Get Cozy

In the wake of a 2026 midterm election that produced the largest transfer of power in 50 years, it’s taken a few days for me to process what went down.

It has been 11 years since America was introduced to Donald Trump – not the carnival barker with a dozen bankruptcies, or the thrice married philanderer, or the nepo-baby whose father bankrolled him into the notoriously corrupt New York developer world, and certainly not the fake the CEO millions of people watched each week on The Apprentice. No – this was a billionaire (allegedly) who wanted to rule the world – for real.

Many of us scoffed, including the vast majority within the Republican Party ruling apparatus. Jeb Bush, Lindsay Graham, Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio, Rick Perry, Rand Paul… they all called out Trump for what he was. And, until he officially won the nomination, they were right. But when the roll was called on the floor at the GOP Convention in Cleveland, Trump stood alone as the victor. And with that nomination secured, the spines of all who opposed him were apparently removed, along with their sense of pride, and dignity.

The MAGA movement was officially launched, and what we expected in our politics was about to be forever changed.

Political rallies from the GOP became a shoutfest of insults, misogynistic in tone, often racist, many times violent. Trump painted his Democratic opponent – Hillary Clinton – as a hardened criminal worthy of execution – something his followers were frighteningly eager to see, regardless of truth, evidence, or common sense. Protestors at his rallies were often beaten, as Trump enthusiastically endorsed it, and the crowds raucously cheered. This was an America most of us had never experienced, but I do concede the 1960’s-70’s likely had some moments. This, however, was unique in that one man had managed to convince millions of people he was not only their presidential candidate, he was mythical, and to some, ordained by God to lead the party out of the wilderness.

So began a decade of the most vile campaigning America had ever seen. Trump defeated Clinton, bucking all pre-election polling that had Clinton 5-7 points ahead come election day. She, and the Democratic Party, were dumbfounded. In hindsight, her campaign style inferred she had it in the bag – her advisors dropped the ball in historic fashion. A shameful loss that changed the landscape of American politics.

MAGA rallies continued long after Trump gained power. Instead of governing, Trump immersed himself in the adulation of his most loyal followers, drinking in their worship, and continuing to insult, embarrass, and demean Clinton, the Democrats, and any media outlet that dared to call out his lies. The pattern continued, daily. Fact-checking became impossible, as the lies were fast and furious. We became numb to it all, with those of us who didn’t vote for him tuning out social media and the political shows, as it was simply depressing.

Two impeachments in his first Administration (Obstruction, Insurrection), unprecedented in American presidential history, once again seemed to be enough to put an end to Trump’s political career. In November of 2020, Joe Biden defeated Trump by a notable margin, enough to remove any doubt that America was ready to move on. In response to that trouncing, Trump engineered one of the most disgraceful days in this country’s history – the January 6 attack on the Capitol egregiously labeled as the “Stop the Steal Rally”. “This” had to be the true end of MAGA – even many Republicans in Congress were outraged, and eager to move on.

Biden’s presidency was clearly intended to be a bridge between MAGA and what comes next. It was effective, but largely unremarkable, as the Republican-led House stood in the way of any significant legislation, apart from a few wins of note. Amazingly, in the three years after Biden took office, Trump had managed to resurrect his position within the Republican Party, shepherded back in by party leaders who apparently had nobody better to rally behind? MAGA 2.0 was unleashed upon the electorate. Paired with an epically ill-prepared Democratic establishment – namely Biden’s unwillingness to stick to a single term mandate – the die was cast.

Trump stormed back to beat Kamala Harris – and his second term would be filled with revenge, rage, and enrichment. What many pundits predicted would be bad, became far worse. Trump’s second term Cabinet was a cadre of sycophantic yes-men/women. Most were dramatically ill-qualified for the portfolio they were assigned, but they all shared the most important trait for Trump – blind loyalty. This was a dangerous combination of the most corrupt, narcissistic, and greedy leader our country had ever elected to office – and a cast of enablers all too eager to please Dear Leader, and perhaps feather their own nests in the process.

What followed was an array of unilateral decisions from the Oval Office, many of which belied what Trump campaigned on:

Lowering Costs on Day One: Inflation today is higher than what it was when Biden was in office. Energy costs are higher, Gas prices are higher, Diesel prices are higher, Grocery prices are higher. Mortgage rates have skyrocketed.

No New Wars: America invaded Venezuela, and forcibly removed the President. America then attacked Iran, with Israel, on false pretenses of nuclear disarmament – a 2-4 week engagement that as of November 5 is in it’s 10th month.

Tariffs: Consumer price increases are all on the heels of a global trade war Trump initiated through tariffs – a strategy most economists warned would fail, and would amount to a consumer tax on Americans. No, foreign governments do not – and never have – paid the tariffs. This became painfully obvious when the Supreme Court ruled that the Trump Administration must refund whatever tariff revenue they had secured, as the tariffs were deemed illegal. Those refunds, amounting to about $166B, were claimed by about 300,000 companies – ALL American importers and manufacturers. Not a single foreign government was owed a dollar. Go figure.

Lower the Deficit: Trump has notoriously increased the National Debt by about $4.4T since January of 2025, a pace unseen in previous Administrations, unabated by a Republican Congress eager to abandon their Constitutional mandate to draft and provide oversight to the Budget.

Canada, Denmark (Greenland), Ukraine are the Enemy: Inexplicably, Trump chose to destroy the relationships USA has enjoyed with Canada and Denmark for decades – over territory and trade. Specific to Canada, Trump breached his own USMCA trade agreement he himself called the greatest trade agreement in history when he negotiated it in his first term. Canada defiantly stood up to the noise, pushed back dollar for dollar on every tariff, and became a beacon of hope for the Western world still coming to terms with how to deal with Trump and his demands. Denmark fended off talk of a Greenland takeover by reinforcing the existing land sharing agreement with the US for military purposes. No, Trump didn’t “get Greenland”, as he still claims to this day. Trump infamously belittled President Zelensky of Ukraine in the Oval Office, pushing Russian talking points time and time again to the media. If there was any doubt Trump is beholden to Vladimir Putin, let that shameful set of events put that doubt to rest forever.

All of the above set the stage for the 2026 Midterms, and what I’m calling “an Electoral Curb Stomping”. On to Part 2.