“They are who we thought they were,” NFL coach Dennis Green famously exclaimed, in complete meltdown mode. However, his words could equally apply to President Trump, Elon Musk, and the slew of Republicans who have wreaked havoc in recent weeks.
If you’re watching Musk gut USAID like it’s a Black Friday sale, Trump going full Bond villain on Gen. Mark Milley, or appointing white supremacists like he’s assembling an evil Justice League, I understand. I do. However, don’t act surprised.
Trump launched his 2024 campaign with the word “retribution.” That was the pitch. Not unity, not hope, not even a catchy jingle—just pure vengeance.
And, guess what? He is delivering. He said he was going to burn everything down, and now people are surprised there is smoke?
Amazingly, Trump (or, more precisely, his minions) wrote the entire playbook. According to CNN, 36 of the 53 executive orders and actions signed by Trump during his first week in office came directly from Project 2025, a Heritage Foundation document that was frequently referenced during the campaign.
As a friend of mine (who is not known for pulling punches) put it, it’s like “Mein Kampf” meets an oil lobbyist’s PowerPoint. The game plan is set. And now it’s just execution time — figuratively, of course.
Say whatever you want about Trump, he never tried to hide his agenda or style. Despite his complete transparency — and the fact that he has already provided us with a four-year preview of what he will be like as president — some people appear surprised. This is similar to dating a stripper named Cashmere and being surprised to learn that she is seeing other guys on the side.
Indeed, according to CNN’s Harry Enten, only 1 to 2 percent of those polled believe Trump should focus on tariffs, and more people searched for “tariffs” than Taylor Swift.
But why? Throughout his campaign, Trump repeatedly mentioned raising tariffs, claiming that it would revitalize the auto industry and pay for childcare. “We will be taking in trillions of dollars. And, as much as child care is discussed as being expensive, it is relatively inexpensive in comparison to the numbers we’ll be bringing in,” he said at the Economic Club of New York in September.
Perhaps the only surprise was that, after threatening to impose tariffs on Canada and Mexico, he backtracked and decided not to. Folks, that’s the old bait and switch.
But here’s what really bothers me: it wasn’t just inexperienced voters who didn’t see this coming. It’s the people who saw it coming and are still freaking out whenever he does something crazy.
I get it; remaining outraged keeps the resistance alive. But at some point, outrage begins to sound like Captain Renault from “Casablanca”: “I’m shocked — shocked — to find that gambling is going on in this establishment!” Meanwhile, Trump is distributing chips to his supporters.
That is not to say that everyone should join in on the craziness, or that we should simply roll over and tune out in order to keep our minds clear. There may be some calculated strategic benefit to “performative outrage.” If nothing else, it may slow Trump down slightly. Perhaps it will position Trump’s rivals to capitalize if and when an exogenous event disrupts MAGA’s best-laid plans.
My main point, however, is that whether you were ignorant, naive, or completely terrified of the prospect of another four years of Trumpian madness, nothing that is happening now should come as a shock.
If you were expecting “norms” and “institutions” to keep him in check, you weren’t paying attention to the numerous warnings we issued, explaining that Trump and his team would be better positioned in a second term to circumvent those norms and institutions.
And if you thought sensible Republican politicians would be able to stop him, you were clearly not paying attention to how Trump had systematically purged or tamed them all. They appear to be on track to confirm Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Tulsi Gabbard as Cabinet members.
We are now receiving exactly what we voted for, exactly what was promised, and (hopefully) exactly what we deserve.
And if you’re wondering why I can make light of such shocking and new events, it all happened on Election Day in November.
Everything after that? Just a slow-motion car crash. That day, the die was cast. I’ve had three full months to accept reality, and you know what? I’m actually not mad at Trump for doing what he always intended to do. “Impressed” is a more appropriate term. The only thing that saddened me was that despite knowing who Trump was, the American people prioritized egg prices.
So if you’re looking around now, thinking, “Wow, how did this happen?” — well, Trump’s got a poem for you . You knew damn well he was a snake before you took him in.
Matt K. Lewis is a columnist, podcaster and author of the books “ Too Dumb to Fail ” and “ Filthy Rich Politicians .”
