What awaits the USA and the Philippines under the new Trump administration?

What awaits the Philippines under Trump’s new presidency?

Former US President Donald Trump is about to return to the White House after four years.

Officials and analysts have weighed in on how a Trump presidency will affect Filipinos here and abroad, with his approach to immigrants and his emphasis on “Make America Great Again” as his campaign slogan.

In his victory speech, Trump reiterated that he would close the borders in the United States and enforce stricter laws against illegal aliens.

“We will have to close these borders, we will have to allow people to come into our country. “We want people to come back, but they have to come legally… We will start by putting America first,” he said.

According to JP Soriano’s report published on “24 Oras” on Wednesday, analysts now believe that this platform of Trump will be felt immediately when he officially sits in the White House again.

Data collected by GMA Integrated News Research showed that there were 4,640,313 Filipinos in the United States as of last year, according to the latest figures from the US Census Bureau.

Additionally, data from the US Department of Homeland Security stated that Filipinos have the fifth largest population of unauthorized immigrants in the US, at 350,000 in 2022.

Julio Teehankee, an expert in political science and science, said that “Donald Trump has ushered in a wave of new policies and restrictions (Donald Trump’s victory means a new wave) that will restrict immigration to the United States even for those already there.” Professor of international studies at De La Salle University.

“Magkakaron ng epikto rin sa mga ibang kababayan natin lalo na yung mga gustong mag-migration sa United States of America, so mas magigpit mahigpit,” he added.

(This will especially affect some Filipinos who want to immigrate to the United States, so expect stricter policies.)

Another issue that everyone is eagerly awaiting is how Trump’s presidency will affect US-Philippine relations. But US Ambassador to the Philippines Mary Kay Carlson is confident that ties between the two countries will remain strong.

“During my 39 years at the State Department, I have witnessed shifts from Republicans to Democrats, Republicans to Republicans, and back and forth, and I am extremely confident that U.S.-Philippines relations will remain stable and unwavering friends, armored allies, and partners in prosperity, no matter who wins the elections in the United States,” he said. .

Experts also share the same feelings about bilateral relations between the United States and the Philippines.

“It was actually during the Trump administration that the United States adopted the mutual defense agreement with the South China Sea much more strongly,” said foreign policy analyst Prashanth Parameswaran. “With that kind of commitment to China and the South China Sea, you’re going to see a lot of continuity.”

“Sa kanila nanggaling yung term na armored. “I have no doubt that Pangulong can build a relationship with Duterte, flirting with America in the Indian Ocean, flirting hard with Trump and flirting with America,” said geopolitical analyst Dindo Manhit.

(The term “hard armor” came from them for the first time. When we had doubts about former President Duterte’s harsh criticism of America, the statement that the two countries would have a close relationship came from the Trump government.)

Earlier, Philippine Ambassador to the US Jose Manuel Romualdez said that no matter who wins the US presidential election, the alliance between the Philippines and the US will remain strong.

Romualdez said he met with the parties of both Trump and Kamala Harris and they assured him that the foreign policy would be the same.

However, former Philippine Ambassador to the United States Jose Cuisia Jr. said that it would be more beneficial for the country if Harris wins the US presidential elections.

In addition, experts think that Trump’s slogan “Make America Great Again” may also affect the economic policy of the United States.

“Also, elections are held with America’s kanilang trade policy declarations, a statement is made according to Trump, no statement is made before a statement is made regarding imports to America. ay kaugnay ng kanyang pangako na, ‘Make America Great Again’ by bringing jobs to America,” said economist Emmanuel Leyco.

(What we’re also looking forward to in the American polls are trade policy announcements. With Trump, he wants to put higher tariffs on everything America imports in line with his promise to ‘Make America Great Again’ and so he wants to do this by bringing jobs back to America .)

Trump first visited the Philippines in 2017, when Rodrigo Duterte was still the Philippine president.

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. He congratulated Trump on Wednesday. —Vince Ferreras/NB, GMA Integrated News