From pariah to president: Donald Trump rises from the ashes to reclaim the White House

WEST PALM BEACH, Florida - Four years ago, Donald Trump by most measures was a political pariah. Now he’s a president in waiting.

Rising from the ashes after a bonfire of scandal fueled by four criminal prosecutions, two impeachments and a failed insurrection, Trump swept aside dire warnings that he could bring American democracy to an end and instead used the democratic system as the ultimate vindication.

A politician rejected by voters in 2020 and abandoned by many in his party after the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, is poised to again become the most powerful man in the world.

The convicted felon is now the incoming commander in chief.

"I think that we just witnessed the greatest political comeback in the history of the United States of America," Vice President-elect JD Vance told the crowd early Wednesday morning at the Palm Beach County Convention Center, where the MAGA faithful had gathered to watch the election results.

The crowd at Trump’s election night watch party was electric as the reality of his victory over Democratic nominee Kamala Harris became clear. Top supporters talked about the historic nature of Trump’s comeback, even as the other half of the country tilted toward despair over fears of retribution, autocracy and the collapse of the democratic order in the hands of a leader who has threatened to prosecute his enemies and unleash the military on them.

“It will be a shock to the foundational system of the country, no one historically has stressed the Constitution the way Trump has,” said Ty Cobb, who served as an attorney in Trump’s White House and is now a critic.

Trump’s return to power marks the first time since Grover Cleveland in 1892 that a president who lost a reelection bid won the next election.

Just four years ago, Trump’s political career seemed over. He lost to President Joe Biden but refused to accept the results, whipping his supporters into a fury until they stormed the U.S. Capitol during the official certification of the Democratic White House victory in an attempt to stop the election from being certified.

The fallout from Jan. 6 was swift. Top Republicans condemned Trump’s actions. He retreated to his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach and seemed destined to the political wilderness as his party and the country moved on.

Trump didn’t move on, though. He doubled down and began planning his return to power. He found that many Republicans weren’t ready to move on either. They continued to embrace him, every perceived scandal a badge of honor with his base.

That was especially true with the four criminal prosecutions that fell on Trump after he left office. They outraged his supporters and powered his overwhelming victory in the GOP primary earlier this year.

Instead of hanging on by his fingertips, Trump found he again had a firm grip on the GOP. His victory in 2024 proved his appeal is broader than his critics realized.

"America has given us an unprecedented and powerful mandate," Trump declared early Wednesday.

Trump once said he could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue in New York City and shoot someone and “I wouldn’t lose any voters.” His last four years tested that theory.

He was impeached over his actions on Jan. 6 and faces criminal charges at both the state level in Georgia and at the federal level for trying to overturn the 2020 election. He was convicted of 34 felonies for paying hush money to an adult film actress to conceal an affair, and awaits sentencing. He was charged with mishandling classified documents.

Trump is now the first convicted felon to become president. Instead of the charges dragging him down, he scored an even bigger victory than in 2016 and is on track to win the popular vote for the first time.

“It is remarkable how intensely loyal his support remains,” said Marc Short, who served as chief of staff to former Vice President Mike Pence, who declined to endorse Trump and has criticized him over Jan. 6.

Trump campaign senior adviser Tim Murtaugh said the criminal charges that Trump still faces – which his supporters view as political persecution despite no evidence they are politically motivated - blunted criticism of the former president as a vengeful leader who would seek retribution on his enemies.

“That is precisely what his political opponents are doing to him right now,” Murtaugh said.

While delivering his victory speech, Trump turned the microphone over to Ultimate Fighting Championship CEO Dana White, who called the win "karma."

"This is what happens when the machine comes after you," White said, adding: "Couldn't stop him, he keeps going forward, he doesn't quit."

Democrats have spent the last nine years painting Trump as a villain, Murtaugh said, and now must reckon with the fact that voters saw a much different picture.

“That can only be regarded as perhaps the greatest messaging failure in political history,” he said.

It wasn’t just Democrats opposing Trump, though. A large number of Republicans who served in Trump’s White House said he was unfit to be president again.

Former Trump Chief of Staff John Kelly said shortly before the election that “Trump falls into the general definition of fascist, for sure.” Historians said it was unprecedented for so many members of a president’s administration to oppose his reelection.

Former GOP members of Congress Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger were among a slew of Republicans backing Harris. Trump turned the criticism from within his own party into another point of pride, saying he was fighting the establishment both left and right.

“I think it’s a mistake to see things in terms of Republicans and Democrats anymore because that’s really not the divide,” said longtime Trump adviser Roger Stone, who was pardoned by Trump after being convicted of obstructing the congressional investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election and making false statements. “It’s between elites and nonelites… I think that’s a permanent realignment.”

“So this is far more significant,” Stone added. “It is significant in being a personal victory for him… but it’s larger than that.”

(This story has been updated with more information.)

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump's remarkable rise from scandal to reclaim White House