Contrasting sentiments of Vietnamese in the US before Trump took office

As Donald Trump's inauguration approaches, some Vietnamese express concerns about social issues and America's image, while others have high expectations for a tough new president.

"I am very worried about the economic and social situation in the US when Mr. Trump takes power. What I fear most is that violence will increase among ethnic minorities in the US, especially Muslims and immigrants because of his discrimination against them," James Huynh, 23, from California, said about the incoming US President.

US President-elect Donald Trump will take office on January 20. Photo: NYT

As a master’s student in public health, Huynh is concerned about the move by Trump and the Republican-controlled US Congress to repeal the Affordable Care Act (ACA), also known as Obamacare. About 30 million Americans who have health insurance will lose access to it, which he believes is a basic human right.

Huynh said he condemns what Trump represents, including xenophobia, racism, and misogyny. Huynh also knows that groups are planning protests during the week of Trump’s inauguration and fears the protests will intensify.

Nguyen Hoang Thang, 25, who lives in Washington state, also has similar concerns. He and his friends consider some issues as "nightmares," including changes to Obamacare and tax reform. If Trump repeals Obama's legacy, thousands of people, among the 30 million Americans who have lost their health insurance, will become sick and unable to buy insurance again. If the new president reforms taxes in a way that reduces costs for the richest class in America, the balance between rich and poor in society will continue to increase.

"Personally, I do not support Trump. He is racist, discriminatory towards the disabled, discriminatory towards gender, and has never publicly disclosed his tax returns, something that has never happened to any candidate since World War II. The US President must represent all of America, not just the richest 1%," Thang said.

With Mr. Trump becoming the 45th president of the United States causing much controversy, Thang said that people may no longer call the United States a united states but will consider it a divided state. He hopes that the United States will not repeat the Great Depression of the 1930s, when the United States had a Republican president and the Senate and House of Representatives were both controlled by Republicans.

Great hope

Contrary to this concern, Mr. William Le, California, said many Vietnamese Americans believe that President-elect Trump will help the US economy grow strongly because he is a successful businessman.

"We hope that Mr. Trump will fulfill his campaign promises, create more jobs for workers, and bring America back to being a superpower," said Mr. Le.

Citing some events that made him confident in the incoming president, Mr. Le said that Mr. Trump showed himself to be a fierce future commander-in-chief, by getting the CEO of the Lockheed Martin weapons corporation to promise to significantly reduce the cost of the F-35 fighter jet. On the night of Mr. Trump's election on November 8, last year, the New York stock market fluctuated and dropped several thousand points, but it rose again the next day, which showed that investors believed in Mr. Trump.

By choosing oil tycoon Rex Tillerson as Secretary of State and holding a phone call with Taiwanese leader Tsai Ing-wen, Mr. Trump can also make America stronger both militarily and diplomatically, not allowing other countries to overwhelm it.

"I think that under the Trump administration, America will change for the better, with social stability, and every country will have to respect international law," Mr. Le said.

Phan Vo Trung Hieu, who currently lives in Massachusetts, said he hopes that Mr. Trump’s policies of loosening management of key industries, cutting corporate taxes, and improving the infrastructure system will contribute to stimulating US economic growth, opening up many opportunities for the US. The US stock market has also recently shown expectations for Mr. Trump, Hieu said.

Also expressing support for Trump, Mr. Nguyen Cong Chanh, California, said he believes that President-elect Trump will start to do some things after January 20. That is, to strengthen limited cooperation with Russia to deal with China, not allowing Beijing to expand its hegemony in Asia and the East Sea. Mr. Nguyen made it clear that he supports Trump because he has enough courage to confront the conservative power group of the Republican Party.

Referring to the Vietnam-US relationship when Mr. Trump is about to become president, Mr. Pham Quang Hung, in Virginia, said he hopes that cooperation between the two countries will be closer, especially in economics and education.

Describing the atmosphere before Mr. Trump's inauguration, Mr. William Le said that Vietnamese people in California these days are also bustling with discussion everywhere, from restaurants, cafes, to gatherings.

Also a Trump supporter, Ha Nguyen from Texas predicted that the new US president would face many storms and criticisms, but Ha said "that is normal."

According to VNE