Anxiety is rising among Democrats who believe that Trumpsters don’t intend to give up their power, not now, not tomorrow, not ever, and that, under Donald Trump, there will be no further elections in America. James Carville, the revered Democratic strategist, said recently that it’s likely Trump will “call martial law [and] cancel the midterm elections.” Even ordinary Americans can see that the so-called peaceful transfer of power would be neither peaceful nor transferred in America’s political future.

Democrats and Trumpster-Republicans are no longer competing political parties; they are mortal enemies in “a total war” that resembles the Nazis and Soviets during World War II: One had to be annihilated for the other to be satisfied. Here in America, Democrats’ immovable object meets Trump’s unstoppable force; the end-result is that America’s so-called peaceful transfer of power would be no more under Trump who has burned all the bridges he crossed, and he can be removed from power only in chains.

For their part, Democrats are in their political wilderness, repenting deeply in their powerlessness, humiliation and shame. Everyday, Democrats scheme how to take back power from Trumpsters.

Thanks to the lessons under Trump rule, Democrats — with the help of new-generation politicians — have become tougher and smarter. They are learning that they cannot simply go back to the old liberal-capitalist-Democratic alliances that dominated America for many decades. Every tactic deployed by Trump is also a lesson for Democrats who are now less idealistic and more practical, and becoming tough enough that Trump’s conspiracy theorist Alex Jones is sure that “Democrats [will be] sending Trump to prison” if and when they take power back on the next go around.

It has been Democrats’ article of faith that, in politics, what goes around eventually comes around. History is full of such power cycles in which losers and winners switch their places. During Hitler’s Third Reich, anti-Nazi activists on trial used to taunt the Nazi judges, “You will soon be standing where I am standing now and will be judged!” Of course, Nazis made sure that such a thing would never come to pass, not for a thousand years. But within only 12 years, the Third Reich was no more. The victorious Russian Red Army, when they finally defeated the Nazis, had their fill of revenge to their hearts’ content, raping and pillaging the vanquished for three full days of carnage; the Nazi top dogs were subsequently hanged. Believing in such iron laws of power, Democrats are now awaiting their turn by surviving the daily Trumpian onslaught.

Under such possibilities, a Democratic comeback would be a nightmare of the worst kind for Trumpsters, who cannot afford to let that happen. They also know that anyone’s time in power is temporary and they don’t want to be losers, history or no: They plan to rule America forever. They swear on their own souls that they will not (and cannot) allow Democrats to take away their power, any more than the post-Nazi generations in Germany can allow a Nazi-comeback. Trumpsters dared attack the (liberal-American) king, and they must finish him off. They cannot allow even a hint of a chance for the king’s revival. Otherwise, it’s their own heads that would roll.

How do Trumpsters plan to prevent the Democrats’ comeback, making sure their present power is securely theirs for generations to come? The surest way is to dismantle all of liberal-democratic political structures in America, primarily with no more elections. Trumpsters will simply deny Democrats any possibility of taking power back by unavailing them all future electoral chances. The Nazis held no elections during the 12-year reign of the Third Reich and, surely, Trumpsters know that as a historical lesson for them. (MAGA expects to rule America for the “next 50 years”).

Just now, Trump’s presidential power is greater than absolute. No emperor of Rome, after Caesar Augustus, held as much power as Trump currently does, controlling both chambers of Congress, the Supreme Court, full complements of U.S. governments, such as DOD, DOJ, DHS, FBI, CIA, ICE and so on, and most social institutions like universities and Hollywood. Federal courts, still a sliver of hope to restrain Trump, can be safely ignored. For Trump, canceling all future elections is easier than a walk in the park. As one-time Trump operative Lev Parnas describes Trump’s power, “No one [can] stop him.” Trump has crossed the Rubicon’s Bridge of No Return, and, with no plausible exit strategies, it’s him or his enemies.

As a prototypical populist politician, and sharing all the peculiarities that go with populism, however, Trump has one sore point of which he is keenly aware: Having inherited no merit points from history or tradition, such as JFK’s military heroism or George H.W. Bush’s lifelong public service, he must depend entirely on popularity for his power. He must feed the popular masses a full dose of red-meat every day. But, as in all political fortunes based on popularity, his own supporters may still turn on him any time for any reason.

Most urgently, then, he has to solidify his power by finishing off the liberal democracy he just attacked. He must make sure that the (liberal-American) king — who is severely but not mortally wounded — will never rise again and come back for his head. For Trump, it’s now or never, and, indeed, what would be easier than to just simply declare martial law and void elections?

As Parnas said, no one can stop him.

Jon Huer, retired professor and columnist for the Recorder, lives in Greenfield and writes for posterity.