Donald Trump, Year One: A bittersweet anniversary

“America has given us an unprecedented and powerful mandate. [...] This will truly be the golden age of America. [...] We’re going to turn our country around, make it something very special.” Exactly one year ago, Donald Trump triumphantly uttered these words to celebrate his victory at the polls against Democratic candidate Kamala Harris. Twelve months later, the Republican is celebrating a bittersweet anniversary.

Trump is not having his best moment a year after the presidential elections, when his party gained control of the Senate, the House of Representatives, and even won the popular vote. The White House occupant suffered a political setback Tuesday after the Democrats’ resounding victory in four key elections.

Socialist Zohran Mamdani won a landslide victory in the race for mayor of New York City, the nation’s largest metropolis. Abigail Spanberger, a former CIA officer and three-term former congresswoman, secured the governorship of Virginia for the Democrats. Her friend Mikie Sherrill, a former helicopter pilot with whom she shared an apartment during their student days, defeated the Republican candidate in another election to become governor of New Jersey. And in California, Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom, who has become one of Trump’s fiercest critics, easily passed his bill to redraw California’s congressional districts, a move that could give his party five more seats in the upcoming midterm elections.

The Democrats’ resounding victory has left Trump reeling, but he exonerated himself from blame for his party’s defeat shortly after the election results were announced. “TRUMP WASN’T ON THE BALLOT, AND SHUTDOWN, WERE THE TWO REASONS THAT REPUBLICANS LOST ELECTIONS TONIGHT, according to pollsters," he wrote on Truth, his social media platform.

The election results appear to have rejuvenated the Democratic Party, which had been reeling since Trump’s victory a year ago. “Happy Anniversary! On this day, November 5th, one year ago, we had one of the Greatest Presidential Victories in History — Such an Honor to represent our Country. Our Economy is BOOMING, and Costs are coming way down. Affordability is our goal,” Trump posted on Truth.

Meanwhile, the president is watching helplessly as some of his most controversial policies run up against the courts. On Wednesday, the U.S. Supreme Court held a joint hearing to examine two cases challenging Trump’s authority to impose widespread tariffs worldwide. The plaintiffs argue that the president’s chosen method, invoking the International Emergency Economic Powers Act of 1977, is not the appropriate legal mechanism because the emergency situation is not justified and such measures fall under the purview of Congress.

The president was the first to underscore the importance of this case after he abruptly overturned the rules of international trade built over decades of diplomacy. Trump wrote on his platform that the case going before the Supreme Court is “a matter of life and death for our country” and that a defeat will leave America “defenseless against other countries that, for years, have taken advantage of us.”

Although the Supreme Court, composed of nine justices with a conservative majority, has not yet concluded its deliberations, it has expressed doubts about the legality of Trump’s tariffs.

The billionaire who made his fortune speculating with New York real estate is not having his best week. When Trump is troubled, he escapes to Florida, where he unwinds at his Mar-a-Lago estate. On Wednesday, he flew there under the pretext of participating in a forum with business leaders. Meanwhile, the federal government has now been closed for 35 days, the longest shutdown in history, due to the inability of Senate Republicans and Democrats to reach an agreement to extend the budget.

Discontent with Trump is growing as the government machinery continues to operate at half capacity, with thousands of federal employees not receiving their paychecks and millions of citizens unable to access food assistance or facing skyrocketing health insurance bills. The president is frustrated by his party’s inability to break the deadlock in the Senate. And he wants to take drastic measures: he has ordered Republicans to eliminate the 60-vote supermajority requirement to pass legislation.

However, Senate Majority Leader John Thune believes that pressing that “nuclear button” would be detrimental to Republicans once the Democrats regain control of the Senate. Yesterday’s election victory and some polls point to the midterm elections as an opportunity for the Democrats to reverse the situation in both houses of Congress.

Democrats are far more likely to win the midterm and 2028 presidential elections if the filibuster is not ended, wrote Trump on his platform. “FOR THREE YEARS, NOTHING WILL PASS AND THE REPUBLICANS WILL BE BLAMED.”

So far, the first anniversary of his victory is proving less successful than he predicted a year ago, when his voters chanted “Make America Great Again” as he savored his triumph surrounded by his family on a stage in West Palm Beach (Florida), near his Mar-a-Lago mansion.

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