A blue wave takes over U.S. politics; what does this mean?
The United States midterms took place on Nov. 3, ending in a result that flipped the power structure of the country’s legislative branch. According to NBC News, the Democrats needed to flip four Republican seats in the Senate and House of Representatives to gain a majority, meaning seats that were previously Republican are now held by a Democrat. Democrats flipped eight in the Senate, giving the Party 55 seats, and flipped 42 in the House, leaving its current tally of seats at 251. NBC News estimates Democrats will end with 259 seats once final counts are delivered. Not all elections were called the same night, specifically close races, such as the race for senator in Mississippi which CNN only projected on Nov. 11 would go to Democrat Scott Colom.
While the results are a milestone for the Democratic Party, this win does not mean instant change in United States governance. In an interview with The Argosy, James Devine, a professor in the political science and international relations department at Mt.A, said, “there are a lot of things that [Donald] Trump can do where he does not need the congress.”
The primary scope of what Congress (consisting of both the Senate and House) can do is to represent people in their state or congressional district and create the nation’s laws through the forming of bills. While the Democrats winning both the Senate and House will allow them to pass new bills, these can be vetoed by Trump. In an interview with the New York Post, Trump said he is prepared to become “Mr. Veto” if the Democrats do not work with him.
This does not mean that the Senate and Congress do not have any power, and can not make any change. One of the main strategies the Democrats can deploy is investigations. “We are going to start seeing investigations into almost everything,” Devine said. “There will be investigations in terms of corruption.” This corruption means using government resources for their own gain. Devine suspects these investigations will not only cover Donald Trump, but his family too. Devine noted this could include the war in Iran and Israel’s role in it. Investigations may also cover the cost of products within the United States.
Bills are not the only area in which the powers of Congress are limited, despite its jurisdiction. The president needs to consult the Senate before making any trade deals, but Trump is able to continue to put tariffs on countries as he sees fit through executive orders. These executive orders cannot be vetoed by the Democrats, as they do not have a two-thirds majority in either the House or Senate.
Trump needs congressional approval to declare war, but given the War Powers Measures Act, a president could “use military power, and then go back to Congress and explain why afterwards,” Devine said. Devine noted this could allow Trump to declare war on countries seen as an enemy, as it could be seen as unpatriotic for Democrats to stop him, limiting their power through the use of politics.
In terms of presidential impeachment, the Democrats could start the process. However, being under 67 seats – a two-thirds majority – they would not be able to impeach and remove Trump from office unless Republicans joined the motion.
With the increase of Democratic representation in the Senate and Congress, the Democratic representatives can make life more difficult for Trump. Devine noted Trump will face a hostile Senate, compared to his previous “free hand to do what he wants without anyone pushing back.”
Devine said while Democrats are celebrating, they “should be concerned that people are gonna think you are able to control everything, and when you do not, they are going to blame you for it.”