The middle class in the U.S. and the Biden foreign policy

Based on the complex internal situation the United States is living under and its progressive decline as a hegemonic power on an international scale, President-elect Joseph Biden will be forced to introduce profound changes in his domestic and foreign policy.

Although much information has emerged about the objectives, priorities and lines of action that Biden will undertake starting on January 20 to deal with internal challenges and what are considered to be “global threats,” there is an element within this strategic vision that will be key and constitutes one of the main points of contact between domestic and foreign policy.

That essential pillar will be the American middle class, who is destined to play an important role in shaping foreign policy of the Biden Administration. For some years now this cardinal and paradigmatic segment of [U.S.] society that embodies what is called the “American dream” has suffered a deterioration in its standard of living.

In practical terms, a middle class family is characterized by having job security and stability; income that allows one to pay for needs without financial pressure; medical insurance; home ownership; an ability to finance the children’s studies; vacations; and the ability to save money for retirement.  

Under the current circumstances, the devastating impact of COVID – 19 has significantly affected this sector’s ability to sustain its standard of living. This situation has not only economic implications, but also leads to social and political problems, and also has effects on the international projection of the United States. It is very difficult to achieve the renewal of American leadership on the global stage if the social group that is the embodiment of its ‘national success’ is in sharp decline.

Bearing this reality in mind, in an article penned for Foreign Affairs, Biden argued what he described as “a foreign policy for the middle class.” In the article he pointed out that economic security is national security and emphasized that the trade policy of the United States “must begin at home through the strengthening of the greatest asset that we have, which is the middle class.”

Biden also explained that a huge investment is required in the country’s infrastructure, which involves roads, communications, high-speed transportation and renewable sources of energy. He emphasized that more than 95 percent of the world’s population lives beyond the U.S. borders and they need to influence those markets with their products.

If we intend to get close to unraveling what are the axes or main points that will argue this concept of a “foreign policy for the middle class,” we must begin with the results of a study carried out by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace titled: “Making U.S. Foreign Policy Work Better for the Middle Class.” The study was carried out between 2018 and 2020, with hundreds of interviews conducted in three states: Colorado, Nebraska and Ohio.

The report starts from the premise that the middle class is currently living under a precarious situation and, essentially, it proposes to adequately integrate foreign policy with the domestic policy agenda.

Several recommendations are made in the study: to prioritize international policies that stimulate the creation of jobs and generate income; renew the U.S. international trade agenda to harmonize it with the domestic policy agenda in order to support economic growth; modernize the tools and mechanisms of international trade to combat unfair business practices that especially affect middle class businesses; design a national competitiveness strategy to ensure that American small- and medium-sized businesses are more competitive in the global economy; as well as develop the capacity of communities to attract investment that creates jobs.

The research gives special relevance to the need for breaking the mentality that has prevailed for decades of conceiving foreign policy and domestic policy as relatively isolated areas. It notes that U.S. strategic planners in the sphere of international relations and national security have traditionally articulated their projections under the almost exclusive prism of geopolitical competition.

Although it is recognized that this is an essential approach in the current context of strong confrontation with powers such as China and Russia, it advocates for a vision that also includes issues of the domestic economy and social issues that allow taking into account the interests of the middle class. The study specifies that achieving this articulation requires greater interagency coordination, interdisciplinary expertise, and political imagination. They propose that “the contribution of a new generation of foreign policy professionals is necessary to break the mold of the Cold War mentality.”

The study argues that the profound disconnect that exists between the so-called “foreign policy community” and the middle class leads to the proposition that the international projection of the United States to satisfy the demands of this sector must be oriented towards the fulfillment of two key objectives: Renewal of relations with its closest allies in order to establish a cohesive network that allows facing global security challenges in order to provide security to the middle class and manage strategic competition with China to mitigate the risk of destabilizing conflicts with serious economic implications.

Among the co-authors and principal writers of this report is Jacob Sullivan, whom Biden appointed national security advisor. Therefore, the proposals contemplated in this report will have, as their main defender in the White House, a person who will occupy one of the most influential positions in foreign policy. In fact, Biden’s approach to the campaign, on the issue of the middle class and its relation to the U.S.’ international projection, is a direct result of Sullivan’s influence and recommendations. For this reason various experts and analysts are asserting that the keys to Biden’s roadmap in articulating foreign policy and domestic policy can be found in the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace report.

In that sense, on November 24, when Biden announced part of his foreign policy and national security team, he stated: “Jake Sullivan understands my vision that economic security is national security and that helps to develop what I have called a foreign policy for the middle class for families like his, who grew up in Minnesota.”

It is precisely in this context that it is easier to understood why Biden appointed Susan Rice as advisor to the president and director of the Council on Domestic Policy, making her the main point of contact between the national security and internal policy teams. Biden, when making the Rice announcement, stated that she will work very closely with Sullivan and Brian Deese, who will serve as director of the National Economic Council.

At this event, the president-elect affirmed that “together, they will integrate national security, economic policy and domestic politics like never before.” For her part, Rice said, “in the 21st century, our domestic, economic and foreign imperatives are deeply interlinked.” Starting on January 20, 2021, a new administration will be inaugurated with a foreign policy orientation that will be strongly marked by domestic political interests that perhaps have no precedent in the recent history of the United States.