Irish Examiner view: Testing times in the United States 

Recent events, including the expulsion of two black representatives from the Tennessee legislature, underline the extraordinary state of American politics 

Three Tennessee legislators — Gloria Johnson, Justin Jones, and Justin Pearson — took part in a protest in favour of restricting guns after a local school shooting left three children and three adults dead. Republicans voted to expel the two black representatives. Picture: Andrew Nelles/The Tennessean/AP 

Even by the extraordinary standards of American politics, the past week has been a dizzying one.

Wildly differing events in New York, Wisconsin, and Tennessee framed what is the ongoing battle for the heart of America and the future of the country — a visceral struggle that may well frame the 2024 elections there.

In New York, we had the indictment of Donald Trump — the only former US president to have been charged with a criminal offence; in Wisconsin, a decisive vote flipped the balance of power on the state’s Supreme Court from conservative to liberal; and, in Tennessee, the expulsion of two black Democrats from the state legislature because they called for action against gun violence brought the issue of race into sharp focus.

The Trump question may not be answered before next year’s presidential election, but the fact he is now facing greater legal jeopardy than ever before could galvanise his support on the right where his message of grievance, racism, and alienation resonates more than ever.

In Milwaukee last Tuesday, the election of liberal judge Janet Protasiewicz reflected the growing power of women voters across the country in the wake of the Supreme Court’s striking down of abortion rights. The Wisconsin vote illustrated clearly how the abortion issue will affect Republican electability nationwide.

Another part of the country’s political makeup — racism — was evident in Tennessee as radicalised Republican legislators fanned racial division, expelling two elected representatives against the backdrop of a local mass school shooting.

These are indeed testing times for the US.