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BREAKING: Donald Trump takes two late night losses as Americans realize they are not powerless in fighting back

Americans are quickly realizing that Donald Trump is not all-powerful. He can and will be defeated.

Ethan Wolf Feb 11

Good morning — and welcome back to The Wolf’s Den.

Overnight, Donald Trump took two major defeats that should rattle anyone who’s been watching his effort to consolidate power in Washington. And more importantly, they carry a message a lot of people need to hear right now:

He is not all-powerful.
And when Americans push back — in the courts, in Congress, and at the ballot box — he bleeds.

Let’s walk through what happened.

Before I continue, I want to thank you for your support. Because of you, I am able to report on the news in a way that does not water down the facts or run away from the most challenging stories. I am able to report on them clearly in a way that maintains editorial independence. If you believe that work is important, please join our community by subscribing.

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1) The DOJ’s prosecution against Democratic Veterans and Members of Congress hit a wall

Late last night, the Department of Justice failed to land indictments against six members of Congress who filmed a message to troops: you do not have to follow illegal orders — your duty is to the Constitution.

The lawmakers named in that effort were:

• Rep. Maggie Goodlander

• Rep. Jason Crow

• Rep. Chris Deluzio

• Rep. Chrissy Houlahan

• Sen. Mark Kelly

• Sen. Elissa Slotkin

Here’s what the Trump operation wanted: a political spectacle dressed up as “law and order.” They tried to paint these Democrats as anti-military, anti-American, and dangerous — the classic authoritarian move of labeling dissent as treason.

But the part that matters — the part that should stop you in your tracks — is this:

Every one of these members has a background in military service or national security/intelligence. These aren’t people who stumbled into a conversation about duty. These are people who have lived it. And they were being targeted for reminding service members of something that should never be controversial in a democracy: the law outranks the strongman.

The effort didn’t just fail. It was rejected by ordinary Americans sitting in judgment — a reminder that our system still has pressure valves when the public refuses to play along.

And that matters, because Trump’s whole strategy depends on convincing you that resistance is futile — that he’s already won, already untouchable, already a dictator-in-waiting.

That’s the bully’s trick: make you surrender before the fight even starts.

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2) Congress threw sand in the gears of Trump’s tariff power grab

The second defeat was economic — and it’s a big one.

Tariffs have been Trump’s obsession. He calls them his favorite word. He treats them like a personality trait. But for working people, tariffs aren’t a slogan — they’re price inflators. They hit supply chains, raise costs for businesses, and show up at the register.

And because cost of living is still the central anxiety for millions of Americans, tariff chaos isn’t just bad policy — it’s political gasoline.

That’s why what happened next matters: a bipartisan group in the House blocked a rule that would’ve strengthened Trump’s ability to keep using emergency powers to impose tariffs. The rule failed — and that opens the door for members of Congress to bring forward legislation that could curb Trump’s tariff authority going forward.

This is the stuff that often slips through the cracks of the daily outrage cycle — but it’s exactly where power lives. Not in cable-news theatrics. In procedural choke points. In coalition votes. In moments when a handful of lawmakers decide they’re done rubber-stamping chaos.

Trump doesn’t want you talking about this because it punctures the myth that Washington is helpless to stop him. It’s not. Not if pressure is applied and people hold the line.

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The bigger point: You have more leverage than you think

There’s a saying from Capitol Hill I’ve always kept close: we fight back three ways.

We legislate. We litigate. We motivate.

And overnight, we saw at least two of those engines kick into gear:

• Litigate: the justice system refusing to be weaponized for political revenge.

• Legislate: Congress showing it can limit presidential power when the votes are there.

And there’s a third force building beneath it all: elections. Democrats have been competing hard — and flipping seats — in places the pundits don’t pay enough attention to. That movement doesn’t happen by magic. It happens because people get organized, stay loud, and refuse to normalize authoritarian behavior as “just politics.”

So if you’re exhausted, I get it. If you’re angry, you should be. If you feel like the walls are closing in — take a breath and look at what last night proved:

Trump can be stopped.
He can be boxed in.
He can be beaten.

But only if we stop treating him like fate.

The scariest thing you can do to a bully is stand up and make him fight for every inch.

So don’t give in to despair. Don’t surrender your agency. And don’t let anyone convince you the outcome is already written.

Because last night wasn’t just two defeats for Trump.

It was a reminder that the country still belongs to the people who show up.

-Ethan