-mail, the first night of the Republican National Convention touched on the issue of electoral fairness. Donald Trump warned the opposition was “using COVID to defraud the American people, all of our people, of a fair and free election,” and said the only way Democrats win in November would be “if it’s a rigged election”. READ MORE HERE
Investigation launched over Mike Pompeo’s RNC address from Jerusalem
A House investigation is being launched into Pompeo’s address from Jerusalem during the Republican National Convention. The first sitting secretary of state to deliver an address to a national party convention in at least 75 years, Pompeo defied precedent and could potentially have violated the Hatch Act, which prohibits federal employees from participating in particular political activities. READ MORE HERE

ANALYSIS

Biden vs Trump: Police and Protest

Elliott Brennan
R esearch Associate

What would a second Trump administration mean for police and protest in the US?

President Trump described the death of George Floyd as a “terrible thing.” Following this, he signed an executive order which encouraged chokeholds to be banned in policing but equivocated on whether they might sometimes be necessary. Since this brief openness to reform, the White House now appears to want to strengthen the powers of police in the United States, building on the status quo using the pretence of the largest protest movement in modern American history.

President Trump has taken to describing himself as the “president of law and order,” a reference to the famous Nixon-era slogan. To account for how such a state of disorder arose in the United States under his administration, the president says it is down to “soft on crime Democrats” — another Nixon era legacy — who serve as governors of predominantly red states and mayors of urban centres.

This rhetoric and the lack of stated policy to back it up will have a politicising effect on the nation’s more than 15,000 distinct police departments.

VIDEO

The Trajectory of American power, politics and prestige

Did you miss our webinar with Pulitzer Prize-winning author and New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman on the trajectory of American power, politics and prestige? Watch the full discussion HERE.

Catch this and other recent webinars on the USSC YouTube channel!

BY THE NUMBERS

Industry value add per employee

Aus $84k | US $262k

On a per employee basis, the average contribution to Australia’s GDP of a US firm in Australia is more than three times greater than that of an Australian-owned firm and 22 per cent greater than that of a foreign firm in Australia which is not US-owned.

As Senior Advisor Jared Mondschein points out in his latest report, the value add from US firms in Australia as well as the sizeable amount the these spend in R&D in Australia since the time of the Australia-United States Free Trade Agreement highlight the need for a “skinny deal” for e-commerce to complement the trade agreement. READ MORE HERE