Analysis of Policy Approaches: Obama vs. Trump (Political Science)

This report provides a comparative analysis of the policy approaches of Barack Obama and Donald Trump, focusing on key areas such as healthcare, trade, and taxation. It examines the contrasting ideologies of the Democratic and Republican parties, highlighting the differences in their stances on social and economic issues. The report delves into specific examples, such as the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) and the Republican response under Trump, the legalization of gay marriage, and the differing approaches to trade protectionism. The analysis explores the impact of these policy choices on various aspects of American society and provides insights into the political landscape of the United States.

Running head: POLICY APPROACH OF OBAMA AND TRUMP

1POLICY APPROACH OF OBAMA AND TRUMP
In the political party system of the United States of America, the two parties are the
Republicans and the Democrats. The former political party tends to have a very conservative
approach in solving the social, political and economic issues through the system of legislations.
Their basic political philosophy emanates from the conception of a laissez faire state. They
believe that the Federal Governments should refrain from interfering in the activities of the
people which they undertake in their daily lives. That is something which is reflected in their
standpoint with regard to introducing the fiscal measures. They are more in favour of austerity
measures and reduction of the level of public expenditure, alongside reducing the taxes (Budge
& Laver, 2016).
The Democrats on the other hand are guided by liberal principles which seek to increase
the level of expenditure on public utility services that shall be conducive to upholding efficiency
and social justice, instead of spending on military and warfare. An example with regard to
establishing the difference of the standpoints of the Republicans and the Democrats can be the
passing of the Obamacare and the abolition of it. The Obamacare was passed during the second
term of Democrat, President Obama which sought to make healthcare and managing of expenses
by students more affordable and easier, with the view to reach out to all sections of the society,
especially the economically underprivileged ones. With the coming of the Republican
government under President Donald Trump that was abolished citing the amount of pressure it
was creating for the government to meet the aspirations of the people (Budge & Laver, 2016).
With regard to the social issues, and the standpoint of the political parties, the issue of
easening the stance of the respective goverrnments on the sexual minorities can be cited as an
example. In the year 2015, gay marriages were legalized all throughout the United States of
America, after a long standing struggle. President Obama had proclaimed on that occasion that it

2POLICY APPROACH OF OBAMA AND TRUMP
was a victory for America with a great deal of euphoria. However with the election of President
Trump in the year 2017, bad days seemed to have had befallen on the sexual minorities. The
Republican President bound his party ideology of upholding conservative values sought to
pigeon-hole the legislation without actually abolishing it. He had made it legal to discriminate
against the sexual minorities of the country citing the entitlement of the people to their freedom
of religion (Mattes, Leeds & Carroll, 2015).
The Democrat President, Obama had during his reign embarked upon increasing the level
of taxes on individuals belonging to high income background in order to ensure that there is an
equitable distribution of resources in the country. President Trump, a Republican had on the
other hand departed from President Obama’s standpoint on welfare issues and decided to reduce
the rate of taxes and welfare spending. Obama had also embarked upon a liberal trade policy
whereby he had indulged in trade relations with several countries who could freely trade with
America. On the other hand, President Trump sought to return back to idea of trade-
protectionism to recover America from the recession (Mattes, Leeds & Carroll, 2015).
This goes as far as the difference between the standpoint on policy issues between the
Democrats and the Republicans.

3POLICY APPROACH OF OBAMA AND TRUMP
REFERENCES
Budge, I., & Laver, M. J. (Eds.). (2016). Party policy and government coalitions. Springer.
Mattes, M., Leeds, B. A., & Carroll, R. (2015). Leadership turnover and foreign policy change:
Societal interests, domestic institutions, and voting in the United Nations. International
Studies Quarterly, 59(2), 280-290.