The mid-term blues

The blue of the distance became the blue of the night, and all the fields were grey.

To be honest I’m surprised it took this long to get a reaction to the US mid-term elections. Just days after saying that  he was “absolutely willing” to accept the results of the midterm elections, and was prepared to work with the Democrats, US President Donald Trump has reverted to type.

On his Truth Social platform – which he set up after being banned from Facebook and Twitter (which takes some doing these days)  – he has accused the mid-term election results of being dishonest and fixed. He even seemed to suggest that his name not being on every ballot paper was why the Republicans were routed in so many areas. Despite having campaigned on the grounds that a Republican vote was, in effect, a vote for Donald Trump.

I spotted the following on LinkedIn, and thought it spot on, and I’m afraid I noted it down, but forgot to keep a note of who said it. Apologies then to whoever first posted: “When he wins, the system is a triumph of democracy. When he loses, the machines are crooked, the polls are corrupt, and reality itself is suspect. Like a compulsive gambler blaming the casino, he can never admit that voters simply rejected what he was selling.”

There was much rejoicing amongst the non-Republican sector, even, dare I say it, some cheering from Republicans who are growing weary of the Trump action and rhetoric. However, one set of mid-terms does not a Presidential election victory make.

The Democrats appear to have won back control of Congress, and the Senate, meaning a significant political setback to President Donald Trump.  It means that he will find it harder to act in an autocratic manner, passing whatever major legislation he feels like. To look at in UK terms, it would be less like the coalition of 2010-15, and more like a British Prime Minister – Boris Johnson, for example – remaining in 10 Downing Street but suddenly finding that Labour holds the majority of the seats. The PM stays as the PM, but they have to abide by what is decided in Parliament.

Obviously, because of the way UK and US politics are structured, that’s not a thing that could happen.  In the US though, it looks like it has, to a certain extent. Historically, midterms are often treated as a verdict on the sitting President. In, I suppose, the same way that county council elections or by-elections can be seen as a commentary on the ruling party in the UK. I remember when True-Blue Tory Tunbridge Wells citizens were so disgusted with the then PM John Major, that the Conservatives lost control of the Council. It made the front page of the Telegraph, and three years later, Tony Blair swept to power on the New Labour wave.

A big part of the Trumpian election promise in 2024 was about the cost of living, yet prices appear to be higher than ever, largely thanks to the war with Iran. Even though he vowed ‘No More Wars’.  Now, however, things such as said war, the increasingly nonsensical outpourings on Truth Social, and the egomaniacal building programme – who in this day and age needs a Triumphal Arch – seriously? – are taking the shine off, to reveal the base metal beneath.

So, the mid-terms could be seen as a wet kipper to the face for Trump, and possibly the more rabid factions in the Republican Party. But there was also a definite sense in 2024 that that the Democrats just weren’t up to the job, and that, with Trump, the electorate more or less knew what they were getting.

There is a real chance that Democratic success this month could clear the undergrowth enough to create a path back to the White House in 2028. Unless they mess it up in the meantime. Maybe, guys, focus less on impeachment and rubbing Trump’s nose in it, and more on actually fixing that which is broken.

Why does all this matter to us? Because it does. You only have to look at what happens at your local Esso station to know that when it rains economically across the pond, we all get wet.