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US bipartisan politics shuts others out: Analyst

Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton (L) and Republican nominee Donald Trump leave the stage after the first presidential debate at Hofstra University in Hempstead, New York on September 26, 2016. (Photo by AFP)

Press TV has spoken to Richard Becker, a member of the ANSWER Coalition, and Jim Walsh, research associate at MIT, to get their take on the first US presidential debate between Republican nominee Donald Trump and his Democratic rival, Hillary Clinton.  

The first presidential debate at Hofstra University in Hampstead, New York, was viewed by more than 80 million people in the United States, and hailed as the most-watched debate ever.

The next two debates of the two candidates are scheduled for October 9th and 19th.

Becker believes that the presidential primaries and caucuses are a “corrupt process”, adding that the two-party system used by the rich and the powerful controls politics in the United States.  

“This is part of what keeps the Democrats and the Republicans in control of the process. The other big thing is that millions and billions of dollars pour into the coffers of the Democrats and the Republicans each time around, enabling their candidates to be on TV constantly with their lying messages. For the most part, they are false, propaganda. And the others are shut out,” he said.

He also mentioned the idea of democracy in the US is just “ludicrous” and if anything, it is “dollar democracy.” 

The analyst criticized the system qualifying individuals to run for president as “terrible.”

He also stated the term presidential in the context of US politics means an “imperial presidency” where every president in reality is the CEO of the empire for the time that they are in office.

Elsewhere in his remarks, Becker noted that Donald Trump has adopted an anti-establishment stance to try to “win over” poor people and the working class who are disenchanted with the system.

He also said Hillary Clinton is bringing a form of “international gangsterism” which she has practiced in her foreign policy arena into her candidacy.

The analyst also argued that “progressive change" in the United States and in the entire world can only be attained through grassroots movements.  

“On January 20, 2017, regardless of whether Trump is elected or Clinton, the ANSWER Coalition and many of the organizations are going to be marching to reject racism, to reject war, and to reject what these candidates stand for,” he said.

Jim Walsh, for his part, said both candidates have “low favorability ratings,” which means large sections of the American public are not enamored with either of them.  

“The US is a very big diverse place [where] not everyone agrees on everything. There are different points of views on social issues, economic issues. A lot of it varies by geography. So you are not going to get someone who is just going to represent one point of view. It is going to be a chaotic process,” he said.

Commenting on the US presidential debate, the analyst said Hillary Clinton appeared to be much more knowledgeable, more in command of the facts and more presidential on foreign policy issues.

However, he stated, when the two candidates talked about trade and economics, Donald Trump did a little better with the viewers.  

According to the analyst, it will be up to whoever takes office to try to create some “momentum” and “goodwill” which is going to be hard in a two-party system, predicting it would be tough for either of the candidates to govern.


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