Midterm Election Incoherences, Misadventures, and Paradoxes

The predicted blue wave may never materialize. And even if Democrats retake Congress, history suggests Trump could emerge stronger, not weaker, with the presidency's expansive powers. 2022 vs. 2026In June 2022, the price of gasoline topped $5 a gallon and stayed around $4 a gallon through October, on the eve of the midterms. It is currently about $4.30. The inflation rate in 2022 hit a 40-year high of 9.1 percent—and would average 5.1 percent over Joe Biden’s four-year tenure. The 2026 inflation rate is estimated to be about 3.5 percent and, over the first two years of the second Trump...