America owes Donald Trump a well done and a high five.

In less than a year, he transformed a sleepy electorate that didn’t understand politics into one that stands in line for three hours to vote on a one-paragraph referendum about the arcane process of slicing and dicing congressional districts. 

Trump changed the landscape in a way that felt like a permanent realignment last November. He kept his high school-educated base and added a far higher percentage of non-white voters than Republican candidates traditionally attract. Trump seemed to have changed the architecture of contemporary American elections by sheer force of will. 

He blew it. It all unraveled in a year. On this election day, young and non-white voters returned to their traditional Democratic home and a good chunk of his base stayed home. Some of his base switched and voted for Democrats.

The results are the most important thing. But close behind is evidence of great maturation that occurred between the two early November Tuesdays. The election showed that more people have come to understand two things about democracy: It is fragile and it is responsive to people willing to do the hard work necessary to make their voices heard.

And we learned that Trump indeed is not a king.

People are Paying Attention

One of Trump’s strategies is to be so loud, controversial and always present that people just tune him out and pay no attention as he and his cronies implement his agenda. The opposite is happening, however. People are increasingly aware of what is at stake and what we are in danger of losing. The questions “What are the biggest threats to democracy in the United States today?” and “Who is the biggest threat to democracy?” increasing are being asked. And they must be asked before they are answered.

Millions of people voted with their feet at the No Kings protests and other events. Many millions more voted with their ballots on November 4. People acted on the idea that when there are excesses — be they on the left or the right — they have options other than passivity.

It also seems that people are tiring of minority rule. They are done with the chronic graft, gratuitous cruelty and haphazard handling of the economy. Tearing down a big chunk of the White House was an incredibly dumb thing for Trump to do. He created an obvious and painfully accessible physical manifestation of the danger we are in. It’s like Trump’s subconscious is trying to warn us, like a thief leaving a telltale clue at a crime scene.

Trump was funny at one point. But his act has grown stale and bitter and the pain he has caused millions of people here and overseas has turned the amusement into hatred. In one of the great self-owns of modern times, Trump has implemented policies that are ruinous to his base. If you don’t believe this, go ask a soybean farmer for an opinion.

We truly are threatened by a descent into authoritarianism. One good night at the polls does not magically alleviate that. The president has amazing statutory authority that can be exercised no matter how low his approval rating is.

But this election shows that people understand the gravity of what is happening. Assuming we avoid the abyss, the Trump years will create a generation of people who understand how precious and precarious democracy is. They will fight to preserve it. Donald Trump’s legacy may be far different than he thought it will be. It may be that people become more civically minded, knowledgeable and get out to vote.  

Thank you, Donald.