The Trump administration is set to gain unprecedented control across the levers of federal government — the presidency, traditionally-autonomous units like the Department of Justice and the FBI, a big swathe of top unelected administrative posts, both Houses of Congress, and the Supreme Court.
To combat states, cities, and non-profit organisations which obstruct it, it is likely to de-fund them.
It could even have a weapon for that from the outgoing congress. The House of Representatives voted on 21 Nov for a Bill, HR 9545, to trash non-profits by removing their tax exemptions — allegedly based on them “funding terrorism”. Democrats have now mostly swung against HR 9545, but 15 still backed it.
Trump has promised 25% tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico (breaching the free-trade agreement he himself signed with them), and 35% on imports from China, from 20 January. He posed the tariffs as threats to get Canada and Mexico to block “aliens and drugs” from entering the USA, and China to block drugs.
Matt Gaetz’s withdrawal from Attorney-General, to be replaced by Pam Bondi (equally Trumpite, but without the personal scandals), has helped Trump complete his top appointments. The surprise is Lisa Chavez-Deremer as Labor Secretary: she was one of only a tiny few Republicans to back Biden’s pro-union “Protect the Right to Organise Bill”, which failed in Congress because right-wing Democrats would not back it.
Sean O’Brien, the notionally-left leader of the Teamsters’ Union who semi-supported Trump for president, is said to have pushed Chavez-Deremer, and probably thinks he’s managed a clever deal. It is unlikely to work out well.
Meanwhile there has been a little rash of small far-right demonstrations in US cities, all across 2024, with slogans like “We love Hitler, we love Trump”.
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