Don't be fooled—a Democratic midterm win won't undo Trump's damage

Will a Democrat victory this November be enough to undo the damage Trump has done to this country, to our national pride, and to our domestic tranquility? Some experts believe that all the harm Trump has done to the country could be locked in, perhaps, for decades to come. In fact, they think Democrats will need to win control of both houses of Congress during the midterms, and repeat the victory in 2028, while also winning the White House to reverse the damage. This is because much of the harm is intentionally designed to be difficult to reverse. Consider the White House Ballroom. Despite court challenges, construction continues apace. Soon it'll be complete, and there'll be little anyone can do about it. We're also powerless to reverse the billions in Crypto Trump and his family have already collected or the controversial pardons Trump has issued. Even his involvement with Jeffery Epstein may never be fully known. President Donald Trump cut hundreds of thousands of employees from the federal workforce, knowing Americans would never tolerate the huge expense of reinstating them. He's neutered the government's ability to police his actions, and to enforce regulations. To ensure that this damage endures, he's actively replacing what he calls a liberal 'deep state' in the U.S. government with a very real one, composed of his acolytes. Trump does these things hoping they'll be too financially and politically costly to reverse. Some of them, like the ballroom, will be. But others don't have to be. Especially if Americans come together to do something about it. If Democrats win the House in November as projected, they'll undoubtedly hold hearings and conduct investigations, but that may not be enough to undo the damage Trump has already done. Even a narrow victory in the Senate may not be enough. To truly stop Trump, Democrats will need to control the political and economic levers of power in D.C. That means they must win both chambers of Congress by a significant margin. For that to happen, three things must occur: First, as is so often the case, Black voters must again come to the nation's rescue. They'll need to show up at the polls as if Obama's on the ballot again—because, in a way, he is. Everything he—and all other true guardians of democracy (Democrat and Republican)—stands for hangs in the balance. Second, all the disgruntled Latino voters, Independents, and pro-democracy Republicans who supported Trump in 2024 must support Democratic candidates this time around. And, they can't split their choice—voting for the Dem for the House, and the Republican for the Senate. Only strong majorities in both chambers can reverse Trump's dirty work. Lastly, Democrat candidates need a message that is greater than mere opposition to Trump. The rolling victories of socialist candidates around the country shows that Americans want something deeper than honesty and competence this time. They want more than safety, or affordability, or justice—those are things they should expect from their leaders anyway. This time, they want something more: They want the America they believe they deserve. They want a country where if they work hard, and follow the rules, they will have an honest shot at the kind of life their parents and grandparents were able to build. They want to look forward to the future, and know that better days lie ahead. In a word, Americans want to feel hopeful. Of all the crimes Donald Trump has committed while in office—more than the incompetence, the cruelty, the selfishness, or the greed—his worst crime may be robbing Americans of hope. But November is coming. We can do something about that. K. Ward Cummings is an opinion writer, a former senior adviser to members of Congress, and the author of Partner to Power: The Secret History of Presidents and their Most Trusted Advisers . The views expressed in this article are the writer's own.