Broken

 Despite the farrago of dreadful headlines of Musk's micro-bros slashing and burning the administrative state in an orgy of incompetence and vindictiveness, I think that history suggests that we will see a backlash. If - as I suspect - Musk and Trump's corruption renders an economic reckoning inevitable, then Democrats will return to power and be able to undo some of the worst excesses of Project 2025. That is the cycle of history.

What Trump will break beyond the ability of a change in government to repair is America's standing in the world. HCR lays out the extraordinary ways that Trump is breaking the US-led postwar order. He is actively and enthusiastically siding with those, like Putin, who want to destroy America's place in the world. 

After World War II, America was incredibly powerful. It possessed nuclear weapons, it had a two-ocean navy and the world's premier air forces. It's economy was booming while other countries' lay in ruin. At that moment, America engineered a global order based on what are known as liberal values (not to be confused with domestic liberal values). The United Nations, NATO, the Marshall Plan...America invested in creating a safer world - or at least a safer Europe. Since 1945, interstate wars have fallen (albeit they were replaced by intrastate wars that were equally horrific). A rough peace between Great Powers has held, in large part because the US has proven to be - believe it or not - a largely benign hegemon. This, by the way, is why the invasion of Iraq in 2003 was so damaging to the global order. 

Trump tried to unravel 80 years of peace during his first term, but was largely checked by people like Kelly, Mattis and others. Those constraints are gone and now we have Trump's most idiotic and selfish instincts infusing our foreign policy.

And he won a plurality of the vote.

Europe cannot rely on America ever again. Yes, I think a Democrat gets elected in 2028, because I do think we will have elections. Europe, however, can never look at America the same way. They'd be fools to.

America has been the most powerful country on earth since 1945, at least in part because other countries found it acceptable to acquiesce to that pre-eminence. 

Trump has killed that presumption forever.