Anger, betrayal and fear as America braces for the midterm elections
“I think it’s a civil war,” Zach Scherer told me.
We were sitting on the back of his Trump-branded pick-up truck earlier this week when he made the prediction.
“I think that’s the only thing that’s going to bring America back together after this election if we lose.”
Civil war? When I moved to America a year ago, I recall people raising this fear. I remember thinking they were mad. How could anyone possibly believe the ‘world’s greatest democracy’, as it’s sometimes fondly described, could be heading for civil war?
Mark Stone talks to Zach Scherer and Corey Check
I’ve reported from numerous failed or failing states over the years. It seemed nonsensical to suggest that the United States of America could be among them.
Well, a year on, my view is shifting and I am profoundly concerned.
The armies and frontlines are not formed in the traditional sense. But make no mistake, there are armies and there are frontlines. The fault lines are alarmingly deep. It would be wrong to think America can just muddle its way through this inflection point in its history.
Recent polling suggests that a growing number of Americans believe political violence is acceptable. Just last week the husband of the nation’s third most senior politician, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, was attacked in their home. Police say she was the target.
On the same day as the attack, authorities warned that threats of violence against politicians nationwide had massively increased.
The nation is bitterly divided and there is one thing causing this agitation – about a third of voting-age people in this country believe the 2020 election was stolen. They believe Donald Trump won.
Doubt sown into fabric of US society
If you spent the past two years thinking this was a fringe view peddled by a former president; a con which can now be dismissed as background noise, well think again.
Doubt has been sown into the fabric of American society. People have been duped. They are dismissing the institutions on which American democracy was built. They have been told not to trust their electoral process.
Back on the pick-up truck, Mr Scherer’s friend Corey Check was angry. These two young disciples of Mr Trump firmly believe the election was stolen by Joe Biden and the ‘woke radical left’.
“Everything. Everything is at stake. America is at stake. If we lose it, our country’s going to hell…” Mr Check said.
This group of Republicans all thought Donald Trump was the rightful winner in 2020
Loyalists still believe Trump won
Rattled by their stark predictions, I sought out a different generation of Republicans hoping for a more measured, nuanced perspective.
Local campaigner Cindy Hilderbrand had invited me to meet a group of six friends and activists at the local Republican party headquarters.
My first question – how many of them thought that Mr Trump was the rightful winner in 2020? All their hands went up.
“Absolutely did win,” retired US Marine Paul Garcia said.
He was interrupted by another in the group, Cheryl Guenther: “… and it wasn’t just the election day shenanigans. It was everything leading up to that. The suppression of the news, the suppression of everything that happened, brought on by media. The media is nothing more than a Democrat arm that is helping suppress all of this information.”
To be clear, there is no evidence at all that the 2020 election was fraudulent. Audits, recounts and court cases in states across the land concluded that nothing had occurred which would have changed the result of the election. Mr Biden won by a wide margin.
Even Mr Trump’s closest aides and his own family have said he lost. Yet he persists and his loyalists believe him.
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Golfer Trump mocks White House successor Biden
Conspiracy theories spread faster than facts
Our conversation turns to the policy issues. On abortion, on crime, on drugs, on guns, on the economy, they all have perfectly legitimate conservative views. Broadly – abortion is wrong, crime and drugs are out of control, gun control is unconstitutional and the struggling economy is Mr Biden’s fault.
But here’s the problem. They believe they are failing to get their way on those policy issues not because a majority disagrees with them but because a minority stole the last election from them.
American society is siloed in echo chambers. They consume wildly partisan cable news, they believe nonsense on social media and dismiss factual reporting. Conspiracy theories spread faster than facts.
‘I think there’s a genuine threat to democracy,’ Ryan says
Threat to democracy ‘understated’
Not far away, at a rally for the local democratic party candidate, I got talking to a young Democratic Party voter, a man of similar age to Mr Scherer and Mr Check but poles apart in perspective.
Was this idea of a threat to democracy overstated, I asked.
“I think it might be understated. I think there’s a genuine threat to democracy in this country and it really scares the hell out of me,” Ryan told me.
“I don’t want to end up like what we’ve seen in Europe in the past. If we don’t learn from history, we’re doomed to repeat it and we need to uphold democracy to keep going, otherwise we are going to falter as well. I am worried.”
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As America heads to the polls for this midterm take on the country’s direction, the anger and the division cannot be overstated.
Reflecting on all the conversations I have had, it’s jolting and bewildering.
There is so much going on; so many issues and there is absolutely no trust for the other side. There is anger and a sense of betrayal but I felt fear too. There is a real sense that Americans on all sides don’t know what comes next or how they will react to it.
“Super high-IQ revolutionaries” who are willing to work 80+ hours a week are being urged to join Elon Musk’s new cost-cutting department in Donald Trump’s incoming US government.
The X and Tesla owner will co-lead the Department Of Government Efficiency (DOGE) with former Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy.
And in a post on X, the official DOGE account put out a call to arms for people to sign up and help “dismantle government bureaucracy”.
The post said: “We are very grateful to the thousands of Americans who have expressed interest in helping us at DOGE.
“We don’t need more part-time idea generators.
“We need super high-IQ small-government revolutionaries willing to work 80+ hours per week on unglamorous cost-cutting.
“If that’s you, DM this account with your CV. Elon & Vivek will review the top 1% of applicants.”
Read more:
Who is in Trump’s top team?
Trump’s cabinet signals tough stance on China
Elon Musk speaking at an event held at Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate. Pic: AP Photo/Alex Brandon
In a reply to an interested party, Mr Musk suggested the lucky applicants would be working for free.
“Indeed, this will be tedious work, make lost of enemies & compensation is zero,” the world’s richest man wrote.
“What a great deal!”
When announcing the new department, President-elect Donald Trump said Mr Musk and Mr Ramaswamy “will pave the way for my administration to dismantle government bureaucracy, slash excess regulations, cut wasteful expenditures, and restructure federal agencies”.
Mr Musk has previously made clear his desire to see cuts to “government waste” and in a post on his X platform suggested he could axe as many as three-quarters of the more than 400 federal departments in the US, writing: “99 is enough.”
US
RFK Jr chosen as Donald Trump’s health secretary – as president-elect says he will do ‘unbelievable things’
Donald Trump has chosen vaccine sceptic Robert F Kennedy Jr as his new health secretary and said he will do “unbelievable things”.
The news was announced by Donald Trump Jr on X, before the president-elect confirmed the appointment just moments later.
Former Democrat RFK Jr, the nephew of former president John F Kennedy, had been running as an independent presidential candidate but dropped out of the race and endorsed Mr Trump in August.
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From August: Kennedy family criticises RFK Jr after Trump endorsement
In return for Mr Kennedy’s support during the election, president-elect Trump pledged to give him a “big role” – and RFK Jr’s preference for the health position was widely reported.
Mr Trump spoke on Thursday night at a gala, hosted at his Mar-a-Lago retreat in Florida, which included tech billionaire Elon Musk and actor Sylvester Stallone.
Directly addressing RFK Jr, who was in the audience, Mr Trump said: “We want you to come up with things… and ideas… and what you’ve been talking about for a long time. I think you’re going to do some unbelievable things. Nobody’s going to be able to do it like you.”
The health and human services (HHS) department includes the Food and Drug Administration, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Medicare, Medicaid and the National Institutes of Health.
RFK Jr will “restore these Agencies to the traditions of Gold Standard Scientific Research, and beacons of Transparency, to end the Chronic Disease epidemic, and to Make America Great and Healthy Again,” the president-elect wrote on X.
Donald Trump and Robert F Kennedy Jr in October during the presidential campaign. Pic: Reuters
Mr Trump added: “For too long, Americans have been crushed by the industrial food complex and drug companies who have engaged in deception, misinformation, and disinformation when it comes to Public Health.
“The Safety and Health of all Americans is the most important role of any Administration.”
Mr Kennedy is a known vaccine sceptic who has repeated misinformation on multiple occasions, including the discredited theory that childhood immunisations cause autism.
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The RFK Jr-led health department will “play a big role in helping ensure that everybody will be protected from harmful chemicals, pollutants, pesticides, pharmaceutical products, and food additives that have contributed to the overwhelming Health Crisis in this Country,” the president-elect added.
Earlier, his son Donald Trump Jr was the first to confirm the appointment, writing on X: “Robert F Kennedy Jr will be The Secretary of Health and Human Services! Promises Made Promises Kept.”
Read more:
Who’s in and who’s out of Trump’s top team?
Who is Robert F Kennedy Jr?
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When Trump met Obama and Biden
RFK Jr’s position will need to be confirmed with a Senate vote – but even with the chamber under Republican control, his appointment may face opposition because of his views on health issues.
Before Mr Trump announced his choice, Mr Kennedy had already claimed the new president would push to remove fluoride from drinking water on his first day in office. The addition of the compound has been cited as helping to improve dental health.
The department RKF Jr is hoping to oversee has more than 80,000 employees across the United States.
Donald Trump has picked fiery Florida congressman Matt Gaetz to be his attorney general – a man who was under investigation over sex trafficking just days ago.
Democrats have described the MAGA loyalist as “a gonzo agent of chaos” and his appointment a “red alert moment for our democracy”, while some Republican senators have also raised doubts about his suitability for the role.
It comes as Mr Trump won control of the House of Representatives, giving him full control of the government, and continues to fill out his top team.
Mr Gaetz, 42, has been under investigation by the House of Representatives’ ethics committee over allegations he was part of a scheme that led to the sex trafficking of a 17-year-old girl.
But after he resigned from Congress on Wednesday following being named as Mr Trump’s pick for attorney general, that probe has ended – without the publication of any findings.
Despite the cloud over his character – Mr Gaetz denies all allegations – he has repeatedly shown his loyalty to the president-elect, attending his hush money trial in Manhattan and vociferously calling out prosecutors.
The MAGA firebrand in the past has spread the conspiracy theory that the January 6 riots were actually orchestrated by the left-leaning group Antifa.
If he’s going to lead the Department of Justice, the Florida politician needs to be confirmed by a Senate vote like other cabinet positions. That’s where it could get difficult for him.
The nomination is seen by some as a reward for his loyalty to Donald Trump. Pic: AP
What have Republicans said?
“I don’t think it’s a serious nomination for the attorney general,” Republican senator Lisa Murkowski said. “This one was not on my bingo card.”
Senator Susan Collins said she was “shocked” by the pick and said there would be “an awful lot of questions being asked in this case”.
Both Ms Murkowski and Ms Collins have been vocal Trump critics (the latter vowed to write fellow Republican Nikki Haley’s name on her ballot) and will be under the spotlight next year as their party retakes control of the Senate.
“I think it’s a little bit of a test,” said Republican senator Kevin Cramer.
He said he sees Mr Gaetz as a disruptive force in the House and has concerns about the “serious allegations” against him – but stopped short of saying he would not vote for him.
“It will take a lot of political capital to get him across,” he added.
Mr Gaetz will need to be confirmed by a Senate vote. Pic: AP
Read more:
Who is Marco Rubio, the next US Secretary of State?
How will Trump 2.0 be different to first presidency?
“I’ve known Matt for a very long time, we’re friends,” said Florida senator Marco Rubio, who was nominated for secretary of state on Wednesday. “I think he would do a very good job for the president.”
Some Republican senators were reluctant to publicly criticise the incoming president’s pick to lead the justice department but did not endorse him either.
Senator John Cornyn, a member of the judiciary panel, said he did not know Mr Gaetz “other than his public persona”, and said he will not “prejudge any of these” nominations.
“I’ve got nothing for you,” said senator Katie Britt when asked by reporters. “We’ll see,” said senator Ron Johnson, when asked if he is voting for Mr Gaetz.
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Difference between Trump meeting Obama and Biden
What have Democrats said?
Unsurprisingly, Democrats in Congress have been less restrained with their reactions to Mr Gaetz’s nomination.
Veteran senator Chris Murphy declared the announcement to be “a red alert moment for our democracy”.
Representative Jim Himes meanwhile, who sits on the House Intelligence Committee, told CNN the role of attorney general requires “care, prudency, a deep respect for the rule of law… Matt Gaetz is the opposite of all of those things, he is a gonzo agent of chaos”.
Keep up with all the latest news from the UK and around the world by following Sky News
Senator Richard Blumenthal, who sits on the Senate’s judiciary panel, said the nomination was the “first test of whether Republicans are willing to stand up to Donald Trump and go with conscience and conviction as opposed to just politics”.
New Mexico senator Martin Heinrich was even more blunt, posting on X: “People voted for cheaper eggs, not whatever the f@#€ this is.”
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