That was fine then. It is no longer fine. Things change.

Many presidential appointments are structured so that their terms outlast the president in question; Biden kept Chris Wray on, for example. But that simply won’t work this time, because these people are loyal to Trump first; that is what he demands. It is impossible to imagine any Democratic or national unity president keeping Kash Patel in his job, or Brendan Carr in his, or whoever Trump finally installs at the Federal Reserve.

Whoever takes over from Trump would legitimately have to purge and criminally charge essentially everyone he hired, and many, many people they hired, all the way down the chain. It would be the right thing to do but it will seem indistinguishable from what Trump is currently doing under false pretences.

Even assuming Trump does not simply die of or retire from old age or ill health in office, he himself is essentially untouchable. So to his remaining supporters it will look like an unfair proxy war against him, targeting his employees and loyalists.

Nothing is ever going to go back to the way it was before, and I think people will have to steel themselves for the possibility that the only thing that will provide any sort of foundation for rebuilding the federal USA is some sort of truth and reconciliation commission, and these people will, in fact, have to get away without meaningful sanction if the full truth is to be known.

Apart from that, the only solution will be to dissolve the union and start from scratch.