Mid-term elections: Trump says, ‘The stock market’s crashing? It’s the Democrats’ fault.’ Rubio and Hegseth close ranks

When the Democrats take control of Congress in early January, they will unleash a wave of bills targeting AI systems and the development of data centres. They will also call industry leaders to testify under oath. This is according to Reuters, citing lawmakers and congressional aides. It would mark a sharp change of direction from a Republican-majority Capitol Hill, which has promoted the unrestricted development of AI.

Among the proposed bills under consideration will be those designed to protect consumers from rising electricity costs linked to data centres, to require independent testing of advanced artificial intelligence systems, and to clarify when AI companies can be held liable for damage caused by their products. Reuters quotes Ed Mills, who heads political research at Raymond James, as saying that “the likelihood of legislation being passed is much higher than people realise”. President Donald Trump can always veto such legislation, though Congress can override a veto with the support of two-thirds of lawmakers in both houses of parliament. Furthermore, the Democrats could incorporate restrictions on AI into routine legislation that must be passed by Congress each year.

It took just two years to shift the balance of power in American politics. In 2024, the Republican Party had won everything. Today, it has lost both the House of Representatives and the Senate by margins not seen for many years. The final figures are not yet available, but it is already clear that to find a result in the House of Representatives similar to the one now on the cards, one has to go back to 2014, when the Republicans secured 247 seats. As for the Senate, the last time either party won 54 seats – as the Democrats have done in this election – was also in 2014, when the Republicans were victorious. And it is possible that the final result in the Senate could be even more favourable for the Democrats once the counts in Alaska and Mississippi have been finalised.

In short, the Democrats’ victory was a clear one. But this does not mean that the current balance of power is set to last. Electoral volatility has become the norm in all Western democracies. The votes and abstentions that secured victory for the Democrats today may change tomorrow. In other words, what happened last Tuesday does not indicate a structural shift in the preferences of American voters. For some time now, an analysis of the US electorate has revealed a division into three blocs, the largest of which – and one that is growing – is made up of independent voters, who account for around 45 per cent of the total (117 million), whilst voters who identify as Democrats or Republicans make up 27 per cent. It is within the category of independents that we must look for the shift that favoured the Democrats. These are voters who do not strictly identify with one party or the other. Many of them lean towards one side or the other, but this is merely a tendency rather than a firm commitment. For this reason, their vote is more susceptible to the influence of those contingent factors that determine the outcome of elections, as was the case this time.

Votes are still being counted in two races for a seat in the US Senate, where mid-term elections were held on Tuesday. One is in Alaska and the other in Mississippi. In both states, the Democrats are in the lead, but by such narrow margins that it is impossible to make any predictions.

In Alaska – according to CNN – Democrat Mary Peltola, with 48.2 per cent of the vote, is leading by just over 600 votes over the incumbent senator, Dan Sullivan (47.9 per cent): 102,962 votes to 102,325.

US President Donald Trump has signed a proclamation designating the White House Oval Office as a national monument, with the aim of protecting its historic structure from any substantial alterations by his successors. “We are turning it into a national monument and no one will be allowed to touch it, destroy it or demolish it to build something with a slightly different shape,” said the tycoon. The measure, signed two days after the Republicans’ heavy defeat in the mid-term elections, entrusts the Department of the Interior with the protection of the presidential office and provides for checks to be carried out before any work that could significantly alter its structure or architectural character. However, the proclamation does not prevent future presidents from altering the furnishings and decorations of the Oval Office, which Trump personally refurbished with numerous gilded details, portraits and other ornamental elements. When asked by journalists about the possible future removal of the dozens of gilded decorations he had introduced, Trump stated that his successors “can do whatever they want”, provided they are “careful” not to spoil the room’s aesthetics. It also remains unclear whether a successor could revoke the proclamation, as Trump himself has done in the past with certain national monuments. The initiative comes as the president continues to promote his plans to transform the White House, including the construction of a new ballroom to replace the East Wing, which was demolished amid controversy.

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva celebrated his election victory by linking it to the defeats suffered by the right in Israel and the United States, where the Republicans suffered a major setback in the mid-term elections. During a live broadcast alongside MP André Janones, regarded as the ‘mastermind’ behind the president’s successful social media campaign, the Brazilian leader emphasised the international significance of the election result and Brazil’s independence from the major powers.

“There is another important point: in the very same week that I won, Netanyahu lost in Israel, and it seems to me that my friend Trump is losing in the United States,” said Lula. “So it was an extraordinary victory for the Brazilian people. It was a lesson for the world,” continued the president, attributing to the vote a significance that extends beyond national borders. Lula then emphasised the issue of Brazilian sovereignty, with a message also directed at Washington: “The Brazilian people have woken up to say that Brazil will not accept being anyone’s back garden.” The remarks were made during the “Live da Vitória” broadcast on the Brazilian president’s YouTube channel.

Jared Kushner, son-in-law of US President Donald Trump and his chief negotiator, outlined on X the ‘five key objectives’ of the discussions with European countries ‘regarding the need for a broader European security architecture, capable of helping to create the conditions for lasting peace’. The five objectives, writes Kushner, are ‘ongoing security consultations, reliable channels of communication for crisis management, greater military transparency, reciprocal measures to reduce the risks of escalation, and a robust framework for long-term European security and stability’.

Yesterday, for the first time since the mid-term elections, Donald Trump met with his national security advisers and then, speaking to journalists, said that he would soon decide whether to resume an all-out war against Iran, now that the mid-term elections are over. The President, at least for now, is considering three options: launching new attacks, continuing to strangle the Iranian regime economically, or reaching an agreement that includes significant concessions to the Iranians. Meanwhile, Axios reports that yesterday saw intense diplomatic activity, including numerous telephone calls between the Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and regional mediators from Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, Oman and Egypt.

The mid-term elections in the United States represented a powerful rejection of Donald Trump, but the US President, whilst weakened, remains a threat to American democracy and to the international balance of power. This is the view of Francis Fukuyama, the renowned political scientist at Stanford University, who, in an interview with *La Repubblica*, emphasises how the Republican defeat could usher in a new political phase in the United States. “It was one of the most resounding rejections of Trump I could have hoped for,” he says, adding that the result could usher in a new era in American politics.

China has no intention of taking a stance on the results of the US mid-term elections and aims to consolidate a stable relationship with Washington, whilst avoiding a direct confrontation between the two powers. This was stated by the Chinese Ambassador to Italia Hou Yue in an interview with *Il Messaggero*. “The mid-term elections are an internal matter for the United States,” the diplomat emphasised, whilst noting, however, that Sino-American relations “affect the stability of the world order”. The recent meeting between Donald Trump and Xi Jinping has made it possible to define a clearer strategic direction for coexistence between the major powers. According to Hou, both leaders have demonstrated a desire to avoid a direct confrontation.

Further reading

China puts the brakes on celebrations: what does the ‘blue wave’ in the US mean for Xi?

05 November 2026

A federal judge has prevented the Trump administration from starting work on the construction of a massive commemorative arch for 14 days. The temporary restraining order issued by US District Judge Tanya Chutkan, which halts the work, represents a major setback for one of President Donald Trump’s most important projects as part of his vision for the renewal of Washington. The decision follows a series of measures taken by the government on Thursday, including the National Capital Planning Commission’s final approval of the arch by an eight-to-four vote, following a nine-hour hearing during which dozens of witnesses opposed its construction.

NEW DELHI – Asian markets with the greatest exposure to the technology sector opened trading with very sharp falls. Fears of tighter regulatory controls and a slowdown in investment in infrastructure for artificial intelligence triggered the sharpest fall in US stock markets since the crash of April 2025, caused by President Donald Trump’s ‘Liberation Day’, and the fallout has spread to the Asia-Pacific markets.

In South Korea, the Kospi fell by more than 8 per cent, triggering the circuit breaker. When trading resumed, the index was still down 7 per cent. Japan’s Nikkei plunged by 6 per cent, whilst the Taiwan Stock Exchange recorded a fall of more than 8 per cent. Indian stock markets, on the other hand, were up. Delhi appears to have missed the artificial intelligence bandwagon and, after lagging behind for months, the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) and the National Stock Exchange (NSE) are both in positive territory today.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio has denied, in an interview with the New York Times, rumours that he intends to leave the administration, but he avoided answering questions about his political future. “Serving President Trump until the end of his term has always been my plan,” he said. “I don’t know where certain rumours are coming from. I love the work I’m doing.” The US Secretary of State gave assurances that he intends to remain in his post until the end of President Trump’s term in January 2029. “That has always been my intention.”

The rumours had been reported on Thursday by Bloomberg: the Secretary of State was said to have considered resigning, whilst some White House officials had reportedly asked him to stay on. This account was also categorically denied by Dylan Johnson, Under-Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy, who described the Bloomberg article as ‘completely fabricated’.

Pete Hegseth has responded to the plan by MP Thomas Massie to table a motion for his impeachment next week. In a scathing video, the US Secretary of Defence stated: ‘It didn’t work against President Trump and it won’t work on me. You can be sure of that. A disgruntled and defeated MP, along with all his Democratic allies, has tabled false impeachment motions against me, just as they have already attempted to do twice against President Trump,” Hegseth said.

Donald Trump continues to defend Pete Hegseth. But it is he, the head of the Pentagon, who is the first of the White House’s staunchest loyalists set to be sacked, one way or another. “I hear all sorts of things, I get phone calls, but I don’t understand why: Pete is doing a brilliant job, and I fully intend to keep him in his post,” Trump said yesterday, reaffirming his confidence in the former Fox News presenter who has been put in charge of the world’s most powerful armed forces.

Following the defeat in the mid-term elections, it was Vice-President JD Vance who initiated the reckoning within the administration and the Republican Party, going so far as to challenge Trump himself, and pointing to the war in Iran as the main reason for the Americans’ discontent: ‘We all know why we lost; it was the war in Iran that caused us to lose. We did not give sufficient weight to the difficulties faced by Americans due to the constant rises in prices,’ said Vance, adding that ‘it wasn’t worth it’ and that ‘any discussion about where we go from here must now start from these facts’.

“The stock market has experienced one of the worst days in history following the election results. It’s really sad to see all this!” wrote Donald Trump on Truth. “It took an enormous effort to reach levels never seen before, and then this happened. As a result, your pension plans have taken a hit. Remember: it’s not the Republicans’ fault, but the stupid Democrats’,” the US president lashed out. “Don’t worry, though: one way or another, we’ll soon be back, bigger and stronger than ever. Let’s make America great again!’, he added. ‘Today the stock market has crashed because the stupid Democrats had a great Tuesday: it’s really sad to see, but you’ve only yourselves to blame!’, he continued.

Further reading

Stock markets: Wall Street plummets, losing 3,200 billion as investors flee AI

05 November 2026