Joe Biden has won the US Presidential Election, which is great news for millions of people across America, but what does it mean for young Aussies? Well, let’s take a look.
It’s no secret that Australia is directly impacted by the situation in the US. Ever since the bombing of Pearl Harbour in WWII and the subsequent ANZUS treaty, we’ve had a pretty solid and strong relationship with the US, which means that the Biden administration will have knock-on effects here in Australia.
COVID-19:
Let’s start with the elephant in the room: COVID-19.
To put it simply, the Trump administration’s response to the coronavirus pandemic has been absolute garbage. This is not only bad for the health and safety of Americans, but it also has a string of knock-on impacts on the global economy, travel and life as we know it.
But unlike Trump, Biden and Harris actually have a plan to tackle the coronavirus pandemic, and it’s actually based on science (yay! science exists again for our American mates).
You can read his whole plan here, but basically, he’s gunning for free, regular and reliable testing, wants to fix PPE problems so healthcare workers are actually protected, and actually give some sort of guidance at a national level to implement things like mask mandates.
Additionally, he plans to invest $25 billion into vaccine manufacturing and research, which means we’ve got far more chance of getting a vaccine under Biden than we did under Trump.
Don’t expect things to be normal any time soon, but young Aussies can rest assured that we will see a COVID-normal USA way sooner under Biden.
Travel:
Even if Scott Morrison opened up our international borders, America feels off the cards for the foreseeable future because, well, they’ve done a really piss-poor job of handling the pandemic thus far.
Regardless of whether it’s a Trump or Biden administration, it could honestly be years before we’re planning a Vegas trip with our mates. But thankfully, experts predict that US travel will be open way sooner under Biden’s plan, well, because he’s actually got a plan.
“It’s going to happen more quickly if Biden wins than if Trump does,” Dr Charles Miller, a senior lecturer in politics and international relations at Australian National University told The New Daily.
“That’s simply because Biden is more likely to get the disease under control than Trump.”
Climate Change:
Climate change is where Aussies really win under a Biden administration, because now the pressure is *really* on the Morrison government to actually, well, do something about climate change.
“If we don’t get this right, nothing else matters,” Biden said of climate change.
Trump recently yeeted out of the Paris Climate Agreement, but before he’s even been inaugurated, Biden has already declared that his administration will seek to sign back up.
This is a huge win for Australia’s own climate efforts because Morrison can no longer blame his climate inaction on trying to keep a good relationship with the US. If Biden sticks to his word and actually takes climate change seriously, the pressure will really be on Morrison to follow suit.
As it currently stands, the EU, China, Japan, South Korea and soon, the US will all adopt the net-zero 2050 goal, which amounts to roughly 60% of the global economy. But notably, Australia has refused to commit to the 2050 deadline, which will quite literally leave us in the dust.
Not only will this make us the laughing stock of the world for refusing to take the ever-growing threat of climate change seriously, but it could actually have some negative diplomatic and economic impacts on the country.
A Biden presidency doesn’t automatically mean that ScoMo has to give a shit about climate change, but it will definitely put the pressure on him.
Foreign Policy:
Biden isn’t predicted to be a super radical or progressive president, but he *is* predicted to bring the US back to a state of normalcy, especially when it comes to foreign policy.
“Biden will change the tone of US foreign relations. He is intent on repairing relations with US allies that have been damaged over the last four years,” Neta Crawford, Professor of Political Science at Boston University told The Conversation.
This is another major win for Aussies because it means we won’t be caught off guard by Trump’s wild decisions about the refugee crisis, tariff exemptions and overseas manufacturing, among other things.
Biden’s administration is predicted to end Trump’s “America First” era and focus more on building international friendships and relationships, which is a good thing for Australia’s place in the world.
In the immediate aftermath of his inauguration, Biden has already declared that he will terminate the Muslim-majority travel ban, end the Global Gag Rule (which prevents money from going to NGOs that talk about abortion) and stop separating parents and children at the border, among a plethora of other things that probably don’t feel like they impact us here in Australia, but are huge wins for society as a whole.
The Economy:
Biden’s presidency will have pretty significant impacts on the economy, which will be both good and bad for Australians.
Unfortunately (for us), Biden’s economic policy has a strong emphasis on buying American, which isn’t good for our exports.
A Biden victory will see the Aussie dollar rise, which is great when you’re online shopping at your favourite US sites or planning an overseas holiday. However, it’s not so good for Aussie exports, or imports, which is not great for our economy as a whole.
This is particularly bad for us during the recession we’re in, but thankfully the Reserve Bank of Australia is buying back some government bonds in an attempt to manage the dollar.
But in good news, Biden is pushing for wealth redistribution and stability in the US economy, which will almost definitely see the US stock markets rise.
Considering the Aussie stock market generally follows the same trends as the states, we should also see a rise.
This is good for anyone with investments in stocks, which probably isn’t most young Aussies. But even if you’re not a finance bro, this is still good news for the likes of our superannuation accounts, which should see a nice rise after the coronavirus pandemic borked it.
Note: I’m not a finance expert, I’m just a journalist for this here publication, so please don’t chuck all of your money into the stock markets without consulting an actual expert.
The Situation In China:
The situation in China is going to be a complicated one, even under Biden’s administration. But thankfully, he will likely handle it in a much more diplomatic way.
“Biden still wants to beat China. (But) hopefully, there will be less noise (and) more discipline,” a Federal Government source told ABC.
Australia’s relationship with China has deteriorated in recent years, which is pretty strongly tied to our relationship with the US. This means that Biden’s handling of the China situation will likely impact our own relations.
Biden has already said that he will lift tariffs on Chinese exports and focus on ensuring global trade rules are respected by using the World Trade Organisation.
“He’s not as obsessed with trade deficits. There may be some move for the US to return to the Trans-Pacific Partnership,” Dr David Smith, a senior lecturer at the University of Sydney’s United States Study Centre, told The New Daily.
Basically, a Biden presidency should see a slight improvement in our fractured relationship with China, but it’s not going to solve it.
So what can we expect overall? Basically, just a sense of normalcy.
