There were mounting legal threats to Donald Trump. They are nothing compared to what will happen in the future.
The former president's political protections are no longer in place. The GOP's insulation from the House and Senate appears to have some holes after the Democrats' strong showing in the elections.
With the elections out of the way, federal prosecutors are no longer bound by a code of ethics to avoid politically sensitive investigative steps. While Georgia voters cast their ballots, an Atlanta-area prosecutor paused most of her potentially explosive steps. The inability of Republicans to deliver massive margins of victory threatens to deprive Trump of the overwhelmingly Republican congress that he had hoped would protect him and torment rivals.
If Trump announces his third run for the presidency in the next week, this could be even more complicated. With that declaration nearing, Trump finds himself in a situation in which federal and local investigators are closing in on his top allies in at least three criminal probes. The New York attorney general is working to dismantle his business empire and the House is about to unload a massive trove of evidence that may advance the criminal cases against him.
The top six things to learn from.
In September, the grand jury investigation into Trump's attempt to subvert the 2020 election went dark. FBI investigators uncorked dozens of subpoenas and seized the cell phones of many of Trump's top allies, working to secure evidence ahead of the Justice Department's traditional 60-day quiet period before election day.
With the voting mostly complete, prosecutors are free to move forward with their investigations.
There is a grand jury investigation into Trump's decision to keep sensitive national security documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate after he left office. In recent weeks, they obtained the testimony of a former Trump White House aide who had initially invoked his Fifth Amendment rights. He was compelled to testify by the Justice Department with a grant of limited immunity.
In Fulton County, Ga., the District Attorney has been investigating Trump's attempt to subvert the election. Several high-profile witnesses were unable to be interviewed in the weeks leading up to the election. Her first post- election interviews were with Brian Kemp.
The judge overseeing the special grand jury rejected her attempt to interview Kemp in August, but ordered him to testify after the elections.
In New York, Attorney General Tish James was re-elected despite a concerted effort by Trump to support her Republican opponent. James is ready to go to court against Trump. A New York judge put Trump's firms under court oversight last week, and Trump tried to get that order lifted on appeal.
Trump was poised to claim credit for a Republican sweep and declare himself the all-but-prohibitive front-runner for the presidency prior to the elections. He had teased a November 15 event at a recent rally in Ohio.
As prosecutors pursue cases against Trump and his associates, a presidential candidacy could make it more difficult. The GOP didn't do well in the polls, that doesn't change that. Trump enters the contest weakened and squeezed by rising Republican figures. His criminal troubles could raise new alarms among the GOP establishment.
It is not certain if Trump's candidacy will deter investigators. He has been flirting with a new presidential run for months. The bullhorn has been used to attack the Justice Department for probing the political opponent of the incumbent president. Even though he is a candidate, experts don't think DOJ will change tactics.
The longstanding assumption of the Department of Justice and the state authorities in New York and Georgia is that he was likely going to run.
The courts aren't the only thing that's going to hurt Trump. The Jan. 6 select committee spent the last year putting together a damning portrait of Trump's attempt to subvert the 2020 election that helped fuel Democrats' message about American democracy being under assault. The finale of the panel is not far away.
Dozens of members of Trump's inner circle, his attorneys and two of his adult children are among the people who have been interviewed by the committee. Bennie Thompson said the panel is likely to release all of them before the end of the year.
The Justice Department investigators have already used parts of the committee's probe as a road map. In April and June, prosecutors requested the full set of transcripts, but the committee refused to give them. The committee is about to issue its report and there are no more concerns.
Last month, the panel issued a subpoena for Trump's documents and testimony. Any legal challenge he raises would last well beyond the committee's lifespan.
The hundreds of criminal cases from January 6 are likely to generate more bad news for Trump in the near future. The seditious conspiracy trial of five members of the Oath Keepers militia, including founder Stewart Rhodes, is nearing its end and could result in a jury verdict before Thanksgiving.
The days before the elections, Trump called for the release of people who were arrested in January. Voters largely rejected the candidates who supported Trump. The seditious conspiracy case against the Proud Boys, set to go before a D.C. jury in December, will serve as a reminder of Trump's connection to the chaos and violence on January 6, which some defendants and their attorneys have
The committees that could help Trump mount a defense against the investigations could still be taken by the Republicans. The narrower partisan advantage would give Democrats more power and make it harder for Republicans to circle the wagons.
The Republicans used their final days before the election to prepare for questions about the work of the FBI and DOJ. The House Judiciary Committee could be chaired by Jim Jordan, a Trump supporter.
The smaller the GOP majority, the less wiggle room the party will have to investigate. Democrats will have more minority seats on committees in a GOP majority. GOP leaders might be less willing to protect Trump if they think he was a drag on the party in the future.
While facing criminal and civil probes, Trump has lost battles to assert his power as a former president to silence his former aides. There are at least two sealed rulings, one by the chief federal district court judge in Washington and the other by a three-judge appeals court panel. The media is going to fight to make those rulings public.
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