and Memphis did nothing to convince the public that Trump was actually interested in keeping us safe, but they did manage to launch the largest mass protest in American history.
The“ No Kings” Protests that have taken place have shattered records and now hold a better place in history than this administration ever will. The major protests against the Vietnam War and the Iraq invasion pale in comparison to the millions of people that took to the streets on that Saturday in October. The administration responded to these massive protests by falsely claiming that they were all“ paid protesters”— a common refrain among Republicans for years, though they’ ve never been able to provide a single shred of evidence that anyone anywhere is being paid to protest their policies. But one thing is certain— the public is angry and loud, and that is driving Trump insane.
The biggest drain on this administration, however, is not Trump’ s fascistic tendencies or his clown car cabinet. The real reason that Americans ran out of patience with Trump in record time is because of his love of tariffs.
The trade war that Trump launched this year( which people also forget is on top of the trade war he began in 2018 that never ended) has sent the price of nearly everything through the roof. Grocery prices are continuing to rise by 3 – 4 % month over month, with some goods, like beef, hitting record highs. As the trade war continues, businesses are reporting that they have no idea how to plan for the future, leaving them with no choice but to layoff employees in numbers not seen in this country since the Great Recession. Indeed, the number of layoffs this year has exceeded 1 million, according to data released in early November. These are“ recession level” numbers, as economists pointed out upon their release.
But the trade war has also impacted the country in other ways. Farmers have lost major global markets as countries, like China, have retaliated against American businesses by seeking the same goods from other countries. China has now made deals with Australia to import beef and with Brazil to import their soybeans. These farmers, who overwhelmingly voted for Trump in 2024 after suffering a record number of bankruptcies during his first term, have lost patience with this administration as they warn that as many as one in four farms could go out of business because of his policies.
This barrage of economic pain led to a Republican massacre on November 4th, 2025. Democratic Socialist Zohran Mamdani swept into office as the new mayor of New York City after months of attacks from both the establishment wing of the Democratic Party and the entire Republican Party. Republicans lost races in small cities around the country that they had controlled for over 130 years. Some states saw as many as 30 districts swing from Republican to Democrat. Democrats managed to pull off major victories in deep red states like Georgia and Mississippi. The message from voters was clear: We don’ t like what the current powers are doing and we want change.
That’ s not the message that the Party controlling all branches of the federal government wants to hear one year before the midterm elections.
These November electoral defeats coincided with a historic collapse in polling for Trump. Even as polls show that the Democratic Party is historically unpopular, Trump is somehow even less popular. As of November 2025, Trump now has an underwater approval rating( meaning more people disapprove than approve) on ever major issue. And not just“ slight” underwater approval ratings— he’ s underwater by double digits on every major issue. He has a-10 point approval on his handling of immigration. Only 33 % of Americans approve of his handling of the economy. 58 % of the country disapproves of his decision to send National Guard troops into American cities. And more Americans blamed Trump and the Republicans for the longest ever government shutdown than blamed Democrats. In short, never in my 21 + years of covering American politics have I ever seen a polling collapse happen like this for any president or political party.
There are so many other areas where Trump is creating resentment towards him with the public: Jeffrey Epstein, his visibly failing physical and mental health, his nonstop golfing, his statement that American workers do not possess“ talent,” the billions of dollars that he’ s pocketed this year from his crypto venture, the pardoning of the Capitol Rioters, his constant lying about what’ s happening the world. The list is virtually endless, and it would take too long to rehash everything in these pages.
But here is my theory about why this administration has imploded so quickly: The public is paying attention this time. That may sound odd, but it makes sense. During his first term, the media was hyper focused on his“ mean tweets.” In fact, the focus on his abrasive behavior on social media became such a focus that Republicans went around saying“ I’ d rather have mean tweets than a ____ in office,” with each adding their own variation of what they don’ t want to see in office.
This time it is different. This time we aren’ t left in a constant state of shock over a President who says things online and even in person with absolutely no filter. Voters knew that would happen going into it, so they are no longer appalled by it.
Without that“ mean tweet” buffer to suck up all of the oxygen in the media, the focus has been on his actual policies and how they are impacting American families. Trump no longer possesses the uncanny ability to get on Twitter and hijack the news cycle for days at a time by calling someone a name. The media to a small degree, but the public to a much larger one, is focused on what he is actually doing and how it is making their lives that much worse.
The honeymoon isn’ t just over— Trump didn’ t get one this time around. And the public realized very quickly that they made a massive mistake on that November day in 2024.
52 The Trial Lawyer