Iskren Ivanov: The US vote is a punitive vote against Trump

The result of the midterm elections in the United States is a punitive vote against President Donald Trump. This was stated by international affairs analyst Associate Professor Iskren Ivanov on “The Interview on NOVA News”.

According to him, American voters expressed dissatisfaction with the unfulfilled promises with which Trump won their support. Ivanov recalled the president’s three main commitments – to stop the wars, cut taxes and raise living standards.

“However, not one of these promises was fulfilled, and this greatly annoyed the voters,” Associate Professor Iskren Ivanov said.

According to the analyst, the election results show a shift in political attitudes in the country. He pointed to the Democrats’ successes in states that traditionally support the Republican Party.

“Trump was elected with the popular vote, and now we are seeing states such as Texas and others that have traditionally always been Republican suddenly turn blue,” Ivanov commented.

The war in the Middle East also had an impact

Ivanov described foreign policy developments as another significant factor behind the election result. According to him, the war in the Middle East has had a considerable impact on political attitudes in the United States.

“For the first time since the Vietnam War, there has been a foreign policy event that has had a huge impact on political attitudes in the US,” the international affairs analyst said.

He drew a parallel with the period following the US interventions in Iraq and Afghanistan, when Congress shifted in favor of the Democrats, while President George Bush sought support for allocating funds for the war.

“Congress will not give money for war. The president will be begging for that money,” Ivanov said, commenting on the possible consequences of the new distribution of political power.

Is impeachment possible?

Ivanov said it was possible that by the end of the year the Democrats would take steps to launch impeachment proceedings against Donald Trump. He linked this possibility to the claim that the party had won both chambers of Congress.

“It is entirely possible that by the end of this calendar year the Democrats will try to gather signatures for impeachment,” the analyst said.

He nevertheless distinguished between initiating the proceedings and their final outcome. According to Ivanov, some Democrats may conclude that impeachment would lead to political destabilization at a time when the United States cannot afford such a risk.