US prospects look bleak as coronavirus, recession and debt leave little room to boost the economy

Name: 2020 US presidential election: protests grow as ballot count drags on in battleground states
Uploaded: 2020-11-05T19:30:13.000Z
Duration: 8 min 46 s
Description: 2020 US presidential election: protests grow as ballot count drags on in battleground states

Regardless of who wins protracted US election, economics trumps politics and the current economic environment gives no political party room to manoeuvre

America’s economic prospects look grim yet the stock market’s future appears bright amid expectations of a fresh round of government stimulus

Reading Time:3 minutes

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Demonstrators gather in front of Independence Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on November 4 during a rally to ensure every ballot is counted in the 2020 US presidential election. The prevailing economic conditions in the US suggest that, whichever party holds the presidency, they will find it difficult to stabilise the economy. Photo: EPA

Richard Harris

Published: 3:30am, 6 Nov 2020Updated: 5:55am, 6 Nov 2020

An enduring issue for a columnist is when the news you write about hasn’t quite happened but, by the time it’s read, the result is known. So it is with the US election. Things could be worse.

It is a good lesson in life to remember there is always someone always worse off. Spare a thought for Jack Ma, having had the initial public offering of Ant Group withdrawn by Chinese regulators less than two days before the listing.

The American election has consumed hours of news stories, acres of newsprint and billions of megabytes of news in the last year and is now almost over. The battle in the courts is about to begin. The rows between the parties will keep the legal fraternity in expensive restaurants for a while, even as the rest of the country deals with coronavirus restrictions.

There are no prizes for coming second. Those cheering for the candidate who came second just hours earlier will disown him completely, denying all reports of their support while justifying why they were clearly misled.

Jeremy Corbyn, the former Labour leader in Britain, stood tall at the head of his party this time last year. Yet, he now faces criticism over Labour’s prior failure to root out anti-Semitism by the very people who were behind him for nearly five years.

08:46

2020 US presidential election: protests grow as ballot count drags on in battleground states

In the US, more than a hundred million people voting early illustrated the differences between the two presidential candidates and the enormous policy divisions that currently afflict not just the United States but democratic nations globally. Splits on taxes, debt, dealing with the pandemic, climate change and the impact of science dealing with the coronavirus are just some of the wounds that will not be healed soon.