On October 30, I wrote an article discussing predictions and results for the 2024 elections. One of those outcomes was that Donald Trump would be elected president, but I believed it was extremely unlikely that he would gain control of both the House of Representatives and the Senate. A week after the election, it looks like Trump may have full control over Congress and the government. So how did this happen and what does Trump’s presidency mean for Americans?

Elections are won and lost based on complex and interconnected factors. Still, Trump’s victory in this election can be generalized to his success in seven key states: Arizona, Michigan, Georgia, Nevada, North Carolina, Wisconsin and, of course, Pennsylvania. Trump was able to defeat Kamala Harris in each of these swing states and ultimately win the presidency. I believe common sense allows one to conclude that Donald Trump is no one’s first choice for President of the United States. He is a criminal, after all, and his last presidency ended in the chaos of the January 6 insurrection. So Trump’s election to the White House shows that Americans are willing to ignore these issues in the hope that he will bring change to the country. This fact, combined with Joe Biden’s late decision to withdraw from the presidential race and Kamala’s inability to separate herself from the Biden administration, led to Trump’s election.

I mentioned that Trump was elected to bring change to the country, which seems to be Trump’s plan. Trump has claimed that he will focus on several key issues in his first 100 days in office: ending the Russian-Ukrainian War, closing the Mexican-American border and initiating mass deportations, issuing executive orders to reclassify government workers, and the Biden administration’s climate initiatives. Trump claimed he could end the war between Russia and Ukraine within 24 hours; thus this would be an important starting point for his presidency, possibly by reducing American support for Ukraine’s defense. Trump also claimed he would close the Mexican-American border and begin large-scale mass deportations of illegal immigrants. However, this claim will probably be difficult to realize. Deporting this many people would require significant manpower and government cooperation, which is unlikely. Still, border closures and deportations are likely to begin across the country.

Trump also plans to lower the guardrails of the American political system by reclassifying several federal employees as at-will employees; This would give Trump the ability to directly remove them from office and replace them with his supporters. This will give Trump more control over enacting his policies. Trump already supports the Supreme Court, and if he gains control of Congress his policies could be implemented much more quickly. Trump also plans to withdraw from the Paris Climate Agreement and begin to increase drilling in America, worsening the already dire situation of climate change.

Another critical issue that may come to the fore during Trump’s presidency is the issue of abortion. During Trump’s last presidency, Roe v., which had a significant impact on bringing abortion laws back to the states. The Wade case was overturned. Trump has publicly stated that he would veto a national abortion ban if it came to his desk. However, there may be other ways to impose broad restrictions and access to abortion services nationwide. One way to achieve nationwide abortion restrictions would be through the enactment of the Comstock Act of 1873. The law, Roe v. It was invalidated by the Wade decision, but was never completely repealed. This is Roe v. It means that since the overturning of the Wade case the law has been in place but not enforced. If the Comstock Act were interpreted and applied literally, it would prevent the transportation of birth control pills, abortion pills, medications, medical devices, or other abortion-related materials through the mail. This would make abortion virtually impossible even in states where it is unrestricted, affecting millions of women by giving the government unfair control over their bodies.

Ultimately, Trump’s re-election to the White House will have incredibly large impacts on millions of Americans and people around the world. But Trump’s election also epitomizes the inherent nature of the American political system; the fact that people can choose to change the country in whatever way they see fit. This view and understanding of what the nation is like may look different from person to person, but it is important to remember that it comes from the fundamental hope of seeing America prosper and maintain its place on the world stage.

The views expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.