Trump is in power as America sleepwalks

Joe Biden’s performance in the televised duel with Donald Trump was a disaster – for the president, for the United States, for the world. Whoever watched even some snippets, with the 81-year-old Biden mumbling, losing his train of thought, overwhelmed by Trump’s lies and bombast, understands that his re-election in November is most unlikely. Trump came out of the contest unexpectedly well, while Biden fared even worse than his most pessimistic friends might have feared. The issue, though, is not so much the president’s floundering candidacy, nor his legacy, but the present and future of the United States, and its role in the world. Biden’s presidency was aimed at healing the wounds that Trump opened in 2016-2020 and in the years since, with his constant undermining of the electoral process. A second Biden term could prevent new injuries to the country’s social fabric, to the environment, to state institutions and federal agencies. But even though he is not in the White House, Trump continues to transform the United States: Thanks to the three judges that he appointed, the Supreme Court keeps pushing the agenda of the former president and his sponsors. 

In a milestone decision on Friday, the Supreme Court (by a 6-3 vote) eviscerated federal agencies responsible for regulating crucial issues relating to citizens’ lives, such as the protection of the environment, health, labor, and so on. A Supreme Court decision in 1984 (under Reagan) had empowered these agencies to interpret laws, with the judiciary following their instructions. Now, federal agency regulations will be challenged ever more often, and federal judges will be able to ignore them. This is a major success for billionaire Charles Koch, who, with his late brother, David, has been funding the war on state agency regulations for many years. The Koch brothers and others have also helped fund the placing of judges at all levels of the state and federal judiciary. This ecosystem backed Trump’s candidacy in 2016, exploited his presidency to the full, and is investing in his return so as to intensify its war on the state. In addition, another Supreme Court decision last Friday shows that the system which Trump supported is rolling on: The court ruled in favor of one of Trump’s supporters who stormed the Capitol on January 6, 2021, finding that prosecutors were wrong to charge him with “obstruction.” This is a charge that hundreds of Trump supporters face, along with Trump himself. Trump’s ubiquitous presence was made abundantly clear in 2022, when – with Biden in the White House – the Supreme Court abolished the federal right to an abortion.

Barring some earth-shattering surprise, it is most likely that Trump will be elected, and the attack on the environment and on America’s social cohesion will intensify. If Biden does not withdraw, if he does not agree to his being replaced by another Democratic candidate, this crucial battle will be lost. Then, the president will not go down in history as he would like, as a champion of democracy, but as the personification of how the United States, in its sleep, shuffled towards autocracy, oligarchy and disaster.