It’s time to face the fact that the United States is not going to return to the way it was. Donald Trump won’t be around forever, but the colossal damage he’s done to the nation’s political system, the hateful radicalization of millions of Americans, and the institutional damage to key functions of government will linger for decades. The optimistic are clinging to the 2026 midterms slamming the brakes on Trump’s ambitions. After all, if there were a Democratic landslide, Trump’s ability to rule by diktat would be curbed! From then it’s just a hop, skip, and a jump to the 2028 election, where a sensible centrist liberal like, oh I dunno, Pete Buttigieg or something, can be elected. He’ll fix everything! It’ll be like Obama never left! Newsflash, that’s not gonna happen. Things may eventually get better, but the Pandora’s Box Trump opened cannot be closed, and whatever’s coming for America next will be unlike anything in its history. And that’s if Trump even allows future elections! A report by Reuters claims Trump is frustrated and annoyed by the prospect of his power waning after a damaging midterm. Trump to Reuters about the midterm elections: "When you think of it, we shouldn't even have an election." https://t.co/wvxrwPBp3K pic.twitter.com/rDef96phVd— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) January 15, 2026 They quote him as saying: “It’s some deep psychological thing, but when you win the presidency, you don’t win the midterms,” and going on to boast that his government is too incredible for a pesky thing like democracy to harm, concluding: “When you think of it, we shouldn’t even have an election.” We should take him very seriously indeed This casual statement should give you chills. His statement was put to Karoline Leavitt yesterday, who waved it away by saying, “Only someone like you would take that so seriously.” YESTERDAY: Trump: “When you think of it, we shouldn't even have an election." Media just now: “The president finds the idea of canceling elections funny?”Karoline Leavitt: “Only someone like you would take that so seriously.”The appropriate answer is “The president should… pic.twitter.com/u1xmctTzve— Brian Krassenstein (@krassenstein) January 15, 2026 Karoline, we all know the Trump playbook at this point. He says something utterly insane like “I’m going to invade Greenland!” Everyone laughs: “oh that silly Donald, what did he say this time?” Some time passes, and the ‘joke’ gradually becomes reality, and the laughs stop. Dagnammit, fooled again by the man who tells us exactly what he’s going to do before he inevitably does it! All this said, Trump actually canceling elections is the nuclear option for MAGA. Sure, they’d dress it up with an excuse that there’s a state of “national emergency”, but it would be difficult to deny that this wasn’t the first step to a one-party MAGA state. But that’s what they’re aiming for, so don’t be surprised if they do everything they can to keep their deathgrip on power.