Americans have voted on the six years of Donald Trump’s era of excess. Four years of his first presidency and two of his second. The November 3 midterm elections offered a glimmer of hope for American democracy.
The big question was whether the Democrats would manage to regain control of both the House of Representatives (its 435 members are elected based on the population of each state – elections were held for all seats) and the Senate (its 100 members represent the 50 states equally – elections were held for one-third of the seats), putting a check on the President. They succeeded in both chambers! The results send a message of change. They marked the end of many politicians’ careers.
Trump governed, and continues to govern, with a personal, often imperial style, one eyebrow raised and a glint in his eye, often treating the presidency as if it were his private business. His political presence, somewhere between the excesses of a Hollywood star and the behavior of a Wild West saloon owner, has created deep divisions within society. Under his leadership, America has often looked like a Wild West movie set. But democracy is no one’s spoils.
The most important issue is people’s everyday lives. The high cost of food, the cost of energy and housing, the uncertainty surrounding healthcare, and ICE’s harsh immigration operations have created an explosive social environment. Thousands of families are living in fear of deportation. The slogan “America First” has devolved into “America First for the Few” – an America that puts the financially powerful and billionaires first. And so, Elon Musk backed the Republicans with $446 million, only to see that money go up in smoke.
However, the Republican Party is not the only one responsible for what is happening in America today. The Democrats also bear a significant share of the responsibility. For three decades, they largely forgot the poor and the working class. They moved away from society’s real concerns and left room for Trump’s populism. You cannot defend democracy if you are indifferent to social justice.
I am 100% politically independent. Today, however, I believe that America needs a strong opposition, and fortunately, it will have one. It needs new politicians with social sensitivity, but also the political vision of someone like Senator Bernie Sanders. If he had been given the opportunity to run for President and win in 2016, perhaps America today would be different. He lost the nomination back then because the Democratic Party undermined him in favor of the warmongering Hillary Clinton. The Democratic Party must start talking again about decent wages, public healthcare, and tax fairness. Bernie advocates for Medicare for All and a nationwide minimum wage of $20 an hour. And the party must use the word socialism wisely, a word that still makes a large part of American society uncomfortable.
A Historic Reversal
The Democrats won both chambers of Congress, and Trump will now face a strong institutional counterweight. He can no longer treat Congress as a mechanism for automatically approving his decisions. But this victory is not a blank check. It requires responsibility, unity, and political maturity from Democrats.
In Texas, Democrat James Talarico won a Senate seat after more than 30 years, with support from members of the Bush family as well. Amy Acton was elected governor of Ohio, Chris Pappas was elected to the Senate for New Hampshire, Kathy Hochul was reelected governor of New York, Keisha Lance Bottoms was elected governor of Georgia, Xavier Becerra was elected governor of California, Abdul El-Sayed was elected to the Senate for Michigan, AOC was reelected to the House, and so many others. We are talking about a triumph beyond all expectations for the Democrats and the emergence of new leadership. Blue wave!
We are living through historic moments. America’s Founders created institutions precisely to protect democracy from the excessive concentration of power or the emergence of the kind of phenomena we have witnessed over these six years. Today, the Democrats, above all, are called upon to defend them in practice. It is a great country, with weaknesses, contradictions, and enormous potential. The scale of the Republicans’ stunning defeat, however, may, in time, also help heal the wounds left behind by the Trump hurricane as it swept through politics and society. Perhaps the cracks already present within the MAGA movement’s base will grow even wider. But the Party of Reagan will also have to wake up from its deep slumber.
And some of the political seeds Bernie Sanders planted have finally borne fruit. Several candidates he endorsed won their races, giving the progressive movement a stronger voice in Congress. Sanders’s lasting legacy is his vision of a society for all, a party for all, and a government for the many, not just the few.