Divided companies are talked about in almost every country. Do you think it is similar or even more intense in the USA?
Klicperova: “Contradictions are sharpening in many countries – whether it is due to social networks, foreign propaganda or global events, the attitudes of the inhabitants of many countries are becoming irreconcilably polarized. This is true of the US more than ever. It is no longer just about the traditional rivalry between Democrats and Republicans, the conflict has reached a new intensity, an existential crisis, so to speak. At stake will be not only the future president, but even the preservation of the democratic regime as we knew it in the USA. Since the 18th century, thanks to the American “founding fathers”, this system has very wisely ensured that power in the country is divided and balanced in order to avoid dictatorship. The three pillars of power limit each other: the president and the government (the White House) limit the power of the legislators (they reside in the nearby Capitol, which is also white, much larger and characterized by a huge dome), and the Supreme Court, similar to our Constitutional Court, watches over everything.”
So the political system is stable and it’s hard for anyone to change it?
Klicperova: “Well, that very stability has been broken just now. Donald Trump first, he became the first American president in history to refuse to admit defeat and incited his followers to riot. We all remember the savage attack on the Capitol on January 6, 2021, where an orderly transfer of power was supposed to take place that day. It took a few dead to hand power from Trump to Biden. Trump continues to fuel this explosive atmosphere, referring to the January 6th rioters as patriots, great people, and those being punished for that day’s violence as hostages whom he will free at the earliest opportunity. At the end of the Obama administration, the Republicans prevented the addition of the Supreme Court in a rather impure way, which opened up an even greater possibility for Trump. He appointed three extreme conservatives, plus relatively young judges. This is important, in the US it is a lifelong position, it does not even end with retirement, some judges end with death.”
While in our country, a Supreme Court judge has a term of office of 10 years…
Klicperova: “Well, in the US, the appointment of a Supreme Court judge is a presidential will that has an impact for decades. Republican conservatives suddenly gained a 6 to 3 majority in the originally ideologically balanced Supreme Court and immediately took advantage of it. For example, they abolished the constitutional right to abortion for American women, which they had enjoyed for half a century. This is common knowledge. But what is missing the attention it deserves, and what is the real bombshell, is that last Monday the Supreme Court ruled that the president, even the past president, has absolute immunity for any official acts he has done, and that those official acts cannot not even be used as court evidence. So, the judges that Trump appointed now deserve his impunity. In effect, they subsequently declared the president a king to whom the laws do not apply. After this ruling, it will be extremely difficult to prove what was or wasn’t official and continue to investigate what Trump did, whether it was illegal payments to porn actress Stormy Daniels (sentencing was expected this Thursday), attempts at extortion, rigging elections, taking secret documents that Trump then bragged about during visits to his residence, etc. In America, there has always been greater respect for the law than here. The catchphrase “the law will come with me”, famous from Lemonade Joe, parodies a real aspect of American life. Even President Nixon he had to resign when it became clear that he had acted illegally and the Watergate scandal broke. Now the Supreme Court would pardon him. This decree of the Supreme Court is an intervention in the hitherto balanced division of power of the American system, it is an invitation to usurp power by the president. Regardless of who succeeds in the next election.”
Will Americans (as it looks so far) be choosing between two very old candidates? How is this perceived in society (surveys, etc.), is age really perceived as the biggest obstacle for one or the other, or do the programmatic issues of the candidates arouse emotions?
Klicperova: “For completeness, in addition to Trump, who is 79, and Biden, who is 81, there is also 71-year-old Robert Kennedy Jr. in the game. But the son of a great murdered father didn’t do very well. Originally an environmental lawyer, he seems more of a bizarre figure: he fought against vaccines, claimed he had worms in his brain and that he had so many skeletons in his closet that if they had the right to vote, he would be president of the globe; a photo of him allegedly eating a roast dog in Korea won’t help him with voters either. The third candidate himself has no chance, but often acts as a so-called “spoiler”, i.e. someone who siphons off a few percent from one of the candidates, which he desperately needs in a close fight. The American system is one-round, this does not happen in our country thanks to the second round. Unfortunately, voters are more quickly influenced by the general impression of the candidate rather than his program or personality. Age in itself would not be a problem (even Reagan was not the youngest when elected at 73 and was still quite popular). The problem is when age is known, and that is mainly Biden’s problem. It’s not difficult for voters to vote for a father figure, but someone who reminds you of your grandfather?”
So how are the presidential candidates currently doing?
Klicperova: “My favorite comedian, Bill Maher, succinctly put it succinctly: it’s a choice between a criminal and a corpse. Biden simply shows more age. Trump presents himself with more energy, a stronger voice, but if you listen to what he says, you will find that he is no better mentally than Biden. First of all, he speaks with a very poor, almost child-like vocabulary and simple sentences, he often cannot read complicated words from a reading device, he may not even know them, he jumps chaotically from one topic to another when speaking, and confuses names. But all this is overlooked, as if only Biden has problems. At the same time, there is an even more serious problem with Trump – his character, spinelessness, vindictiveness, chronic lying, selfishness, but half of the Americans don’t seem to mind that much. But it’s hard to mock the Americans, after all, we know it from our meadows and groves, our twice-elected President Zeman after all, he bragged that he was such a Czech Trump.”
Biden’s public speaking difficulties stood out in particular in the recent debate, didn’t they?
Klicperova: “That was a total disaster for Biden. In the 90 minute debate on CNN he was completely lackluster, like he was half asleep, either talking weakly or staring with his mouth open, you didn’t even have to listen to the audio to see that he completely failed the debate. And at the same time, it was the main political event of the season, for which he had been preparing for several days, over 50 million viewers watched it, and at least another double then saw endless repetitions of key scenes, of course the scenes with Biden. The paradox is that the fact-checkers calculated that even though Biden committed about nine lies or gross inaccuracies, Trump told at least thirty of them! Including the fiction that Democrats are murdering unwanted newborns and that immigrants come from prisons and asylums. So although Biden won in terms of truthfulness, the overall impression was very bad.”
Was it somehow reflected in electoral preferences?
Klicperova: “Yes, very much so. While before the debate Biden was losing 1-2% to Trump, after the debate he was losing over 6%. The two percent could still be excused by the survey’s statistical error. The problem is that in the US the votes are not counted together, but by state and through electors, the most numerous states are at a disadvantage, the votes of liberal New Yorkers and Californians have relatively less weight. A large lead of a few million votes, or a few percent of the entire population, is needed for a Democrat to win. In any case, Biden’s current 6% drop against Trump signals a landslide loss. That decline may be temporary, but even so, the sword of Damocles of further failure will hang over Biden.”
Is there any way to fix it?
Klicperova: “Biden’s campaign is trying to do so-called ‘damage control’; the very next day, Biden was at a big campaign rally and seemed better: cheerful, more energetic, speaking fluently, but almost exclusively from a reading device. The next day, he gave interviews to a couple of black radio stations, but it was revealed that the White House had sent them suggested questions in advance. He had a short speech on the 4th of July, but again from a reader. On Friday, ABC invited both candidates to an unedited interview, Trump declined, Biden, of course, willingly accepted in an effort to repair his reputation. But the interview was watched by only about 8 million people, and it didn’t sound very good anyway: Biden questioned the election polls that speak against him, he also denied that he was being pressured to resign, he did not agree that he should undergo a neurological examination examination. On the other hand, he demonstrated his will to continue his successful policy and give everything to the election campaign. It is said that he would only resign if called upon by ‘God Almighty’.”
And yet, since the opening debate, there have been voices that if the Democrats are to win the election, Biden should be replaced by another candidate. How is this technically possible and when can it possibly be done?
Klicperova: “An exchange is possible, the result of the so-called party primary elections so far is not binding, logically the vice-president Kamala Harris is offered first (59 years old), even if it is not an ideal solution, she is not particularly popular yet, but polls are not worse than Biden. There are also a number of other great younger candidates, especially from the ranks of successful Democratic governors, most notably California Governor Gavin Newsom (age 56). Jumping a candidate less than 4 months before the election is risky, but it is also risky if Biden remains in the position of candidate. The election is traditionally fixed for the first Tuesday after November 1st, this year it will be on November 5th. But it would be necessary for President Biden to decide to resign himself, the easiest thing would be to hand over his role to Kamala Harris, she would of course also inherit the campaign finances. has the right to sign them. Another logical date is offered at the upcoming Democratic National Convention (Democratic National Convention) on the 19th-21st. August, but that would make the process significantly more complicated and would depend on the bargaining of 4,672 delegates and so-called “superdelegates”.
Can Biden try his luck, go to the polls and, if he wins, abdicate not long after due to health reasons and hand over the helm to K. Harris?
Klicperova: “Certainly. They are in tandem, but to “try your luck” in this situation would be quite irresponsible. Much, if not everything, is at stake this year. Biden knows this well, that’s why he fights like a lion. And now even on two fronts: against Trump and against those who would most like to replace him. But he believes that only he, with his contacts and life wisdom, can win over Trump, as he did four years ago.”
What would the change of the Democratic candidate cause in the Republican camp – would Trump welcome it, or could he feel threatened and use such a change as an argument in case of failure in the elections?
Klicperova: “For Trump, they are a blessing in disguise in the Democratic Party. He withdrew and leaves Biden and the Democrats to fry. The fact that now, paradoxically, no one is addressing his terrible character and his mental states, but that everyone is focusing on Biden’s shortcomings, suits him perfectly. In addition, they claim that Biden is written off and Harris is incompetent.
There are rumors that what is keeping Biden in the race is his family, especially wife Jill. Where do you think the truth is?
Klicperova: “Biden’s closest circle is a strong support for him. That’s been an advantage so far, but now that he should consider stepping down, it’s more of a drag. From all the TV footage, it’s clear that Jill is a big emotional campaigner for his campaign and totally supports her husband. It reminds many of the role played by Nancy Reagan as her husband began to deteriorate mentally (Reagan had already developed symptoms of Alzheimer’s while he was in office).”
On the other hand, there are also voices that one debate, which Biden did not succeed, cannot erase almost 4 years of his quite successful rule. After all, how is his presidential era so far evaluated?
Klicperova: “No one with a pro-democratic mindset disputes that Biden pulled America out of the covid crisis, out of the recession, he was instrumental in investing in infrastructure, in investing in American industry, to break away from dependence on China, he made tremendous progress in the field of the environment. There is also inflation, but it is incomparably less than here, even though the cost of living for food, rent and petrol is rising. The problem is that Biden’s hesitation isn’t just one bad night. Biden, who has bravely faced political opponents and personal tragedies throughout his life, now faces an indomitable opponent – age.”
Trump has already announced, I think, that if the democratic candidate wins, he will not recognize the results of the election again, as he did after the last election. Do you think that now in such a case, the anger of Trump supporters could be even greater? Do you think there could be a civil war?
Klicperova: “You’re right, when asked directly in the televised debate, Trump evasively replied that he would accept results that would be ‘fair, legal and good.’ Free and fair the past results were, and he did not recognize them. They were not “good” for him. No one imagines a civil war. I believe that on all other levels American society is concerned with law and common decency. But still, among those watching what is going on, there is concern that there will be an attempt to seize power. Trump is driven by the desire to avoid prison for his numerous transgressions, as well as the desire for personal revenge on many people. His first period was rather chaotic and the worst was prevented by the “adults” who were around him. But if Trump is re-elected, authoritarian hell will break out. We already know the prelude – the subjugation of women by banning abortions and the establishment of absolute impunity for the president. But the hard Republican core has already drawn up a detailed, 900-page script! It’s called “Project 2025” and it was published by the so-called Heritage Foundation, where Trump’s supporters and former collaborators are really systematically planning to transform the democratic system into the regressive autocratic regime that the MAGA (Make America Great Again) movement dreams of. Of course, he also expects a purge of the authorities and the army and the consistent appointment of people loyal to Trump. Heritage Foundation President Kevin Roberts says there needs to be a Second American Revolution that takes power from elites and bureaucrats and puts it in the hands of conservatives. Roberts promises that this “revolution will be bloodless if the Left allows it.” So there is something to your question about violence. Either way, the stakes are high now. That it is serious is also shown by the Supreme Court’s statement about the immunity of the American president, which I talked about. The Democrats really need a good candidate to prevent a coup.”
Why should Czechs be interested in the electoral events in the USA? And what effects would the victory of one or the other candidate have on our existence and future?
Klicperova: “The results of the American elections are crucial for the entire democratic world. The US is simply a less influential democracy. Certainly not the most democratic, but the strongest. America helped a lot in the birth of Czechoslovakia and stood by us in most of the decisive events. The loss of the Democrats would be a loss for us, for Ukraine, for the entire democratic world. Trump’s words carry no weight, but if he promises to be a dictator on day one when elected, he can be trusted. There is simply a need to stop the democratic drain we are currently witnessing. Elections are truly life or death. Elections have consequences, we see it in Russia, Israel, Palestine. Democracy is proven to be better for life than autocracy. It is called Pax democratica – democratic peace. Not only that, really high-quality democracies do not go to war with each other. This social “law” also applies domestically: democracies kill fewer of their own citizens than autocracies, dictatorships. That’s why it’s important to be interested in the elections, even in our own interest.”
