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Michael Smerconish is breaking down the strategy behind Donald Trump's convincing win on Election Day ... and he says Trump pushed all the right buttons.

The political commentator and radio host joined us on "TMZ Live" Wednesday and he told us there was a method to Trump's madness ... with Trump finding ways to speak directly to the people most likely to vote for him, and to get new voters off the couch and into voting booths.

Michael says Trump's behavior and dark comments in the weeks leading up to the election motivated his target audience ... even if Trump had voices in the media and Kamala Harris supporters questioning his tactics.

Vanity Fair is contrasting Donald Trump's lowest moments with one of his highest ... juxtaposing his prior legal, political and financial troubles with his big election win.

With Trump declared the winner of the 2024 presidential election, Vanity Fair is putting him on their next cover ... and, the magazine isn't glossing over Trump's baggage.

As you can see, the left side of the cover rattles off all of Trump's biggest problems ... listing his 34 felony counts, 1 conviction, 2 pending cases, 2 impeachments and 6 bankruptcies.

Sauce Walka has a provocative take in the wake of Donald Trump's crushing victory in Texas and the 2024 Presidential election ... he thinks it takes balls to operate the Oval Office!!!

The Houston rapper gloated on Wednesday by rubbing Team Trump's win in the faces of Kamala Harris supporters with a chauvinist dig on Elon Musk's X where he wrote, "Trump... this is a man’s job ... 🤷🏾‍♂️ love you ladies."

Sauce told his fans not to put more stock into the election than their own hustle ... but also got saucy reposting a fan who claimed his 9-year-old son refused to endorse Kamala simply because she's a woman!!!

Donald Trump gets the presidency, but Elon Musk is looking like the biggest winner after election night -- at least financially -- and it could mean the Tesla chief's about to overhaul the White House garage, too!

Elon's net worth soared by a reported $15 billion Wednesday morning on the heels of his guy winning the presidential race. The fattening of his pockets is due to Tesla's stock spiking by 15 percent ... so, really, all Tesla stockholders are reaping the benefits -- Elon just has way more stock than everyone else.

Aside from the immediate financial gain, Elon stands to rake in even more bonuses for his fervent backing of now-President-elect Trump. Not only does his company SpaceX rely on massive government contracts -- NASA's using his rocket for the Artemis lunar missions -- but Tesla makes one particular vehicle that's ready-made for POTUS.

Ariana Grande's stint in the "Wicked" movie musical won't be the last time fans see her acting while singing ... the pop star just hinted she wants to keep doing musical theater.

The singer swung by the "Las Culturistas" podcast, which is cohosted by her "Wicked" costar Bowen Yang as well as Matt Rogers, and she teased her future plans for her career ... including a potential pivot away from pop music.

While Ariana assured those listening that she still plans to make music, especially pop tunes, she hinted a break from the genre may be in her near future.

Amanda Bynes is hitting some big milestones on her health journey, revealing she’s shed some of the weight she gained during her mental health struggles.

The former child star shared an IG Story post Tuesday showing her step-counter app, which tracked an impressive 14,895 steps, covering 6.6 miles and burning 481 calories -- way more than she needed for the day!

Amanda was thrilled with her progress, celebrating being down 6 pounds to 154 lbs after previously weighing 160 lbs ... following a tough period where she gained over 20 lbs due to depression.

One of the richest men in the world is congratulating Donald Trump for winning back the presidency ... with Jeff Bezos sending Trump major props.

The Amazon founder posted Wednesday morning on X ... "Big congratulations to our 45th and now 47th President on an extraordinary political comeback and decisive victory. No nation has bigger opportunities."

Bezos is also wishing Trump "all success in leading and uniting the America we all love."

Plies couldn't hide his dejection addressing Donald Trump's win to his massive fanbase after he re-snagged the White House ... Plies was one of Kamala Harris' biggest cheerleaders, but he thinks America is proudly showing its true colors!!!

The Florida-based rap star told his followers to stay true to their vote regardless of the results  -- a pill he too had to swallow after Trump won his Sunshine State with an overwhelming majority.

Plies told his fans on X he wished he could blanket them all, but didn't extend the same olive branch to Trump supporters!!!

Travis Kelce is sticking up for his older bro after his recent blowup on a spectator at the Penn State game -- saying he knows Jason has no hate in his heart.

The Kelce bros kicked off their latest episode of their "New Heights" podcast by addressing the elephant in the room ... with the Philadelphia Eagles legend once again expressing his regret over entertaining the heckler -- especially returning homophobic language hurled at him in the altercation.

The Kansas City Chiefs superstar then spoke on the situation ... saying he knows the magnitude of it all is taking a toll on Jason -- but he feels like it isn't as big of a deal as it's been made out to be.

Despite countless celebrity endorsements, Vice President Kamala Harris fell short Tuesday night and lost the 2024 Presidential Election ... prompting strong reactions from the entertainment world.

Several of Harris' most vocal supporters sounded off on Donald Trump's comeback victory, expressing everything from heartbreak to frustration to shady remarks.

Author Stephen King took to X to share a message about democracy, suggesting the American institution had been sold out.

The Zach Bryan and Brianna LaPaglia split just got a whole lot uglier ... with Dave Portnoy and Josh Richards releasing a ruthless diss track aimed at the country music star.

The song -- titled "The Smallest Man" -- dropped Tuesday night ... with Portnoy and Richards continuing to show support for their "BFF's" podcast cohost following her bombshell split from Bryan.

In the song ... the duo makes reference to the country music star's 2023 arrest, being active on dating apps and accusing the singer of spreading STDs.

Jennifer Lopez is living for her single era ... rocking a white-hot revenge dress to the UK premiere of her new movie.

Check it out ... the triple threat stepped out at London's Cineworld in Leicester Square for the premiere of her upcoming sports drama, "Unstoppable." J Lo was simply glowing as she posed for pictures in a body-hugging white turtleneck dress ... which accentuated her famous curves.

She rounded out her look with more all-white items ... choosing a fluffy coat, pumps, and a clutch as her accessories for the big night out.

50 Cent isn’t squabbling over the Presidents -- he’s setting precedence and congratulating Donald Trump for becoming the 47th!!!

On Wednesday, 50 posted a couple throwbacks of him and President Trump … he's not advocating for any policies, just congratulating the winner!!!

The post-election endorsement angered several of 50's followers but the G-Unit general had a huge year while avoiding the political peddling like some rappers ... he's trying to be on the right side of the aisle for the next 4 years!!! 😁

The election surprised lots of people ... and everybody's scrambling for answers. So we gotta ask ...

Former President Donald Trump is heading back to the White House -- he's just been declared the winner of the 2024 election, and will become the 47th President of the United States.

FOX News was first to call Trump's victory over Vice President Kamala Harris shortly before midnight on the West Coast as it projected him going over the necessary threshold of 270 electoral votes.

Joe Rogan was in full celebration mode after Donald Trump clinched the 2024 presidential election win -- seeming like he almost couldn’t believe it himself!

Laughter can be heard offscreen in an X clip he shared of Trump, his family and his team celebrating onstage in West Palm Beach, Florida Tuesday night .... and Rogan is then heard saying "Holy s***!"

Joe doubled down on his reaction with the caption, ""WHOLE. LEE. S***."