Livermore received a red flag warning on Tuesday night. It was issued by the National Weather Service on account of severe offshore winds and dry conditions in various East Bay valleys.
Wind lifted unsuspecting umbrellas and hurled twigs at windows. But it howled to little reception. Locals probably missed the warning on their chosen weather app. People were preoccupied. They were watching or reading about or partying or losing sleep over Donald J. Trump’s reelection as president of the United States.
By 2:35 a.m. PST, in the wee hours after Election Day, Trump’s electoral votes exceeded 270, the number needed to gain the presidency. He finished with 295. Kamala Harris got 226.
He also received five million more popular votes than Harris: 72 million (51%) to 67 million (47%).
Trump wasn’t Tuesday’s only conservative success. Republicans took control of the Senate, which is responsible for confirming an incoming president’s cabinet. The GOP picked up three critical Senate wins in Bernie Moreno of Ohio, Deb Fischer in Nebraska and Jim Justice in West Virginia. With 52 of the 100 Senate seats now red, Trump can fill courts with MAGA-friendly judges.
Control of the House of Representatives is still undecided. Close races in California and New York are set to determine who leads the 435-seat chamber.
If Republicans were to secure the Legislative branch, it would be the second time Trump was elected alongside a GOP-controlled congress. It would also mean Republicans would dictate the politics of Washington D.C.
And the Republican agenda is now functionally replaceable with Donald Trump’s whims.
His agenda is radically reconstructive, and potentially unlike any witnessed in American history.
Trump is as close to being an isolationist as a contemporary world leader can be. By realigning current global relations through trade and changes in U.S. allyship, Trump would effectively make America the world’s intimidator. The president-elect — who openly admires authoritarian leaders like Vladimir Putin — proposes tariffs of up to 20% on foreign goods.
He also wants to cut taxes for wealthy and corporate America. He plans on reinitiating his tax overhaul from 2017 — it would lower the corporate income tax rate from 21% to 15%.
His proposed energy policy is antithetical to the Biden administration’s efforts to make the country less reliant on fossil fuels. Trump, who claims climate change is a “hoax,” wants America’s infrastructure dependent on natural gas. If he does take suggestions from Project 2025, the plan created by the Heritage Foundation for his presidency, he might also make program cuts to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). He’d cut environmental justice programs protected by the EPA — in place to address the way marginalized communities are disproportionately affected by global warming — and reduce restrictions on pollutants. Trump would also open all federal lands to be explored for energy sources.
Project 2025 also suggests Trump eliminate the Department of Education. Still, he wants oversight in making sure “Marxist,” “wokeist” ideologies are kept out of the classroom. He also plans to assume control over college accreditation processes. And he seeks to collect billions of dollars worth of higher education endowments.
In a less tangible sense, Trump wants to root out “woke” more generally. He’s made calls to take diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs out of government institutions. He also plans to roll back LGBTQ rights and acceptance. Extensions to Title IX — which gave protections to transgender students — are on his administrative hit list as well.
Trump’s campaign was opaque regarding its position on abortion.
But his stance on immigration is clear. He’s said immigrants are “poisoning the blood of our country,” and has talked about mass deportations numbering in the 20 millions. Trump would expand the border wall and the number of patrol agents serving it. He promised an end to birthright citizenship and called for a return to the “Remain in Mexico” policy — it would force immigrants seeking asylum to return to Mexico while their case is heard across the border. With the Alien Enemies Act of 1798, Trump could use the military to collect and deport immigrants.
Whether he will actually seek “retribution” on the “enemies from within” — a group generally understood to be his political foes — or become a dictator “on day one,” as he said he will, is still unknown.
Trump has been unapologetically open about his Presidential plans. Details on the most radical aspects of his agenda were available to voters. The coming weather was forecast. Trump storms Washington.
Early Wednesday morning, America, like Livermore, was warned.
