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Bad as Trump Is, What Follows Him May Be Worse

The fight to define MAGA’s future is turning ugly—and more extreme

Has Donald Trump’s power peaked? Just a year into his second term, the US president is hardly a lame duck. After seizing Venezuela’s dictator, Nicolás Maduro, the full weight of the US military is now being used to squeeze Iran. Yet Tehran’s resilience and horizontal escalation strategy have vexed Trump. Look closely, and his trademark ability to defy political gravity and bring his party to heel also seems diminished.

Setbacks, rulings, and internal rebellion threaten Trump’s political power and divide the GOP

Extremist online influencers are indirectly helping shape Trump’s second term

J. D. Vance may have to cater to the far-right faction to maintain a Republican presidency

GOP lawmakers in Congress rebelled in November 2025 by voting to release the Epstein files—a scandal that won’t die. Trump’s signature policies on tariffs and mass deportation are, meanwhile, cratering his poll numbers. The president’s demands for gerrymandering in Indiana were rebuffed too.

Setbacks keep mounting. Normally sycophantic house speaker Mike Johnson has poured cold water on Trump’s idea to cap credit card rates. Republican state senators nationwide have condemned the brutality of federal anti-immigration operations after thirty-seven-year-old protestor Alex Pretti was killed in Minneapolis. Senate majority leader John Thune is now resisting Trump’s pressure to ram through the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act ahead of November midterms. Civil society groups argue the proposed bill would disenfranchise millions of people by requiring proof of citizenship to confirm their voter registration status.

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Trump’s public appearances are less frequent and far more stage-managed as well. And his health and stamina appear in decline. Even far-right figures in Europe are recoiling from him over his threats to annex Greenland. On February 20, the US Supreme Court also struck down the president’s ability to impose tariffs by relying on a 1977 emergency powers act. Not only has the ruling dented the White House’s ability to wield tariffs as a cudgel against foreign countries, it has triggered a new political battle over roughly $175 billion (US) in fees collected that may now be eligible for refunds.

In Republicans’ ideal world, Trump would anoint a Make America Great Again heir apparent for the party to rally around. Instead, the seventy-nine-year-old leader famously loathes sharing the spotlight. That’s left........

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