Democracy in the United States would probably not survive a ‘president’ J.D. Vance who took power long enough before the 2028 election—whether by succession to a physically incapacitated or criminally implicated Trump or simply by a putsch—to rig the vote. Just look at him. You know it’s true. So put up with Trump. Within limits, of course.

Prime Minister Mark Carney, left, U.S. President Donald Trump, Vice-President J.D. Vance, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, pictured on Tuesday, May 6, 2025, in the Oval Office. The arrival of Trump 2.0 has been a shock to both the global trading system and the alliance structures that had prevailed since the 1950s, writes Gwynne Dyer. Photograph courtesy of Flickr/The White House photograph by Daniel Torok