Republicans have been projected to hold on to 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 potential curbs on the incoming president’s power.
The Republican sweep, called by CNN and NBC News on Wednesday, would sharply diminish any hope for Democrats to curtail Mr Trump’s sway over next year’s big fights over trillions of dollars in expiring tax provisions. Mr Trump wants to extend cuts approved during his first term and add new ones he promised on the campaign trail.
Mr Trump’s grip over the so-called Washington trifecta, having earlier won the majority of the Senate, would also strengthen the party’s hand to enact immigration controls and reduce regulations on Wall Street and the energy industry.
The president-elect travelled to Washington on Wednesday and met with House Republicans, where he endorsed House speaker Mike Johnson to retain his leadership post.
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“Isn’t it nice to win?” Mr Trump said at the lawmakers’ gathering at the Hyatt Regency in Washington. “It’s always nice to win.”
The Repulicans are set to hold at least 218 seats in the in the 435-member chamber starting in January. With Mr Trump in the White House, lowering budget deficits and government debt are unlikely to be prioritised.
The Republican win would also remove the threat of congressional investigation of Trump’s actions by Democrats. During his first term, the House impeached him twice, although he was never convicted by the Senate.
David Valadao of California and Dan Newhouse of Washington next year will be the only two remaining House Republicans who voted to impeach Mr Trump following the January 6th, 2021 insurrection. Senators Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Susan Collins of Maine and Bill Cassidy of Louisiana will be the only remaining Republicans who voted to convict Mr Trump.
The House outcome is set to have broad ramifications for foreign policy, adding further doubt to continued US aid to Ukraine in its defence against the all-out Russian invasion. Many Republicans in the House have opposed additional military aid for Ukraine.
However, the House Republican majority looks like it will be razor-thin and intra-party divisions threaten unified actions. The current slim majority was beset by ideological squabbles that enabled a few conservative rebels to scuttle legislation with any hint of compromise with Democrats. In the end, that often forced party leaders to make bigger concessions to Democrats to gain votes from the opposition. – Bloomberg.