Former U.S. President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign event held in Chesapeake, Virginia on October 28 (local time). AP=Yonhap News
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The Republican Party of the United States adopted a new platform on the 8th, four months ahead of the November presidential election, which summarized the party’s path. It reflects most of former President Donald Trump’s pledges such as tough immigration policies including border closures and universal tariffs on imports, leading to remarks that the party has effectively become ‘Trump’s private party.’ Particularly, the new platform states that allies must fulfill the obligation to invest in joint defense, indicating that demands for increased defense spending for allied countries will intensify if Trump returns to power. Mentions involving Korea and the Korean Peninsula that were specified in the previous platform are omitted this time.
The new platform adopted by the Republican National Committee (RNC) Policy Committee, under the title ‘Republican Platform 2024 – Make America Great Again (MAGA),’ uses MAGA, a slogan from Trump’s camp, as the title of the platform. The 16-page introduction of the platform is titled ‘America First – Return to Common Sense’. The introduction presents 20 pledges on domestic and foreign policies to be pursued in the event of victory in the November election and congressional elections, including border closures, the largest deportation of immigrants in U.S. history, ending inflation, transitioning to a dominant energy-producing country, significant tax cuts for workers, constructing a ‘Iron Dome’ defense shield across the U.S., modernizing the military, canceling the mandatory use of electric cars, expelling radical leftist groups like Hamas, and election reform including same-day voting and ballot measures.
The Republican Party divided detailed tasks by chapter into 10 sectors in the new platform. In the chapter on foreign policy titled ‘Return to Peace through Strength,’ the party expressed its intention to pursue a foreign policy focused on the most critical U.S. national interests, criticizing President Joe Biden’s administration’s weak foreign policy and emphasizing strengthening alliances by ensuring that allies fulfill their obligation to invest in joint defense and restoring peace to Europe.
In addition, the Republican Party stated that it will stand by Israel and pursue peace in the Middle East. Israel is the only ally specifically mentioned. In the platform adopted before the 2016 presidential election, Korea was mentioned a total of six times (including North Korea), with substantial emphasis on the Korea-Japan-Australia-Philippines-Thailand alliance and the continued demand for the complete, verifiable, and irreversible dismantlement of North Korea’s nuclear weapons program. However, in the new platform, mentions of Korea and the Korean Peninsula are omitted, with a brief statement supporting strong and sovereign nations in the Indo-Pacific to achieve peace and prosperity through trade.
The economic policy includes the permanentization of the ‘Trump tax’ provisions and the elimination of restaurant tip taxes. In terms of trade and commerce policy, the platform expresses support for universal tariffs on foreign products and bringing supply chains back to the U.S. Trump has proclaimed himself a ‘tariff devotee,’ actively considering implementing a 10% universal tariff on all imports and raising it to 60% for Chinese imports. The platform also mentions canceling China’s Most Favored Nation status, gradual cessation of essential imports, blocking imports of Chinese automobiles to revive the U.S. auto industry.
This platform includes measures to pursue strict immigration policies through border closures. The Washington Post reported that Vincent Haley, who was involved in drafting speeches for Trump in the White House during his administration, was deeply involved in drafting most of the platform. In the platform, Trump’s pledges and campaign statements are reflected throughout. In the introduction, the platform states, borrowing from Trump’s words, that the U.S. must complete the border wall that Trump began, emphasizing that without borders, there are no nations. Additionally, it mentions reversing the Democratic Party’s destructive open-border policy that allowed illegal immigrants to roam freely in the U.S., promising to start the largest deportation program in history, and adopting the slogan ‘Drill Baby Drill’ to increase oil and gas drilling to become energy independent again.
Regarding the abortion provisions, they were significantly reduced in this platform. The previous platform contained extensive content related to abortion rights, including urging the establishment of ’20-week abortion bans’ at the federal level, opposing the use of public funds for abortion services or advocacy, criminalizing the acquisition, transfer, or sale of fetal tissue obtained through selective abortions, supporting legislation to protect survivors of abortion, and opposing embryonic stem cell research. However, the new platform only contains a statement supporting policies that improve access to maternal and prenatal care, contraception, and infertility treatment, opposing late-term abortions without mentioning federal bans on post-20-week abortions, as the previous platform did.
The New York Times evaluated the latest Republican platform as much more nationalist, protectionist, and a clear embrace of Trump’s Republican line compared to the 2016 platform, indicating a focus on winning the presidential election rather than presenting the Republican vision.