BBC journalist Sam Cabral while recounting the situation concerning the ouster of Kevin McCarthy as speaker of the House of Representatives, reported the following incident in October 2023: “Two Democratic lawmakers got into the elevator as I was leaving the vote. ‘Let the civil war begin,’ said one. The other laughed heartily.”
The above episode describing McCarthy’s ouster sums up the state of America’s current domestic situation.
It shows a petty and corrupt oligopoly detached from the concerns of citizens.
Detached is probably an understatement, a system of complete disregard would be a better description.
Traditionally, American domestic politics was a cheesy and shallow affair.
This would be business as usual were it not for the dramatic evolution of global order away from US-centricism.
Considering how significantly US influence is decreasing globally on multiple levels, the current factionalization of domestic political landscape means that America will become more dysfunctional internally and externally.
The biggest symptom of American dysfunctionality on the internal front is the fact that Donald Trump remains a potent political force.
He is not a statesman and approaches governance through his ego and a tunnel visioned transactional misunderstanding of how the state should function.
Trump’s re-selection as US president is a distinct possibility.
Not only because of a deeply flawed political system in the US, but also because the opposite camp is not able to counter Trumpism as a movement.
Although the so-called democratic party is made up of ‘seasoned’ politicians, internal and external dynamics of US politics of 2024 require something more than mere political chicanery.
Trump leads a movement, albeit shallow and primitive, but it camouflages itself as one which strives to protect the interests of ordinary people.
The fact that Trumpists have managed to convince millions of this myth shows how shallow the American society and political landscape are.
If Trump becomes president again, he is very likely to prioritize going after his personal enemies of which there are many.
Advancing US national interests will not be his priority.
In the growing factionalism of American domestic politics, the Israeli lobby occupies a special place.
It has managed to “convince” most members of the American ruling elite that giving unconditional support to apartheid Israel is somehow in America’s interest.
Such support undermines America’s relations with several Muslim countries and more importantly with the wider Muslim societies across the globe.
The Israel lobby factor may play out in multiple ways if Trump becomes president.
Considering that Trump is on record as being against Benjamin Netanyahu because of his oversized ego, the American zionist lobby will be torn between loyalty to zionist factions in occupied Palestine and in Washington DC.
This phenomenon is already showing its first signs.
On December 6, the US Senate voted down a bill advancing American meddling in Ukraine and Palestine.
On the surface this may appear petty domestic politics, but this is one of many nasty political crises that will erupt in the US with foreign policy ramifications.
Various factions will resort to stalling each other’s policies simply out of spite.
This will have a direct impact on Washington’s ability to intervene in emerging political crises abroad.
It will also further undermine Washington’s already fast eroding credibility as a global player.
One of the many obvious emerging signs is the American establishment’s quite public hints that they are in the process of abandoning their zealous support for Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine.
Petty factionalism of American domestic politics will soon begin manifesting itself in ugly ways.
It is simply a matter of time.
The key question is how the rest of the world will avoid the repercussions of this petty factionalism of an empire in rapid decline.