CounterPunch Exclusives

CounterPunch Exclusives

Life After Trump: Is MAGA Reversible?

Photograph by Nathaniel St. Clair

Donald Trump as an individual will not define American politics forever. But MAGA may outlast him. Trump has had a transformative influence in the United States and beyond. The question is whether American politics will move past Trump, who is now 80 years old. Will we ever return to a pre-Trump world? MAGA has already reshaped the political landscape. What remains unclear is whether it represents a passing phase or a deeper structural reorientation. Institutional change is fast and reversible; cultural change is slower, more durable, and may not be reversible.

Official changes may happen sooner than we think. The pollster Nate Cohn speculates that “A Democratic Senate is a real possibility.” Trump’s disapproval ratings are climbing. Democrats would need to flip only three seats—if they hold their own—to take control of the House in 2026. The future Congress could plausibly be Democratic-controlled. And if a Democrat wins the presidency in 2028—assuming Trump leaves and there is a peaceful transfer of power—two branches of government could radically change.

That may be necessary, but is it sufficient? One could imagine bureaucratic and institutional transformations and rebooting to undo the horrors of DOGE and Trump. A Democratic Congress with a Democratic president could do much—especially if it has its own governing roadmap comparable in scope and ambition to the Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025.

But Democrats should temper their current enthusiasm.

One recent poll of voters found a significant minority willing to question established historical facts. A Manhattan Institute poll, as reported by Antonia........

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