By Straight Arrow News <br>As of Jan. 20, 2025, Republicans will have control of the White House, the Senate, the <a href="https://san.com/cc/republicans-reject-speaker-johnsons-bill-to-avoid-government-shutdown/">House of Representatives</a> and the Supreme Court. At the top of their chain of command will sit <a href="https://san.com/cc/harris-concedes-presidential-election-to-trump-unbiased-updates-nov-7-2024/">Donald Trump</a>, supported by a range of <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/donald-trump/trump-cabinet-picks-soften-statements-senate-scrutiny-others-plunge-ah-rcna183746" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">controversial cabinet members</a> who observers say were selected primarily for their deep personal loyalty to Trump himself. Trump will also enjoy the legitimacy of a popular mandate, having become the first Republican presidential candidate to win the national popular vote since 2004. In addition to all of this, Trump will begin his second term with <a href="https://www.foreignaffairs.com/imperial-presidency-unleashed-donald-trump" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">more executive powers than any previous president</a> in U.S. history as a result of the Supreme Court’s July 1, 2024 decision in <a href="https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/analysis-opinion/supreme-court-gives-president-power-king" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Trump v. United States</a>.<br>Watch the above video as Straight Arrow News contributor Dr. Rashad Richey retraces how we arrived at this point and why he says 2025 will be a year defined by its disasters. Dr. Richey concludes that Congress must stand firm as a check against the power of Trump’s executive branch in order for the American idea to survive this year.<br> Be the first to know when Dr. Rashad Richey publishes a new opinion every Friday! <br> Download the Straight Arrow News app and follow Rashad to receive push notifications.<br>The following is an excerpt from the above video:<br><em>Let’s talk about 2025 in reality. The reality is ‘25 is probably going to be a disaster, at least policy-wise. Why? Because Donald Trump has decided he’s going to pick individuals to be in charge of policy who A) don’t know policy; B) don’t give a damn about policy; and C) don’t know policy.</em><br><em>Understand that each organization is basically a permeation of the leader. When the leader is incapable of holding anyone accountable to a particular standard, then the managers and supervisors, and then, yes, the employees will not be held to the standard of service for you. This country has not developed based on the notion of serving a man. It’s based on the notion, at least allegedly, of serving us, the citizens of the country.</em><br><em>Now, granted, we may have differences of opinion and we may look at one thing in different ways, but at least we care about the one thing. You see, policy is the point. Politics is not personality, it’s not. Policy is the point. It’s the entire reason we vote for individuals to represent and advocate for us at the Capitol. But when you decide to trade in policy in order to receive a personality, what happens to the agenda of the people? Well, it gets lost. It gets lost in the shuffle.</em><br><em>But understand the void. Well, something will fill it, and what’s filling the void now? Well, millionaires and individuals who would never check Trump, would never provide exacting advocacy for you, members of Congress in the Republican Party who have decided to bend in places where the backbone should not. This becomes your representative class. They are the individuals who are supposed to be your line of defense.</em><br>Yeah, okay, going into 2025 Happy New Year. All this great stuff. People are going to make New Year’s resolutions. You know, they’re made to be broken, right?<br> <br>Let’s talk about 2025<br> <br>in reality. The reality is 25<br> <br>is probably going to be a disaster, at least policy wise. Why? Because Donald Trump has decided he’s going to pick individuals to be in charge of policy who a, don’t know policy. B, don’t give a damn about policy. And C, don’t know policy.<br> <br>Understand that each organization is basically a permeation of the leader. When the leader is incapable of holding anyone accountable to a particular standard, then the managers and supervisors, and then, yes, the employees will not be held to the standard of service for you, this country has not developed based on the notion of serving a man. It’s based on the notion, at least allegedly, of serving us, the citizens of the country. Now, granted, we may have differences of opinion and we may look at one thing in different ways, but at least we care about the one thing you see policy is the point. Politics is not personality is not policy is the point. It’s the entire reason we vote for individuals to represent and advocate for us at the Capitol. But when you decide to trade in policy in order to receive a personality, what happens to the agenda of the people? Well, it gets lost. It gets lost in the shuffle. But understand the void Well, something will fill it, and what’s filling the void now? Well, millionaires and individuals who would never check Trump would never provide exacting advocacy for you, members of Congress in the Republican Party who have decided to bend in places where the backbone should not this becomes your representative class.<br> <br>They are the individuals who are supposed to be your line of defense.<br> <br>There is no party that represents everybody on a monolith. All of us have different beliefs and opinions. Even if you lean left or lean right, there are nuances to what you believe, to what you stand for, to what you would like to see for your children that goes away when you have a de facto dictatorship, and that is exactly what Donald Trump prefers. He doesn’t want to be challenged. He wants everyone to simply follow his decisions, and he doesn’t like dissension at all. Well, the balance of this nation is based on the balance of our powers, the authorities that govern. And when you rip that away, you are ripping away a foundational marker<br> <br>of democracy itself and.<br><strong> </strong><br> Underreported stories from each side <br> In addition to the facts, we believe it’s vital to hear perspectives from all sides of the political spectrum. <br>By entering your email, you agree to the <a href="/terms/">Terms & Conditions</a> and acknowledge the <a href="/privacy-policy/">Privacy Policy</a>.<br>Certified Balanced Award by AllSides | Balanced Bias Rating by Ad Fontes Media | 100/100 Reliability Rating by NewsGuard<br><a href="/terms">Terms and Conditions</a> | <a href="/privacy-policy">Privacy Policy</a> | <a href="/copyright-policy/">Copyright Policy</a> | <a href="/cookie-settings/">Cookie Settings</a><br>© 2024 Straight Arrow News, LLC<br><a href="/newsletters/">Learn more</a> about our emails. 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