The midterms are important, but they won't end this
Even if Democrats do well in November, Trump won't be as restrained as we'd like.
Since Donald Trump returned to office last year, political observers have been anxiously trying to determine how bad things might get. It quickly became clear that we were dealing with an aspiring authoritarian, but whether Trump would be able to consolidate an authoritarian regime in America was murkier.
A year and a half later, we've seen this administration engage in violence, violations of the Constitution and brazen corruption. We've seen unquestionably racist policies enacted. We've also seen the administration's incompetence and lack of focus. We've witnessed Trump's mental decline. There are causes for concern and relief.
Donald Trump has not consolidated an authoritarian regime at this point, and it seems that many are hoping Democrats will win in November so that he'll just be a lame duck for two years and won't be able to accomplish that. I think Democrats winning in November would be important and would help derail Trump, but I don't think we should assume it would end his reign of terror.
If Democrats win back the House and possibly the Senate in November, they will be able to launch investigations into this administration, withhold funding, impeach the president and more. Donald Trump isn't trying to get a lot of legislation passed, unless you count budgets, so there probably won't be much legislating.
The problem with this administration is that they are, as an authoritarian would, doing most of the fascist things they're doing unilaterally. Trump doesn't need control of Congress to deploy his ICE thugs around the country, deport people, prosecute his political enemies, threaten the free press, dismantle the federal government, engage in corrupt acts and more.
Thor Benson
As I said, Democrats can throw sand in the gears and investigate what he's doing, but they're probably not going to be able to stop those things from happening. Until Trump leaves office in January of 2029—hopefully peacefully—we're going to be dealing with this threat to American democracy.
What that means is that we can't let up. We can't vote in November and call it a day. Please do vote, but then start thinking about the next thing you can do to protect the things you care about. You can do these things at your own pace, but you've gotta stay involved.
"Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph."
— Thomas Paine
The central idea that Trump has been pushing is that he can do whatever he wants as a unitary executive, and the Supreme Court has too often affirmed that perspective. Even if Democrats end up controlling Congress, he'll keep doing whatever he thinks he can get away with, and we'll all suffer for it.
This is how these things go, though. The battle isn't over until it's over. Other countries have sustained their opposition to an autocrat until an eventual victory for democracy, and we can do the same. We just need to keep putting in the effort.
