It is a cold day in Washington. A crowd is gathering on the National Mall for the swearing-in of the 47th president of the United States. At noon on 20 January 2025, Donald Trump places his hand on a Bible, takes the oath of office and delivers an inaugural address with a simple theme: retribution.
THIS IS THE NIGHTMARE SCENARIO for millions of Americans - and one that they are increasingly being forced to take seriously. Opinion polls show Trump running away with the Republican presidential nomination and narrowly leading Democrat Joe Biden in a hypothetical match-up. Political pundits can offer caveats, but almost all agree that the race for the White House next year will be very close.
The fact there is a more than remote chance of the twice impeached, quadruply indicted former US president returning to the Oval Office is ringing alarm bells. "I think it would be the end of our country as we know it," Hillary Clinton, who lost to Trump in 2016, said on the ABC talkshow The View last week. "And I don't say that lightly."
The former secretary of state noted that history shows how leaders can get legitimately elected and then terminate elections, the opposition and a free press. "Hitler was duly elected," Clinton added. "All of a sudden somebody with those tendencies, dictatorial, authoritarian tendencies, would be like, 'OK we're gonna shut this down, we're gonna throw these people in jail. And they didn't usually telegraph that. Trump is telling us what he intends to do."
Trump has been characteristically transparent about his intentions in a second term. He set the tone in March when, addressing the Conservative Political Action Conference, he framed the 2024 election as "the final battle" for America and told supporters: "I am your retribution."
Denne historien er fra November 17, 2023-utgaven av The Guardian Weekly.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent ? Logg på
Denne historien er fra November 17, 2023-utgaven av The Guardian Weekly.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
Power play The Solar Mamas who are lighting up Zanzibar
In a dimly lit corridor of a mudwalled house nestled among coconut trees, Sharifa Hussein stripped red and black cables, a screwdriver voltage tester balanced between her lips and rolls of cable lying by her feet.
Play it again and again
Spotify's Billions Club tracks the world's most popular songs, but many greats are nowhere to be found. What are the forces shaping pop's new canon?
David Lynch 1946 -2025
The maverick American surrealist film director sustained a successful mainstream career while also probing the bizarre, the radical and the experimental
Election fever grows ....but Trump is pulling the strings
The machinations of Elon Musk andthe returning US president loom large in minds of politicians and voters
International response America's allies hope for the best-but prepare for the worst
Western allies of the US are braced for the return of Donald Trump, still hoping for the best, but largely unprepared for what may prove to be a chaotic and disorientating worst.
Mood music
Listening to, or playing, the right song can soothe pain, lift depression and help treat conditions as diverse as Parkinson's, Alzheimer's, PTSD and back pain. Neuroscientist and bestselling author Daniel Levitin gives his musical recommendations for better health, drawing on his experience of helping his friend, the legendary songwriter Joni Mitchell.
Gaza's devastation The terrible price exacted by Israel for 7 October attack
Israel began bombing Gaza on 7 October 2023 after Hamas crossed the border, killed about 1,200 people and took 251 others hostage to Gaza.
North Koreans' capture sheds new light on war
The news was sensational.
Fragile truce An agreement is in place-if it will hold matter is another
The hours-long delay in implementing the Gaza ceasefire agreement last Sunday was not a good omen for a deal that many fear could be doomed to failure as it moves through its challenging three phases.
Why did LA's wildfires explode out of control?
Acombustible combination of factors laid the groundwork for disaster as the city struggled with catastrophic blazes
