“helped,” not succeeded
And I think the Trump period did keep them off balance to a degree. It used to be said that we were better off with a President and Congress of different parties–or perhaps that only applied once the neoliberal era firmly in place. But I believe that deep down neither party wants kibbitzing from pesky voters. Our banana republic is a power struggle between nitwits (or shining city on hill).
Donald
Divide and conquer the elites? It’s almost the opposite. Trump’s actual policies were hostile towards Russia, but the elites in both parties want a new Cold War with Russia and they got what they wanted. If Trump actually wanted substantive change in our foreign policy, which I doubt, he failed. He only succeeded in prolonging the war in Yemen and in giving Israel and the Saudis almost everything they wanted.