Podcast 41 - Biden shores up domestic defences for global push

Socialist correspondent

Joe Biden’s political appointments and domestic policies are the backdrop to the United States strategy to maintain its world dominance. These policies are being forged by veteran Washington insiders - key figures who were also prominent in the Obama era. Domestically policies are aimed at stabilising the US economy post-pandemic and preventing social dislocation and potential further unrest. This includes a big stimulus package for the economy and progressive measures on trade union rights and policing in the wake of the murder of George Floyd. But the Republicans will block much of this and the left will need to push Biden and Harris to fight for these policies. Though Biden’s rhetoric is different from Trump’s, he has appointed foreign policy hawks to his cabinet and will continue with the policies of Obama and Trump aimed at confronting the rise of China and Russia on the world stage. To be able to focus on that more effectively, however, the US is seeking to get out of major military commitments in the Middle East, which have proved a quagmire and instead to use proxies as a more effective way of achieving its ends.