The "status quo" here was Obama's (very) flawed but stable recovery

"Trump may have lied about the influence of the far right on his plans, but it is clear that his voters did not anticipate anything other than a return to the status quo before the pandemic."

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/05/opinion/trump-musk-federal-government.html?smid=nytcore-android-share