Early Weeks of Trump Reboot Makes for Must Watch TV
Gilbert S.C. Keith-Agaran
I admit I wasn’t expecting much from the re-boot (I wasn’t a fan of the original series, as readers of my column must know), but MAGA: Butler Rally did promise the second coming of the Trump saga might make even better television than the first series. No surprise it got picked up to replace the lackluster and belated spin-off of Dark Brandon—Kamala’s Run.
MAGA: RETRIBUTION so far is living up to its previews (you should believe what he promised during the campaign) and has been non-stop action from the Oval Office—stopping birthright citizenship here, sending ICE raids there, stripping all federal websites of Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI) references and basically flooding the zone with more plays than an NBA game’s final four minutes. 47 might not have been a dictator on Day One, but he has been the Executive Order signer-in-chief with quick follow-up administrative actions by him this time better prepared and savvy minions in the weeks afterward.
Shock and awe. Pick and choose your poison. So many things to take in.
And just when you were getting into the Tariff storyline, the producers rolled out the mini-series MAGA: DOGE TEAM featuring Elon Musk and a loveable squad of blazer over t-shirt twenty-something year old anonymous engineers (“first names only, ma’am”) invading a federal agency near you to root out fraud and waste Silicon Valley style. With cameo appearances by bi-partisan confirmed Secretary of State Mario Rubio and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, MAGA: DT effectively dismantled the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) (humanitarian workers were locked out of their office building and the sign was removed) and got into the federal payment system (officially “read only” reportedly although Elon announced he was stopping some payments).
With some recent Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) law clerks recently added to the cast, MAGA: DT apparently was given the green light for a full season with some legal eagles to help. I understand the federal Education Department and Pentagon are now on the radar (I hope those bureaucrats have not been sending condoms to yet another Gaza—the DOGE boys embarrassingly didn’t Google condoms were sent to a Gaza region in Africa to address AIDS and not to war-torn Gaza for Palestinian refugees and Hamas use).
Not to be out-done, the flagship RETRIBUTION followed the shortened Tariff your neighbors and closest allies arc (where Mexico and Canada cut deals to delay the import taxes by promising to do what they had already announced they were doing at the southern and northern border to stop migrants and fentanyl and the U.S., in turn, promised to stop the import of U.S. guns) with confirmations. To the surprise of no one but naīve true believers in norms and the integrity of elected officials, the U.S. Congress (both houses also controlled by MAGA) apparently would not stop 47 from getting the team he appoints. Pete Hegseth (Defense), Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. (RFK Jr.), Tulsi Gabbard (Director of National Intelligence), and Kash Patel (Federal Bureau of Investigation director) were made series regulars after being billed as guest stars initially by the leftwing podcasters and beltway talking heads. It’s especially galling for the GOP members of Congress that two former Democrats have Cabinet posts and one has been consistently Pro-Choice most of his public life. What the President lost in Matt Gaetz (probably not a loss), he gets some folks who scare the beejeezus out of old-line Reagan Republicans, the beltway community, and the liberal elite.
There have been some hiccups in the storylines. An 80+-year-old Reagan-appointed judge lambasted the birthright citizen proposal, and another federal judge effectively enjoined its application nationwide. Other federal judges have been skeptical of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) memorandum ordering all federal agencies to stop spending while a review of DEI in their operations was done. That’s a no-no. The Impoundment Control Act of 1974, passed in response to a similar power grab by President Richard M. Nixon, makes it crystal clear that presidents do not have the power to “impound” or withhold congressionally mandated spending. That memo was withdrawn, but the message was sent. Spoiler Alert: don’t be surprised if the new world order does actually follow through on Andrew Jackson’s (the first Democrat President) oft-recited notion that the courts have ruled, now let them enforce their order. Legal proceedings take time, and in the meantime, if you don’t really care about losing in court eventually, you can really move on to any part of your agenda you want.
One thing to admire is that the writers (based on that seminal work Project 2025) are leaving no stone unturned to hang their legal hats on. The mass deportations project relies on the Alien Enemies Act of 1798. It’s still on the books, so it may be old, but it could be used. And to make sure the pace gets closer to what 47 promised, ICE is backdating the date of deportations (still apparently too few to beat the record set by Deporter-in-Chief Barack Hussein Obama). But at least Warden Kristy Noem has expanded Guantanamo Bay’s use from detaining terrorist suspects to also holding migrants awaiting return to their own counties.
I gotta think OMB director Russell Vought and his Heritage Foundation colleagues are shoo-ins for Emmys with the way they’ve captured the ratings so far. In fact, MAGA and its related shows have made the Resistance reboot close to cancellation—the arcs so far of let’s write strongly worded letters protesting actions, and let’s occupy the Senate floor and delay a vote for thirty hours to confirm the OMB director, and let’s spout off on CNN and MSNBC, haven’t captured the imagination of folks who want a real opposition. But some critics are already asking whether MAGA storylines will begin to repeat (and begin to lose audience) after these first shocking episodes. If so, watch in 2026 for House Arrest: Hakeem’s Heroes and the Impeachment Wars. But if the ratings do go up, look for a spin-off pilot MAGA: HAWAII featuring Governor Brenton Awa.
Now waiting for the pilot of next season’s mini-series: MAGA: GAZA STRIP. That should be quite a development with everything—ethnic cleansing, forced deportation to Egypt and Jordan, and a U.S. occupying force (and casinos, beaches, and resorts)!
Gilbert S.C. Keith-Agaran practices law with Takitani Agaran Jorgensen & Wildman, LLLP in Wailuku. He served in Governor Benjamin Cayetano’s administration and Mayor Alan Arakawa’s administration before returning to private practice. He represented Central Maui in the Hawaii House of Representatives and State Senate from 2009–2023.