He already wields power, shows he can try to subvert Washington’s checks and balances, and leaves foreign leaders struggling to accept his victory.
Early signs from Mar-a-Lago, Trump’s Florida club and property, suggest that when he returns to the White House in January, empowered by a resounding victory and a democratic mandate, he will act with maximum force.
Trump has already taken to social media to issue orders to Senate Republicans running in the majority leader election to endorse recess appointments for his Cabinet nominees — and all three candidates quickly signaled they were open to the idea.
He shows that he plans to govern with a Republican Party monopoly on power — if Republicans gain control of the House, which the CNN has not yet designed — with unquestionable authority. He considers Congress as a body that only ratifies Executive decisions, without exercising an independent and balanced role within the government system.
In a move that recalled the drama of his first term, Trump posted on Truth Social just before midnight that he had named a Republican, the Republican’s last term, and a supporter of Trump’s plans for mass deportations.
Homan argued in a recent CBS interview that “families could be deported together,” but ruled out mass neighborhood sweeps or “concentration camps.”
His tenure is likely to reinforce concerns among Trump’s opponents about the former president’s hardline intentions. But the president-elect made no secret of his plans on the campaign trail, and his policies will reflect the desire of millions of voters for a broad reshaping of America’s direction at home and abroad.
For example, Trump’s decisions herald a new administration steeped in nonstandard populism rather than traditional power brokers.
He ruled out Cabinet roles for Mike Pompeo and , who both held senior foreign policy positions last time around. On Sunday, he, two sources familiar told CNN.
And his inclusion of the billionaire tech visionary and firebrand — a privilege normally reserved for foreign policy advisers — showed how Trump’s unorthodoxy will defy all governing conventions.
Long-term implications of Trump’s triumph are taking hold. Speculation about future Supreme Court positions and possible retirements is highlighting the next president’s potential to extend the dominance of the ultraconservative majority he built through mid-century.
Federal employees now fear an expected purge of career bureaucrats by Trump allies interested in installing political appointees who will not hesitate to carry out orders that could destroy the regulatory state and the authority of the central government.
And a CNN reported last week of discussions at the Pentagon about how the military would respond to any mobilization orders against Americans, following Trump’s warnings as a candidate that he could break taboos about the use of force on American soil.
And another question with added urgency is how far Trump will go to exact the revenge he promised against his political opponents following the indictments and conviction on which he anchored his campaign. Those expected in the coming days, including for attorney general, will shed light on the depth of his thirst for retribution.
Democrats are, meanwhile, dealing with the massive fallout from their failure to prevent Trump’s return to power, even as they dissolve into self-recrimination. They have no clear leader to revive their message or a platform for power if Republicans maintain control of the House. This will only strengthen Trump’s hand in the coming weeks.
Abroad, Trump’s victory is forcing a massive geopolitical reassessment. From Europe to Taiwan and Iran to Russia, foreign leaders are trying to figure out how to deal with the unpredictability of Trump’s return. Some are rushing to curry favor with the president-elect. Others are preparing for his wrath.
A growing sense of frantic reordering and recalculation within the United States and abroad underscores how Trump will return to office more powerful than he was in his first term, with the advantage of fewer restrictions.
His march to victory in all seven swing states offers him popular legitimacy. And his historic achievement of becoming just means he is now a historical figure, not an aberration.
This new reality in Washington will be in evidence next Wednesday (13), — which defeated him in 2020 — but whose power diminishes every hour, as Trump establishes strength.
Trump’s determination to project himself as an unparalleled authority
Trump’s quick decision means he wants a quick start.
His rejection of Pompeo and Haley told its own story.
Pompeo, the former CIA director and secretary of state, was seen as loyal to Trump in his first term. But he was recently labeled a denizen of the “Deep State” by Trump consigliere Roger Stone.
Haley, the former US ambassador to the UN, berated Trump during his primary race and he ignored the former South Carolina governor’s offer of help on the campaign trail. The message is clear, for new administration jobs, only ultra-Trump loyalists can apply.
Stefanik, currently chair of the House GOP conference, started in Congress as a moderate Republican from upstate New York but rose through the leadership ranks by faithfully defending Trump.
Establishes dominance over Washington Republicans
Trump has been mostly behind closed doors since his victory rally last week. But his social media posts are taking on tremendous importance.
On Sunday, he showed he will try to dominate more than one branch of government by setting conditions for whoever wins the top job in the Senate’s Republican leadership.
“Any Republican Senator seeking the coveted leadership position in the United States Senate must agree to recess appointments (in the Senate!), without which we will not be able to confirm people in a timely manner,” Trump wrote on X.
Previous presidents have tried to use recess appointments as a last-ditch effort to confirm Cabinet nominees despite opposition.
Trump could try to expand its use to secure multiple one-year temporary appointments for nominees considered too extravagant or unqualified by some senators, potentially including Republicans. Democrats, however, could filibuster resolutions to go into recess.
Tony Carrk, executive director of Accountable.US, a nonpartisan watchdog group — warned in a statement that “President-elect Trump is trying to destroy our checks and balances and consolidate power by demanding that Senate Republicans ignore their constitutional duty and install their nominees without public scrutiny.”
Florida Sen. Rick Scott — who is being supported as majority leader by MAGA luminaries — MAGA” refers to the “Make America Great Again” movement associated with former President Donald Trump — including Musk and former presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy — immediately promised to fall in line.
South Dakota Sen. John Thune and Texas Sen. John Cornyn, both members of the Senate’s old guard who are considered front-runners in the secret ballot election, quickly signaled openness to the idea as well — a preview of the tightrope that they would probably have to walk with Trump as president.
Thune, the current minority leader, posted on X that all options were on the table, including recess appointments. And Cornyn wrote in the
Retribution
Washington is waiting with trepidation to see whether Trump will make good on his promise to use his new power to go after his enemies.
The president of the Judiciary of the House, Jim Jordan, insisted last Sunday (10) on the program “State of the Union” on the CNN, “I don’t think anything like that will happen.” The Ohio Republican told Dana Bash, “We are the party that is against political prosecution. We are the party that is against persecuting its opponents using legal warfare.” Still, Jordan has already officially warned special counsel Jack Smith, who led the federal criminal investigations into Trump, to preserve the records to leave open the possibility of a congressional investigation.
Trump’s best political bet may be to use all his capital on his agenda in the first 100 days. But his life mantra is to take revenge on his enemies.
Musk at the heart of government
One moment from last week showed how Trump’s second term is likely to be even more unorthodox than his first.
Musk, the owner of Tesla and SpaceX, participated in the call between Trump and Zelensky the day after the election, a source with knowledge of the situation told CNN.
A president-elect can put anyone he wants on a call. But since Musk has massive contracts with the US government, his mere presence alongside Trump — for whom he vigorously campaigned and promoted at X, which he owns — represents an apparent massive conflict of interest.
Musk’s Starlink internet service is also critical for Ukraine’s troops fighting Russia’s brutal invasion. Since Trump has promised to end the war and is close to Russian President Vladimir Putin, it is difficult not to interpret Musk’s presence as potential leverage over Zelensky if he refuses to comply with Trump’s future demands.
In a broader sense, the Trump-Musk friendship is a fascinating glimpse into the unorthodox inner circle the president-elect will bring to Washington. Their relationship offers Trump the affirmation of being feted by the richest man in the world.
Musk gains privileged access to the soon to be most powerful man in the world. And both are examples of outsiders who bypassed the normal routes to great influence through their vast wealth. Now, both wield great power that was previously reserved for traditional political elites.
Foreign leaders fumble
Presidents and prime ministers are cozying up to the president-elect with congratulatory calls and facing scrutiny at home over how they will deal with him.
Trump is vowing to return to the volatile foreign policy that defined his first term — and then some. There are already fears that he will ignore the central principle of mutual self-defense or compromise Taiwan’s security by saying the US would not come to the democratic island’s aid if China invades.
Almost all assumptions, therefore, about American power and politics that underpinned the post-World War II and post-Cold War world are now uncertain. The conundrum facing US allies was set by French President Emmanuel Macron, who rode the rollercoaster of Trump’s first term.
With transatlantic tensions expected to rise again, Macron last week highlighted that Trump was elected to represent Americans’ interests and questioned whether Europe would look out for its own interests. “I have no intention of leaving Europe as a stage inhabited by herbivores, only for carnivores to come and devour us according to their agenda,” said Macron, on his official X account.
