History will not end on November 8, 2016. The next day, the party that loses will pick itself up, dust itself off, and try again—in just 24 short months. That’s how politics in a democratic republic works. While claiming that the Battle of Armageddon is upon us helps gin up turnout every two years, the end is never actually nigh.

We should therefore take a longer perspective on the current standing of the conservative movement. We have heard all sorts of jeremiads about the fate that will befall constitutionalism if Trump loses. So, what happens if Trump wins?

It is doubtful that he will have a commanding legislative majority. The Republicans look to shed seats in the Senate, perhaps even the majority. If they do manage to hold the upper chamber, they will still have to tussle with Chuck Schumer, an inventive and relentless leader who will employ all the tools available to him. He will assuredly filibuster whomever Trump nominates to the Supreme Court. If you think the Senate Republicans will blithely go along with eliminating that procedural tool, then you haven’t been paying much attention to the Senate Republicans in the last decade.