Trump’s midterm rout could mark the end of MAGA, says pollster David Black

The Republican Party’s crushing defeat could reshape American politics, but Asia should not expect US politics to return to what it was before President Donald Trump, says the Blackbox Research CEO David Black. In this conversation with The Straits Times’ senior columnist Bhavan Jaipragas - recorded on Nov 4, hours after polls closed - Black explains why he sees Trump’s defeat as an extraordinary act of political self-sabotage. With Democrats projected to take control of both chambers of Congress, what comes next for President Donald Trump? Will he moderate his approach, or become even more combative?Black also discusses what this means for Asia, and how Beijing might read the election results.Highlights (click/tap above): 3:43 Republican midterm loss is the worst result since 1974 7:16 Why voters turned up in large numbers 9:27 Why Trump might ditch MAGA11:42 Are Republicans distancing themselves from Trump? 12:58 Trump’s scapegoat: Pete Hegseth 14:35 Potential Democrat front-runners for the US presidency20:17 Democrats “can’t do much about” tariffs 23:42 Impact of midterm results on the Iran war and US foreign policy 25:58 Would Asian diplomats and leaders change their approach towards the US? 28:00 China’s response to the US midterm election resultsRead ST’s Opinion section: https://str.sg/w7sHHost: Bhavan Jaipragas (bhavan@sph.com.sg) Produced and edited by: Teo Tong KaiExecutive producers: Danson Cheong & Lynda HongFollow In Your Opinion Podcast here and get notified for new episode drops:Channel: https://str.sg/w7QtApple Podcasts: https://str.sg/wukbSpotify: https://str.sg/w7sVYouTube: https://str.sg/GjMTFeedback to: podcast@sph.com.sg---Follow more ST podcast channels:All-in-one ST Podcasts channel: https://str.sg/wvz7 Get more updates: http://str.sg/stpodcasts ---Get The Straits Times app, which has a dedicated podcast player section:The App Store: https://str.sg/icyBGoogle Play: https://str.sg/icyX