The results in the US mid term elections have been incredible. I am an interested onlooker, not a political junkie by any means. American politics is weird and compelling in itself, but also does affect everyone on the planet. There is actually an Australian current affairs show called Planet America predicated on this; but I only find myself watching it about once a year; so that's my level.
There are records tumbling and certainties being flipped everywhere you look. Texas is particularly interesting. This is from the New York Times.
From the top down, it shows Republican (red) dominance of all key leadership positions in the state since 1996. On 4 November all of these positions were won by Democrats. The column on the right, RR Comm; stands for Railroad Commissioner – which is actually all about oil and gas production.
Republican governor Greg Abbott recently redistricted Texas; drawing up new (extraordinarily convoluted) boundaries explicity to increase the likelihood of Republicans winning more seats. It is unconstitutional to do this on the basis of race; but OK to do it on voting record. Effectively Democrats were moved from marginal districts into safe blue districts, and Republicans vice-versa. Central Austin is now split between three districts that curl out hundred of miles into rural Texas.
Trillionaire Elon Musk and his businesses moved from California to Texas in 2024, on the basis that it was as strongly Republican as California was Democrat. He dropped at least US$225m trying to shore up Ken Paxton's Senate campaign. Paxton, widely disliked across Texas, was also endorsed by Donald Trump.
Paxton was soundly beaten by James Talarico. Abbott has been booted from the governor's mansion by Gina Hinojosa; to be Texas's first Hispanic governor. And Bo French, a noted xenophobe and racist; lost in the vote for Railroad Commissioner to Jon Rosenthal.
All of their shenanigans were futile. All the dreadful certainities about what's unwinnable and inevitable have been challenged and shown to be lazy shortcuts. Life is complicated and America is complicated.
Trump has a mental make-up that I think is impregnable to guilt or embarrassment. So our hopes that he is feeling bad are probably in vain. His successful campaign in 2024 was founded on affordability and ending wars. And his biggest demographic shift was an uplift in support from male Hispanics.
He immediately started weaponising ICE to brutalise male Hispanics in particular. And started an unnecessary war by bombing Iran; sending oil prices up, torpedoing America's household budgets – breaking two promises at once.
This is very much on Donald.
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