Donald Trump’s inauguration speech was a rallying call for the far right across the globe. His speech railed against climate change, ramping up anti-immigrant racism and fuelling transphobia as he declared that US government policy would recognise only two genders, male and female.
He backed that up with pardoning 1500 far right and fascist activists. Trump has vowed to launch, “the largest deportation operation in American history.”
The notorious Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has begun rounding up illegal migrants. “We’ll be arresting people across the country, uninhibited by any prior administration guidelines,” Tom Homan, Trump’s incoming border tsar said.
Australian billionaires Anthony Pratt and Gina Rinehart are backing Trump and placed advertisements in US newspapers praising him.
Labor’s foreign minister, Penny Wong, was in Washington for Trump’s inauguration, having already declared that, “Australia looked forward to prioritising AUKUS as a key agenda item with the Trump administration.”
Dutton hopes to repeat Trump’s formula in the coming federal election, embracing fossil fuels and championing nuclear power while ramping up border protection rhetoric and attacks on refugees.
Last year, Dutton told a conference of mining bosses that a Coalition government, “will be the best friend that the mining and resources sector in Australia will ever have.”
A conga line of Coalition politicians are already imitating Trump’s election mantra, repeatedly asking, “Are you better off under Labor?
Just as the failures of Genocide Joe Biden and the Democrats paved the way for Trump, Labor’s failures on climate, cost of living and Palestine are paving the way for a Dutton comeback.
To effectively oppose Trump and his Australian disciples, the fightback against the racism, sexism and the cost of living crisis has to go hand in hand.
Gaza
Despite the savagery of 15 months of genocide, Israel has not defeated the Palestinian resistance. The ceasefire in Gaza is a relief from indescribable horror that has left Gaza in ruins.
But Netanyahu is describing the ceasefire as “temporary” and openly talking about restarting the war.
He has thanked both President Trump and Biden for giving full backing to Israel’s right to return to fighting if Israel decides that the second stage of negotiations are ineffectual. “If they [the Israeli army] need to go back in, we’re with them,” incoming US National Security Advisor Mike Waltz told Fox news.
Trump is promising even more arms for Israel, and is giving the green light for expanding settlements in the West Bank. Netanyahu and Trump insist that Hamas will never govern in Gaza.
But the last 15 months of genocide has reshaped world opinion. Israel has never been more isolated. Millions have witnessed Israel’s devastation of Gaza and joined demonstrations to free Palestine.
Workers in Italy, South Africa, Sweden and the US have refused to handle arms intended for Israel.
Labor
Through 15 months of war and genocide, however, Labor’s commitment to US imperialism has never wavered.
In January, Labor sent Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus to Israel to pledge the Australian government’s continuing support while Israel was still massacring Palestinians in Gaza.
Dreyfus, Australia’s chief law officer, declared his visit was to show that “Australia’s friendship with Israel is deep and enduring”, but made no mention of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s arrest warrant for war crimes in Gaza.
Albanese has also sought to use the antisemitic attacks on synagogues and residential areas to attack the movement for Palestine, claiming that protests here are inflaming the situation and somehow causing racism.
But opposition to Israel is not antisemitism.
Antisemitism is never acceptable—and has never been accepted at the protests, where there have been regular Jewish speakers and contingents of anti-Zionist Jews.
It’s not clear who’s responsible for attacks like the firebombing of Adass Israel synagogue in Melbourne. Painting swastikas and firebombings are the hallmarks of Nazi groups and the far right.
While Albanese and the media have made antisemitic attacks a headline issue, there has been barely a word about the Islamophobic attacks—from deaths threats to racist graffiti and an attempt to hit Palestine activist and Muslim Vote organiser Wesam Charkawi with a car—produced by support for the genocide and the media’s backing for Israel. Albanese’s anti-Hamas rhetoric fuels Islamophobia.
Albanese wants to distract from his own complicity in the genocide, as the government continues to allow weapons exports, the use of intelligence from Pine Gap and refuses to sanction Israel.
The fight to sanction Israel must be stepped up. To free Palestine from the river to the sea, the Zionist state must be smashed.
Sydney rail workers have shown how to deal with the cost of living, taking industrial action against NSW Labor government for a real pay increase.
We need more strikes and protests to take on the warmongers, corporations and billionaires.
