And it’s not an oncoming train

For 507 days, you have had a front row seat to the wholesale dismantling of American democracy. Since Donald Trump was sworn in, he has commanded an executive branch riddled with corruption and incompetence, focused on gaslighting, aggrandizement, and retribution — not governing.

In the ensuing 17 months, the president pardoned convicted insurrectionists, imposed illegal tariffs, dismantled scientific and medical research, started a war of choice that he can’t seem to end, caused inflation to double, pushed millions off health insurance, and inflicted draconian immigration measures. He forced mid-decade redistricting because his party can’t win without cheating, granted himself and his family tax amnesty while seeing his net worth balloon by billions, all while continuing to discredit the 2020 election results.

The word unprecedented has become almost meaningless because most of what Trump does has not been done before, and for good reason — it is either immoral or illegal.

And yet, my Steady friends, we have learned to survive this. How? The power of perspective.

Living through the onslaught of norm-eroding maneuverings by this president is a daily trial. When you do a quick compilation, it’s staggering what he has wrought. So it is important to take stock and not become numb to his megalomania.

In just five months, you will be able to do something more than wring your hands, march in your communities, shake your head, call your congressman, or pull your hair out in frustration.

You will be able to vote — the most powerful collective action you can take.

Trump claims he “doesn’t care” about the midterm elections. He says he isn’t thinking “even a little bit” about Americans’ finances, or apparently, inflation.

As of this week, inflation hit 4.2%, the highest it has been in three years. In an Oval Office press availability, when asked about the new numbers, the president said, “I love it. The numbers are great. I love the inflation.”

He may love inflation, but Americans don’t. In a new survey by IPSOS, one of the world’s leading polling operations, 72% of respondents disapprove of Trump’s handling of inflation. His numbers on the overall economy and the cost of living are similarly bad.

In an effort to spin the unspinnable, Speaker of the House and Trump lapdog Mike Johnson claimed the president’s remarks were taken out of context. What context? Trump said it just as it is written, in a room full of reporters with cameras rolling.

There are some other numbers Trump might nonsensically claim to love, but no doubt concern him. A Fox poll (yes, Fox) has Trump’s approval rating at 33%. That is 12 points lower than it was before the 2018 midterm elections, when Republicans lost 40 seats in the House.

Nothing on Trump’s political horizon assures that any of these numbers will improve dramatically.

The war in Iran, a war Trump chose to start, has caused a global financial crisis, one that many economists fear may lead to a recession. Trump promised the war would be quick. Two to three weeks, he said. We are 15 weeks in with what is still called a “ceasefire” crumbling amid new attacks from both sides.

Trump says the Iranians have “taken too long to negotiate a deal.” He threatened they would “pay the price” for not accepting one. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth clarified what that price would be. “If we need to negotiate with bombs, we’ll negotiate with bombs. And we’re very good at it.”

Trump tossed the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, which was designed to suppress Tehran’s ability to acquire a nuclear weapon. It took the Obama administration 20 months to negotiate. Trump treats diplomacy like speed dating.

Even if the war ends tomorrow, which it won’t, the financial damage has been done. Undoing it will take months, if not years.

And now the Epstein files are back on the front page of The New York Times, at least. This week, Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan reported on the administration’s freakout over the release of the files last summer.

In late June, Attorney General Pam Bondi promised to release the files and claimed to have the “client list” on her desk. It was a bluff. In a panic, top Trump administration officials gathered in the Situation Room, according to the Times, a place usually reserved for high-level national security meetings, to strategize. They needed to figure out how to control a massive story that could do significant harm to the president.

What followed was a bungled, slow-drip release of heavily redacted files. The president’s name is mentioned thousands of times. Why there is no smoking gun — either because it doesn’t exist or has been redacted — is anyone’s guess. Rightly or wrongly, the story continues to haunt Trump and the Republican Party.

Trump’s attempts to honor himself, because deep down he knows no one will do it when he’s gone, are hitting legal roadblocks. He didn’t get the congressional funding he demanded for his ballroom, while his triumphal arch is mired in procedural issues.

Perhaps the most encouraging story comes from the Kennedy Center in Washington, where a judge has ordered Donald Trump’s name removed from everything, including the website and building’s facade. The judge has demanded it be done by Friday.

In the grand scheme of Trump’s destructive acts, what’s happening at the Kennedy Center may be of less importance. However, the removal of the president’s name from anything in Washington is hugely symbolic for many frustrated Americans.

An arts nonprofit has installed a live camera trained on the Kennedy Center so everyone can watch when it happens. Stay tuned.

Trump has overplayed his hand. He still believes he can convince anyone of anything. But after a year and a half of broken promise after broken promise, only his most diehard supporters are still buying what he’s selling, even if they can’t afford it.

The midterms will come down to this: which candidates can get the electorate excited enough to turn out. Trump still has the power to do that within the base. But that base is shrinking.

To prevail in November, both parties need to expand their tents. Trump’s actions are making the Republicans’ tent smaller. His go-to issue, undermining faith in the election process, may only tamp down turnout, specifically among Republicans. Tamping down the electorate’s desire to stop Trump and vote in a Congress he can’t control may not be possible.

Especially if he keeps saying things like, “I love the inflation.”