Defeat MAGAnomics, Fight for Socialism
Into the second month of the Trump administration, the media is saturated with headlines and stories tracking the flurry of maneuvers, drama, and rumors around the White House, Elon Musk, and the “Department of Government Efficiency” (DOGE). It is nearly impossible to keep up with it all, to determine what has stuck and what has been struck down by the courts, to figure out which contrary rumors are actually facts. In some cases, it’s presented as bumbling, ineffective chaos, but it is important that the left, the labor movement, and all who oppose Trump’s agenda try to draw a clear picture about what the overarching goals and objectives are. Through executive orders, memoranda, and cabinet appointments, the new administration is attempting to strengthen the power of the executive branch in order to more effectively accomplish its pro-corporate, pro-imperialist, right-wing goals.
Trump’s presidency is seen by many people as a Trojan Horse, allowing Elon Musk and his cronies into key positions without having been elected, and setting Musk up to gain personally. Musk is not unique, but is only a more explicit, more obvious example of how the capitalist class relates to politics. Under capitalism, the role of the government and the politicians running it is to grease the wheels of the profit engine, and every section of the capitalist class backs politicians or political parties which they think will result in the best chance of removing obstacles to more profit. With this understanding, the seeming chaos and flurry of executive orders, government dysfunction, and all the other drama associated with the administration starts to fall into place.
MAGAnomics
The majority of all voters—not just Trump voters—considered the economy to be their top issue. For working people, who make up the vast majority of capitalist society, concern about “the economy” is concern about wages, good jobs, benefits, etc. For the past several decades, workers’ wages were stagnant, especially compared to productivity, profits, and the costs of housing, healthcare, and more.
Trump’s right-wing populist appeal was designed to appear in contrast to the neoliberal approach of Obama and Biden. In reality, the policies which have created the current crisis for the working class date back to Carter and have been championed by Trump’s Republican predecessors as well as the Democrats. Trump has promised that protectionist measures like tariffs and nationalist measures like mass deportations would create good jobs, raise wages, and reduce prices.
Trump’s program to “Make America Great Again” presents a few measures and goals that elements of the capitalist class believe will relieve pressure on US capitalism: slashing the federal budget, closing the trade deficit, kickstarting US business, restoring the U.S.’ position in global affairs, and “winning the culture war”. Many of these are not unique to Trump but are also problems that the Democrats and other Republicans have focused on as well. Biden’s “Build Back Better” plans, touted at the start of the administration as the most ambitious government spending program since the New Deal and a return to Keynesianism, largely amounted to trillions in corporate handouts that were meant to encourage infrastructure and green manufacturing in the US through things like tax credits. “Bidenomics” (the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, and the CHIPS and Science Act), were fundamentally more of the same and did nothing to improve the living standards of the majority of US workers.
Tariffs
So far, Trump has applied tariffs on China, Canada, and Mexico, although they were paused on Canada and Mexico after they agreed to some concessions. Fundamentally, tariffs are a tax paid by companies on goods imported into the country. They can be used to try and give an advantage to domestic companies which struggle to compete with foreign industry. The claim is that this will lead to more jobs for US workers, cheaper domestically produced goods, and less reliance on global supply chains. But there are a few problems.
Importers are most likely to pass on the cost of the tariffs to the working class by raising the prices of goods rather than accepting a smaller profit margin. If tariffs are applied to a certain country rather than the same product coming in from all sources, it does not have the same effect of boosting domestic industry. For example, if a US industry was uncompetitive with imports from China and Europe, a tariff applied on Chinese imports doesn’t help against the European imports. While tariffs may be popular among some sections of the capitalist class, the reality is that the financialization of the US economy means that tariffs could actually be a negative for the large portion of US capitalists.
Trump is likely using tariffs with other goals in mind. Firstly, as a publicity stunt to shore up his support. He has said tariffs will help onshore jobs and help American businesses, whose supposed improved profits will trickle down to workers, so following through is important. Secondly, tariffs are a useful bargaining tool in negotiations with other countries as part of geopolitical maneuvering. If it becomes cheaper for importers to look elsewhere to source their products and they withdraw from a tariffed country, it could be a major hit to their economy. As seen with countries like Canada, Mexico, and others, they may be willing to concede to Trump’s demands to avoid tariffs.
Reorienting US Imperialism
Trump campaigned on opposing expensive and wasteful foreign entanglements, including unpopular Middle Eastern wars and the increasingly unpopular support for Ukraine. However, he has also made it very clear that he sees China as the main economic and imperial rival of the US which needs to be confronted. Again, this is not unique to Trump, as there is bipartisan support for taking measures against China. Biden did not overturn the Trump-era tariffs which were applied against China, for example, and passed additional tariffs against China. While Trump may try to pull away from historical ties in places like Europe, it really isn’t a turn towards non-intervention. During his first administration, he organized a trade war against China and engaged in saber-rattling maneuvers in Asia. Trump will use both soft and hard power, including economic measures like tariffs as well as military and diplomatic tactics to try and restore US primacy on the global stage and knock China down a peg, especially in places like Latin America where the US has historically been the main imperial power.
Tax Cuts for the Wealthy
Tariffs on countries like China fit into Trump’s geopolitical strategy. But even if they don’t fully accomplish the goal of boosting the domestic economy, they will certainly generate additional revenue for the federal government. This could help provide justification for Trump to carry out another major cut of the tax rates for corporations and the wealthy. This was his major “achievement” during his first administration: boosting the wealth of the US capitalist class. His 2017 tax cut for corporations from 35% down to 21% was never reversed by Biden, even during the two years where the Democrats controlled the White House, the Senate, and the House of Representatives.
The claim is that tax cuts like this help to make US businesses more competitive, functionally giving them a revenue boost that they can use to reduce prices, invest in production, create more jobs, or raise wages—classic “trickle-down” economics. Of course, in reality, the capitalist class never voluntarily reduces its profit margins and is far more likely to stash the extra money in tax havens, gamble it on the stock market, or buy more real estate, yachts and private jets.
Slashing the Government Budget
The capitalist class probably wouldn’t be satisfied with tax cuts which are simply offset by revenue from tariffs, and so slashing the government budget is a major focus of the Trump administration. Of course, they are unlikely to cut the biggest drain on the federal budget, the US military, spending more on maintaining hundreds of U.S. military bases overseas and handing out lavish contracts to private-sector defense contractors rather than increasing wages or benefits for enlisted personnel or support for veterans.
Trump and the Republicans are trying to force through major government cuts, hobbling or abolishing some agencies which enforce oversight and regulations on things like workplace safety or environmental controls which many capitalists see as obstacles to boosting their profits. Trump has promised to “slash massive numbers of job-killing regulations,” “eliminating 10 old regulations for every new one.” Abolishing or cutting public services to the point of dysfunction is also a form of privatization, creating space for capitalists to launch private sector, for-profit replacements for things like public education, healthcare, transit, etc. Public-sector employees are also unionized at a much higher rate than private-sector workers, generally enjoying better wages, benefits, and being some of the last workers who have pensions. Cutting the public-sector workforce weakens unions and helps the capitalist class push wages and benefits even lower across the board.
Culture War and DEI: Cover for anti-worker, racist, sexist, homophobic attacks
Trump and some Republicans have made significant efforts to present themselves as the champions of the average American worker. The bottom line is that every policy is geared towards benefiting the capitalist class, which always comes at the expense of workers, either in the form of using taxpayer money to perform corporate welfare, or giving the capitalist class more confidence to suppress wages and benefits to prop up their profits.
Trump’s firing of NLRB officials and his appointment of former corporate executives to regulatory bodies is designed to have a chilling effect on workers who are looking to organize and fight for union rights, better wages, safer conditions, etc. Blaming and threatening action against immigrant workers or “DEI hires” (women, queer, or non-white workers) for the sad state of affairs in terms of jobs and wages is designed to promote division between different workers who might otherwise organize together on common ground against the corporations.. This will make it easier for the capitalist class to go on the offensive and cut jobs, wages, and benefits.
Where is the opposition?
A few months ago, the unions in South Korea responded with a general strike against the president when he declared martial law. He was forced to retreat and was impeached and removed from office shortly after. Among many workers in the US and throughout the liberal press, there is a very clear anxiety and fear regarding Trump and Musk’s maneuvers. This includes some describing DOGE as a coup, and efforts made by Trump to strengthen the executive branch as consolidating dictatorial power.
The Democratic Party is putting up no meaningful opposition to the Trump administration. The Democrats are continuing their time-tested strategy of refusing to organize any sort of mass protests, instead relying on legal challenges or meaningless symbolic statements/protests. They are more interested in using the Trump administration as a foil to motivate voting for Democrats in 2026. Part of this is due to the Democrats’ need to protect the legitimacy of the political institutions of US capitalism. If they have to resort to action outside of the courts, elections, and the legislature, it’s an admission that the system is broken.
The other part is that they of course agree with many of the aims and goals of the Trump administration, and the billionaire backers of the Trump administration, especially boosting US capitalism and restoring US imperialism to a dominant position worldwide.
The unions are currently tied to the Democratic Party, despite very much being the “junior partner” as the corporate backers of the Democrats will always curry more favor and outspend unions to guarantee the Democrats fight for their interest. Some unions follow the lead of the Democrats, with some staging minor protests or suing the government. Other unions have turned towards sucking up to the Trump administration in the hopes of getting some sort of favorable treatment. Many unions and union officers have come out in support of tariffs, deportations, or even Trump’s Secretary of Labor nominee, who supports anti-union “right-to-work” laws, backing up the capitalist logic that what is good for American companies is good for American workers.
Yet the protests that have followed Trump’s inauguration have been smaller than those immediately after his first inauguration. Those protests, which had some highlights and victories, were limited even compared to the height of the Black Lives Matter protests in 2020 which were the biggest challenge to the Trump administration. Nothing even approaching the Korean general strike – which mobilized 1.1 million workers – seems to be in the cards. Some explanations for this include the fact that Trump won both the electoral college and the popular vote in 2024 (1.5% more than Harris) whereas he lost the popular vote in 2016, that a second Trump presidency is less scary for those who experienced the first one, or—more importantly—that large sections of the people who would be participating in anti-Trump protests have been subjected to harassment and repression under the Democratic Party for participating in protests against the genocide of Palestinians over the last year and a half.
However there have been some important protests organized since the inauguration that show the potential for a fightback against Trump. Some unions, especially those representing public sector and education workers, have organized protests against cuts to funding of jobs and services. Other protests have been organized to protest Musk and DOGE. These should be continued and built upon. Union members need to start discussing the question of how to escalate protests to strike action if needed, including how to confront bans on public sector workers taking strike action. It will be key for all unions to demonstrate their solidarity by turning out all of their members and taking solidarity action so that no individual group of workers can be picked off.
Trump Isn’t Invincible
The support among the ruling class for Trump is not a monolith, as evidenced by the disagreements over tariffs and H1B visas, with different factions angling for the most beneficial policies. Trump has lost many court cases as factions of the capitalist class and political establishment attempt to restrain his administration’s less helpful maneuvers, especially those which could damage the legitimacy of the political institutions or could provoke mass resistance. Trump’s inner circle saw many changings of the guard, not only during the first Trump administration.
But, of course, the biggest potential collision is with the working class, particularly if Trump’s various tinkerings with US capitalism do not resolve any of the issues facing US workers. Nothing Trump will attempt or do will resolve the fundamental contradiction that the majority of the value workers produce is being stolen as profit for the capitalists, leaving workers struggling to get by. This is the root of the recurring economic crises we experience and workers not getting paid the value of their labor is driving overproduction or underconsumption and recessions.
It’s very likely that big chunks of those who voted for Trump from a lesser-evil position, hoping that his policies would somehow deliver on jobs, wages, prices, etc. will be sorely disappointed and can move into opposition. Trump’s pro-corporate policies could lead to a head-to-head confrontation with the labor movement, either forcing the labor leadership to oppose policies that go too far for them to maintain their current passive or accommodating positions, or provoking rank-and-file anger which can force the leadership to take action. The labor movement has a record-high level of support among Americans, more than either corporate party, and could be a rallying point for millions.
It’s key that the anti-Trump mood be used to not only launch mass protests that can disrupt the plans of the capitalist class but also to launch an effort to organize a workers’ party. A workers’ party could not only be a place to strengthen and coordinate protests but also to run candidates against the historically unpopular, thoroughly corporate Republican and Democratic parties.
Socialism vs. Trumpism
The irony is that the “golden age” of living standards for Americans which Trump tries to sell by re-hashing Reagan’s MAGA propaganda and promises of reindustrialization, bringing back jobs, etc. was not a result of slashing corporate tax or privatizing public services. Higher living standards for many workers in the post WWII upswing was the product of mass unionization and militant strike action from the 1930s-1940’s. The biggest reasons for the decline in living standards are anti-union attacks which have reduced union density, the purging of militant socialist union activists and fostering of pro-business attitudes in union leaders and the failure of labor and socialist activists to successfully organize a working-class party to challenge the Democrats and Republicans in elections, organize mass protests, and fight for workers’ interests in general.
Unions have the tools to help lead a fightback against Trump if they’re willing to hit the streets. The example of South Korea, and so many others in history shows that workers can fight back. Unions also have the resources to help build the foundation for a workers party by running candidates independent of the Republicans and Democrats, on a program of working class demands in 2026 and 2028.
A political program for unions and independent worker candidates:
• All out to fight Trump! Make May 1st, International Worker’s Day, the start of a campaign of protests to fight for the following demands, among others. These demands could also be used as the basis of a platform for independent, working-class candidates
• Price controls on essential goods and services to fight inflation.
• No cuts to Medicare, Medicaid, food stamps, or any other assistance to working class families.
• Raise the minimum wage for all workers to $30/hr.
• End corporate welfare, stop government handouts to corporations.
• Cut taxes on working people, raise taxes on the corporations and the rich.
• Use public money to create good, living wage, union jobs through public works programs to expand and improve public transit, healthcare, education, green energy, manufacturing and distribution of key goods and services.
• Take companies which have outsourced operations into public ownership to re-shore jobs.
The working class has the power to fight for decent jobs, good wages, and access to low cost housing, free healthcare, and other necessities by fighting for union rights, going on the offensive against the corporations, and ultimately by taking the economy into democratic public ownership with a socialist plan of production.
