Trump’s remarkable rise after the White House scandal

West Palm Beach, Florida – Four years ago Donald Trump by most measures he was a political pariah. Now he the president is waiting.

Rising from the ashes after the bonfire of scandal fueled four criminal cases, two impeachments And failed rebellionTrump shrugged it off dire warnings that he could end American democracy and instead use the democratic system as the ultimate justification.

Politician rejected by voters in 2020 and abandoned by many members of his party after the insurrection at the US Capitol on January 6, 2021, he is poised to once again become the most powerful man in the world.

Convicted criminal now a newcomer commander in chief.

“I think we’ve just witnessed the greatest political comeback in the history of the United States of America,” Vice President-elect J.D. Vance told a crowd early Wednesday morning at the Palm Beach County Convention Center, where MAGA devotees had gathered to watch election results.

The crowd at Trump’s election watch party was electric like the reality of his victory over the Democratic candidate Kamala Harris it became clear. Top supporters spoke of the historic nature of Trump’s comeback, while the other half of the country leaned toward despair over fears of retaliation, autocracy and the collapse of democratic order in the hands of a leader who threatened to prosecute his enemies and bring down an army on them.

“This will be a shock to the fundamental system of the country. No one has historically emphasized the Constitution the way Trump has,” said Ty Cobb, who served as Trump’s White House lawyer and is now a Trump critic.

Trump’s return to power marks the first time since Grover Cleveland in 1892 that a president who has now lost his re-election bid is on the verge of winning the next election.

Just four years ago, Trump’s political career seemed over. He lost to President Joe Biden but refused to accept the results, infuriating his supporters until they stormed the US Capitol during the formal certification of the Democrats’ White House victory in an attempt to stop the certification of the election.

The consequences of the events of January 6 were swift. Top Republicans condemned Trump’s actions. He retreated to his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach and seemed destined for a political wilderness as his party and the country moved forward.

However, Trump did not go further. He redoubled his efforts and began planning his return to power. He found that many Republicans weren’t ready to move on either. They continued to hug himevery perceived scandal is a badge of honor for its base.

This is especially true of the four criminal prosecutions brought against Trump since he left office. They outraged his supporters and contributed to his overwhelming victory in the GOP primary earlier this year.

Instead of hanging on by his fingertips, Trump found himself once again with a firm grip on the Republican Party. His victory in 2024 proved his appeal was broader than his critics assumed.

“America has given us an unprecedented and powerful mandate,” Trump said Wednesday morning.

Trump once said he could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue in New York and shoot someone and “I wouldn’t lose a single voter.” His last four years have tested that theory.

He was impeached for his actions on January 6 and faces criminal charges at both the Georgia state and federal levels for attempting to overturn the 2020 election. He was found guilty of 34 felonies for paying an adult film actress money to cover up the affair and is awaiting sentencing. He was accused of mishandling classified documents.

Trump became the first convicted criminal to become president. Instead of being dragged down by accusations, he won an even bigger victory than in 2016 and could win the popular vote for the first time in history.

“It’s amazing how loyal his support remains,” said Marc Short, who served as chief of staff to former Vice President Mike Pence, who refused to endorse Trump and criticized him on Jan. 6.

Trump campaign senior adviser Tim Murtaugh said the criminal charges still facing Trump – which his supporters view as political persecution despite no evidence of political motivation – blunt criticism of the former president as a vindictive leader who will seek retribution with his enemies.

“That’s what his political opponents are doing to him now,” Murtaugh said.

While delivering his victory speech, Trump handed the microphone to Ultimate Fighting Championship CEO Dana White, who called the victory “karma.”

“That’s what happens when you’re being chased by a car,” White said, adding, “He couldn’t be stopped, he keeps going, he doesn’t give up.”

Murtaugh said Democrats spent the last nine years portraying Trump as a villain and must now face the fact that voters saw a much different picture.

“This can only be seen as perhaps the greatest failure in political history,” he said.

However, it was not only Democrats who opposed Trump. An astonishing number Republicans who served in Trump’s White House said he was unfit to become president again.

Trump’s former chief of staff John Kelly said shortly before the election that “Trump certainly fits the general definition of a fascist.” Historians said it was unprecedented that so many members of the president’s administration oppose his re-election.

Former members of the Republican Party of Congress Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger were among a lot of republicans supporting Harris. Trump has turned criticism from within his party into another point of pride, declaring that he is taking on the establishment on both the left and the right.

“I think it’s a mistake now to look at the situation in terms of Republicans and Democrats, because it’s not really a divide,” said longtime Trump adviser Roger Stone, who was pardoned by Trump after being found guilty of obstructing Congress’ investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election and making false statements. “It’s between the elites and the non-elites… I think it’s a permanent realignment.”

“So this is much more important,” Stone added. “It’s an important personal victory for him… but it’s more than that.”