Republicans have maintained their narrow majority in the US House of Representatives, giving Donald Trump and his party unified control of the elected branches of government and limiting possible restrictions on the power of the incoming president.
The Republican victory, announced by CNN and by NBC News this Wednesday (13), sharply dampens any hope Democrats have of curbing Trump’s influence in next year’s big fights over trillions of dollars in tax provisions that are about to expire. Trump wants to extend cuts approved during his first term and add new cuts promised during the campaign.
Trump’s control over the so-called Washington trifecta, after previously winning the Senate majority, also strengthens the party’s position to implement immigration controls and reduce regulations on Wall Street and the energy industry.
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The party will have at least 218 seats in the 435-member House from January. With Trump in the White House, reducing budget deficits and public debt should not be a priority.
The Republican victory also eliminates the threat of congressional investigations into Trump’s actions by Democrats. During his first term, the Chamber declared its impeachment twice, although he was never convicted by the Senate.
The result in the House also has broad ramifications for foreign policy, further raising doubts about continued U.S. aid to Ukraine in its defense against the Russian invasion. Many House Republicans opposed additional military aid to Ukraine.
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However, the Republican majority in the House will be quite narrow and internal divisions threaten unified action. The current slim majority has been marked by ideological disputes that have allowed some conservative rebels to block legislation with any hint of compromise with Democrats. In the end, this often forced party leaders to make larger concessions to Democrats to secure opposition votes.
Trump may have more influence over rebellious conservatives, particularly on measures that are a priority for his administration.
But the current Republican-led House has been marked by conflict. Representative Mike Johnson of Louisiana was elected speaker of the House last October after a small group of rebels unseated his predecessor, Kevin McCarthy.
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Although Johnson angered some Republican lawmakers by counting on Democratic votes to avert government shutdowns, his colleagues’ reelection campaigns benefited from the money he raised for them.
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