The special master review of evidence seized from former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate is no more.

Judge Aileen Cannon on Monday formally dismissed the case, which Trump brought to challenge the Mar-a-Lago evidence collection and in which she appointed special master Raymond Dearie, another judge, to make recommendations on whether prosecutors could access evidence.

The dismissal of the case now gives the Justice Department full access to tens of thousands of records and other items found among documents marked as classified in Trump’s beach club and private office.

Cannon’s dismissal follows the appeals court above her deciding that she had no authority to be involved in the Justice Department criminal investigation before any charges are brought. The court told Cannon the case must be dismissed and there will be no further proceedings before Cannon in the Southern District of Florida.

The new order closes the book on what had been a rare bright spot for Trump in his otherwise floundering attempts to stymie the sprawling investigations into his conduct.

What happened to the Republican Party is no mystery. The GOP knows it has a Trump problem. Indeed, since the former president announced his intention to run for president again in 2024, he’s made it far easier to jettison him into political orbit. Many Republican nonincumbents anointed by Trump — the celebrities, the neophytes, the soap-box agitators who wore their persecution complex on their sleeves — lost. Where MAGA candidates won, they did so narrowly while running far behind more conventional Republicans on the same ballot. His acolytes’ dismal performances, the grotesque company he keeps, and his ponderously lethargic campaign have given Republicans who pine for a post-Trump GOP all the ammunition they need.

But Trump has plenty of options at his disposal to defeat the Republican Party’s counterrevolutionaries. If the most salient argument against Trump among GOP voters is that he and his movement are electoral poison, Trump can convince his fellow Republicans that the GOP will suffer even worse losses if they abandon him. As Sen. Lindsay Graham explained last year, Trump could make the party stronger, but “he also could destroy it.” And what happens if he does not go quietly?

Trump’s tried-and-true tactic for inducing acquiescence among Republican Party elites would be to threaten an independent presidential bid if he seems likely to lose the nomination. That mere possibility produced a mad, humiliating scramble during his 2016 run. Then-Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus tried to hem Trump in by compelling him to sign a “pledge” in support of the GOP and its candidates — a document Trump treated with deserved contempt. Priebus’s threat of “consequences” for failing to live up to this loyalty oath was empty then and emptier now: There are no credible “consequences” attached to violation.

The same apprehension that paralyzed the party in 2016 could immobilize the GOP today if Trump threatens to bolt with his share of the Republican base. Even if that warning never materializes, Trump can still make the party's life miserable for its members. In fact, it’s hard to see how he doesn’t. .....

But Trump has plenty of options at his disposal to defeat the Republican Party’s counterrevolutionaries. If the most salient argument against Trump among GOP voters is that he and his movement are electoral poison, Trump can convince his fellow Republicans that the GOP will suffer even worse losses if they abandon him. As Sen. Lindsay Graham explained last year, Trump could make the party stronger, but “he also could destroy it.” And what happens if he does not go quietly?

Trump’s tried-and-true tactic for inducing acquiescence among Republican Party elites would be to threaten an independent presidential bid if he seems likely to lose the nomination. That mere possibility produced a mad, humiliating scramble during his 2016 run. Then-Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus tried to hem Trump in by compelling him to sign a “pledge” in support of the GOP and its candidates — a document Trump treated with deserved contempt. Priebus’s threat of “consequences” for failing to live up to this loyalty oath was empty then and emptier now: There are no credible “consequences” attached to violation.

The same apprehension that paralyzed the party in 2016 could immobilize the GOP today if Trump threatens to bolt with his share of the Republican base. Even if that warning never materializes, Trump can still make the party's life miserable for its members. In fact, it’s hard to see how he doesn’t.

But this unequivocal American support for Ukraine may change next month. Republican legislators are already circulating language to audit the Pentagon’s spending for Ukraine, which will slow down U.S. military support at a pivotal moment in the war. The top Republican on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Rep. Michael McCaul of Texas, warned, “The era of writing blank checks is over.”

At the start of the war, 80% of Republicans supported Ukraine; with Republicans poised to take over the House next month, support for Ukraine dropped by 30%. This should not be a surprise; protecting democracy as we know it and preserving the post-World War II liberal world order were never high on the Trumpist agenda. The previous president escalated his own attacks on democracy just this week, calling for the suspension of the U.S. Constitution.

The next Congress may no longer use taxpayer dollars in the defense of democracy, whether at home or abroad. The official committee investigation into the Jan. 6 insurrection will come to an end; any new committee discussion of that day could focus on casting rioters as victims of law enforcement overreach. House Republicans also plan to pivot to investigating “Hunter Biden’s laptop,” the same conspiracy Donald Trump used to try to coerce Zelenskyy into meddling in U.S. election politics.

Three years ago, Zelenskyy found himself on a similar Time magazine cover, portrayed as “The Man in the Middle … Caught Between Putin and Trump.” Back then, his staff said, “Zelenskyy will never get mixed up in the internal politics of the United States of America.” This was before Russia deployed its largest force since the Cold War into his country, leveling cities and cutting Ukrainians off from the world. Zelenskyy has no choice but to continue his campaign of convincing Americans — and their politicians — that fighting Russia by proxy is worth the price.

Zelenskyy is now stuck in the unenviable position of selling democracy to American leaders who no longer want it.

As other kids in Austin recovered from trick-or-treating on Halloween last year, Sarah Adelman worried about white supremacists, her mom and their synagogue. After a series of antisemitic incidents around Central Texas, someone set fire to Congregation Beth Israel, where Sarah’s mother, Lori, is a leader.

“It made me sad and really scared,” 10-year-old Sarah said last week. “It made me nervous for my mom.”

The arson was part of an ongoing wave of antisemitic incidents that grew last year to its highest number in four decades. It came three years after a mass shooting at a Pittsburgh synagogue and was followed months later by a hostage situation at a North Texas synagogue. In 2021, the Anti-Defamation League tracked 2,717 anti-Jewish incidents nationwide— a 34% increase since 2020 and the highest number since the group began tracking antisemitism in 1979. In Texas, the ADL recorded 112 antisemitic incidents in 2021 — almost triple since 2020 — and both the state and nation are on pace to eclipse those records this year.....

Last year, after a string of hate incidents in Austin — including graffiti on the parking spots of LGBTQ and Jewish high school students — a group of self-described “equally pissed-off Jews” decided to act. The six women said they initially expected more action from law enforcement and local officials. Then, video began to spread of an Austin Police Department officer fist-bumping a neo-Nazi who was hanging a “vax the Jews” banner near a large Jewish Community Center and numerous synagogues. The department has since said the officer was caught off guard and attempting to deescalate the situation.

“We were just getting so angry and felt like something needed to happen,” said Mariette Hummel. “And we wanted to be more than just angry. We worried that young people who were already on the path toward extremism might see it, and it would end in violence......

Earlier this month, the Austin City Council passed an ordinance that overhauled the city’s hate crime reporting system in part due to the group’s efforts. Local officials say that much more needs to be done, that they cannot stamp out extremism without help from state and federal actors, including through more investment in mental health care and anti-hate curriculum.

“It’s not just about antisemitism,” said Austin Mayor Pro Tem Alison Alter. “We don’t want this hate in our community in any form, and we need to make sure there are systems in place for everybody.”

As other kids in Austin recovered from trick-or-treating on Halloween last year, Sarah Adelman worried about white supremacists, her mom and their synagogue. After a series of antisemitic incidents around Central Texas, someone set fire to Congregation Beth Israel, where Sarah’s mother, Lori, is a leader.

“It made me sad and really scared,” 10-year-old Sarah said last week. “It made me nervous for my mom.”

The arson was part of an ongoing wave of antisemitic incidents that grew last year to its highest number in four decades. It came three years after a mass shooting at a Pittsburgh synagogue and was followed months later by a hostage situation at a North Texas synagogue. In 2021, the Anti-Defamation League tracked 2,717 anti-Jewish incidents nationwide— a 34% increase since 2020 and the highest number since the group began tracking antisemitism in 1979. In Texas, the ADL recorded 112 antisemitic incidents in 2021 — almost triple since 2020 — and both the state and nation are on pace to eclipse those records this year.....

Last year, after a string of hate incidents in Austin — including graffiti on the parking spots of LGBTQ and Jewish high school students — a group of self-described “equally pissed-off Jews” decided to act. The six women said they initially expected more action from law enforcement and local officials. Then, video began to spread of an Austin Police Department officer fist-bumping a neo-Nazi who was hanging a “vax the Jews” banner near a large Jewish Community Center and numerous synagogues. The department has since said the officer was caught off guard and attempting to deescalate the situation.

“We were just getting so angry and felt like something needed to happen,” said Mariette Hummel. “And we wanted to be more than just angry. We worried that young people who were already on the path toward extremism might see it, and it would end in violence......

Earlier this month, the Austin City Council passed an ordinance that overhauled the city’s hate crime reporting system in part due to the group’s efforts. Local officials say that much more needs to be done, that they cannot stamp out extremism without help from state and federal actors, including through more investment in mental health care and anti-hate curriculum.

“It’s not just about antisemitism,” said Austin Mayor Pro Tem Alison Alter. “We don’t want this hate in our community in any form, and we need to make sure there are systems in place for everybody.”

As other kids in Austin recovered from trick-or-treating on Halloween last year, Sarah Adelman worried about white supremacists, her mom and their synagogue. After a series of antisemitic incidents around Central Texas, someone set fire to Congregation Beth Israel, where Sarah’s mother, Lori, is a leader.

“It made me sad and really scared,” 10-year-old Sarah said last week. “It made me nervous for my mom.”

The arson was part of an ongoing wave of antisemitic incidents that grew last year to its highest number in four decades. It came three years after a mass shooting at a Pittsburgh synagogue and was followed months later by a hostage situation at a North Texas synagogue. In 2021, the Anti-Defamation League tracked 2,717 anti-Jewish incidents nationwide— a 34% increase since 2020 and the highest number since the group began tracking antisemitism in 1979. In Texas, the ADL recorded 112 antisemitic incidents in 2021 — almost triple since 2020 — and both the state and nation are on pace to eclipse those records this year.....

Last year, after a string of hate incidents in Austin — including graffiti on the parking spots of LGBTQ and Jewish high school students — a group of self-described “equally pissed-off Jews” decided to act. The six women said they initially expected more action from law enforcement and local officials. Then, video began to spread of an Austin Police Department officer fist-bumping a neo-Nazi who was hanging a “vax the Jews” banner near a large Jewish Community Center and numerous synagogues. The department has since said the officer was caught off guard and attempting to deescalate the situation.

“We were just getting so angry and felt like something needed to happen,” said Mariette Hummel. “And we wanted to be more than just angry. We worried that young people who were already on the path toward extremism might see it, and it would end in violence......

Earlier this month, the Austin City Council passed an ordinance that overhauled the city’s hate crime reporting system in part due to the group’s efforts. Local officials say that much more needs to be done, that they cannot stamp out extremism without help from state and federal actors, including through more investment in mental health care and anti-hate curriculum.

“It’s not just about antisemitism,” said Austin Mayor Pro Tem Alison Alter. “We don’t want this hate in our community in any form, and we need to make sure there are systems in place for everybody.”