What's Happening

Politics

Welcome to Trump's Washington 2.0

What's going on: In just a few months, former President Donald Trump will usher in a new administration, leaving many wondering what his second term could look like. The Washington Post reports Trump has made 41 distinct promises outlining his plans for his first day back. Among the priorities on his “Agenda47”: mass deportations of undocumented migrants, rolling back Biden-era climate subsidies, imposing tariffs up to 20% across the board, and cutting federal funding from schools teaching “critical race theory” — all of which he’s been vocal about on the campaign trail. And while Trump has mixed messaging on abortion, many people aren’t hopeful he will defend reproductive health care. The former president has also hinted at pursuing political opponents, including Special Counsel Jack Smith, and replacing career officials with partisan loyalists, previously saying he won’t be a “dictator… except on Day One.”

What it means: Political analysts say Trump’s second term likely won’t resemble his first. He’ll return to the presidency with more political experience and a Republican Party reshaped in his image, after winning the Electoral College vote and holding a lead in the popular vote. Politico reports Trump’s goal is not only to undo Biden administration policies, but to reshape federal agencies at their core — a move analysts say could grant the presidency more power. In the meantime, Trump has spent his time out of office surrounding himself with outspoken loyalists like Elon Musk and RFK Jr., who he could reward with government positions. If Republicans gain control of the House, as they did the Senate, Trump may face fewer obstacles in pushing through policies that require congressional approval. As for what’s next, Trump has yet to sign the ethics agreements needed to begin the transition of power, which mostly stems from his distrust of federal agencies not led by his allies.

Related: What Will Happen to Trump's Criminal Cases? (Axios)

Politics

Amid Defeat, Democrats Grapple With What's Next for the Party

What's going on: The Democratic Party is facing a reckoning. This wasn’t a “close but no cigar” election — Republicans blew Democrats out of the water. About 90% of US counties shifted to the right, according to a New York Times analysis — and it wasn’t just in the battleground states. VP Kamala Harris underperformed in places like New York, doing worse than both President Joe Biden in 2020 and Hillary Clinton in 2016. Republicans gained control of the Senate and could also secure a “trifecta” with the House. So, what happened? Pundits point to the Democrats’ failure to provide an alternative from Biden’s unpopular policies, particularly on inflation, the Israel-Hamas war, and immigration. The youth vote, once a promising demographic for Dems, didn’t deliver as expected. Trump received enough support from young men to offset Harris’s support from young women, who also backed the former president in higher numbers this election, rising from 33% in 2020 to 40%. In general, white women didn’t come out for reproductive rights as Democrats hoped, while more Latino men drifted toward Trump.

What it means: To some analysts’ surprise, this wasn’t the “gender election” or the “vibes election” — it was a sweeping rejection of Democrats, across the board. The time for “nauseous optimism” is over, leaving the party with just plain nausea as it tries to regroup. Dating back to at least the Clinton administration, Democrats have increasingly catered to educated, elite voters. Now, criticism that the party is losing touch with working-class and rural Americans has reached a fever pitch. Political analysts say the party will be forced to move to the right on key issues. That means Dems are parsing their current leadership for the face of a new era, and many believe it’ll be a long time before we see another woman on their ticket. Amid the postmortems, Harris left Dems with a strong message in her concession speech: “This is not a time to throw up our hands. This is a time to roll up our sleeves.”

Related: Harris Says the Election Is Over but “The Fight That Fueled This Campaign” Isn’t (CNN)