'Al-Qaeda Vs Ku Klux Klan': Abhijit Iyer-Mitra On India's U.S Tightrope After Trump's Midterm Rout

Trump’s midterm rout has transformed America’s political battlefield - and created a difficult new balancing act for India. In this episode of 'Why Should You Care?', Abhijit Iyer-Mitra uses a provocative “Al-Qaeda versus Ku Klux Klan” analogy to describe what he sees as the competing forces now shaping Washington: a Congress controlled by Democrats and a weakened Trump presidency. What does Trump’s defeat mean for India and the world? Can New Delhi use the growing divide between the White House and Congress to protect its interests? Abhijit also decodes the fierce Indian Twitter reaction to the midterms - from the right-wing celebrations of Trump’s defeat to claims that “Trump now, Modi next.” Watch the full interview for Abhijit Iyer-Mitra’s sharp take on Trump’s midterm rout, India’s U.S. tightrope and the dangerous politics ahead. 00:00 – Trump's Next Two Years: More Chaos Ahead? 03:01 – Will a Weakened Trump Be More Dangerous? 04:49 – Why the Democrats Won the Blue Wave 05:30 – Tariffs, Inflation and America's Economic Anger 08:31 – Cost of Living and Trump's Political Downfall 11:11 – What the Midterms Mean for India 12:17 – Can India Use America's Political Divide? 14:22 – Will Trump's Tariff Threats Against India Fade? 15:14 – Russian Oil: A New Opportunity for India? 16:12 – Trump's Pakistan Policy and the India Factor 17:40 – Will Trump Push India-Pakistan Peace? 19:11 – Putin, Ukraine and Trump's Foreign Policy Legacy 20:15 – Will Trump Escalate or Exit the Iran Conflict? 22:04 – Why Pakistan Could Escape Washington's Attention 24:19 – Has Pakistan's Trump Gamble Backfired? 25:27 – Anti-India Hate in America's Political Landscape 26:29 – H-1B Visas, Indian Americans and US Politics 27:29 – Can India's Interests Benefit From US Polarisation? 28:03 – Why the Midterm Results Could Be a Net Positive for India 28:54 – India's Political Left vs Right on Trump's Defeat 30:28 – Why India's Opposition Keeps Losing Elections 31:19 – Congress's Ground Game and the Ramlila Maidan Rally 32:18 – Why Elections Can't Be Won on Social Media #Trump #USMidterms #IndiaUSRelations #AbhijitIyerMitra #WhyShouldYouCare #DonaldTrump #NarendraModi AXIS is where the world is explained through India’s lens. For decades, global narratives have been shaped by Western media... told through Washington, London or Beijing. But as India rises as a major economic, military and diplomatic power, why should others define the world for us? Why shouldn’t India shape its own voice, own perspective, and own narrative? That’s where AXIS comes in. We decode global power shifts, wars and conflicts, the India-China rivalry, Pakistan, West Asia, oil shocks, trade battles and neighbourhood politics - with one key question: What does this mean for India and for you? As India rises, so should its share of voice! Subscribe To AXIS — The World Through INDIA'S LENS. #India #Geopolitics #China #Pakistan #Bangladesh #WorldNews #Defence #IndianArmy #Indian Navy #IAF #TimesAXIS #TOI