As I noted many times during the campaign and thereafter, Trump voters were divided into two groups: reactionaries embraced his authoritarianism, his tariffs, and his plans to wreck America as we knew it; while business interests and moderates predicted confidently that Trump’s promises were lies, and the new administration would look like the old one. We would bring back the economy of 2019 without threatening the system. Happy days were here again.
One of those groups was bound to be disappointed; it didn’t take long to find out which one. For once, Trump told the truth, just as I predicted. The reactionaries are thrilled; business interests, not so much. Now what?
I don’t see any evidence that Trump’s unconstitutional efforts to amass power and impose his will on America are unpopular with Trump voters as a whole. The tariffs, on the other hand, are hated by business, and they may lose support with the base, as well. If American liberal democracy survives, it may well be due, not to public support for the Constitution, but to the price of foreign consumer goods.