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By Robert Costa
/ CBS News
Four years ago, Donald and Melania Trump bid farewell. Many in both parties believed Trump was heading into a permanent political winter, especially after he sought to overturn the 2020 election, and a mob of his supporters attacked the Capitol. But the 45th president saw the moment differently — as a pause, not an end.
And now, the Trumps are back. The soon-to-be 47th president is promising mass deportations, trade tariffs, tax cuts, and a smaller federal government.
“I think it’s gonna be shock and awe,” said Indiana Senator Jim Banks, a staunch Trump ally. “He’s going to parade down Pennsylvania Avenue, swing those doors open at the Oval Office, and sign 100 or more executive orders that overturn the damage of the last four years.”
Asked if Trump has changed since his first term, or is the same Trump, Banks replied, “I don’t think he’s changed at all, but I think he learned a lotta lessons. He’s making it very clear that Republicans in the Senate and the House, we have a short window of time to get the things done that we need to get done. That’s a different attitude than 2017. There were a lotta things that President Trump wanted to accomplish in those first two years that we never got around to. He’s not gonna miss the moment this time.”
I asked, “He has a short window to get things done. Is he effectively a lame duck? He can’t run for reelection again.”
“Well, I would never call Donald Trump a lame duck,” Banks replied, “but the political reality is the midterms are right around the corner.”
Getting Congress to go along with his plans could be tricky. Yes, Trump has a bully pulpit to pressure world leaders, business titans, and lawmakers. but the Republican majorities are paper thin.
Trump’s sense of vengeance hovers (he promised attendees at a 2023 Waco, Texas rally, “I am your retribution”), and critics worry nominees Kash Patel (for FBI Director) and Tulsi Gabbard (for Director of National Intelligence) could upend institutions.
Democrats and Independents are adjusting to this new political reality. Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) advised, “This is a very pivotal moment in American history, and you don’t have the time to moan and groan. You don’t have the time to live in despair. You gotta stand up. You gotta fight back.”
Despite his many disagreements with Trump, Sanders says he’s keeping an open mind. “Trump is crazy, but he’s not stupid,” he said. “We don’t want to counter everything he’s doing. There are things that he’s said over the years that make sense to me. You want to lower the cost of prescription drugs in America? We’ll work with you.”
For Sanders, the art of the deal persists … to a point. When it comes to Trump’s transactional nature, he has a warning for the incoming president: “When you are gonna sell out the American working class – which I suspect will be the case very often – we’re going to oppose you vigorously.”
President Biden, in his farewell address this past week, gave Democrats a playbook of sorts for how to define Trump and his allies: “An oligarchy is taking shape in America of extreme wealth, power and influence that literally threatens our entire democracy,” he said.
Sanders has also described some Trump allies as oligarchs. “You know why I use the word ‘oligarchy’? Because it’s true. When Donald Trump is gonna take office, he’s gonna have Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos and Mark Zuckerberg at his side, the three wealthiest people in this country. That’s called oligarchy.”
Republicans insist they have solidarity with working people. Banks said, “I grew up in a working-class home, the son of a union factory worker who voted Democrat all of his life. [He] hated NAFTA, and my dad was immediately captured by Donald Trump. Was for him when he came down the escalator. I thought my dad was crazy at the time. And he was right. But he’s one of those former union, working-class Democrat voters who is a solid Trump Republican voter today. And that has changed American politics in such a significant way, and I think American politics will be changed for the rest of my life.”
This summer will mark 10 years since Trump came down that golden escalator. And tomorrow’s Inauguration highlights what once seemed impossible: Trump has endured, and dominated American life, with his highs, his lows, his everything ever-present.
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Story produced by Dustin Stephens. Editor: Ed Givnish.
Robert Costa is the Chief Election & Campaign correspondent for CBS News, where he covers national politics and American democracy.
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