Trump kicks Congress to the curb, with some protest from Republicans
8 mins read

Trump kicks Congress to the curb, with some protest from Republicans

Congress adopted a law that turned off Tiktok, and President Trump flowed it. Congress demanded advance notification to remove general inspectors, and the Trump administration fired them in place. Congress approved trillion dollars in expenditure, and Trump ordered it frozen unless the federal programs that had it passed his ideological lacquer tests.

The new administration quickly shows that it does not intend to be bound by legal niceties or traditional controls and balances in its relation to Congress. It has worried Democrats but have drawn and approval from Republicans, who say that Trump delivers what he promised even if it comes at the expense of the congress authority and constitutional status as a compound government branch.

“President Trump clearly ran because he became a sturgeon, and he will continue to do so,” said Senator John Barrasso from Wyoming, No. 2 -Republican.

Trump also clearly goes into a test of what he can cow a congress under total Republican control of swallowing. Early indications are that there will be a lot.

In addition to his urgency to catch the power of the purse away from legislators, he has sent up a harvest of cabinet nominated Who would never have passed the Muster on Capitol Hill beforeDared Republicans to either support them or risk the movement of the movement behind Trump. All but a few have snapped in line.

He has offered a government -wide payment to attract millions of federal workers to resign, with a barely recognition that Congress may want to say in such a drastic reshaping of the government as it finances.

“He is testing his own authority,” Senator Kevin Cramer, the Republican of North Dakota, said about the president’s anti-congress flex. “He receives some guidance that presidents have more authority than they have traditionally used.”

In fact, the administration’s position is that in the case of the executive branch, the White House has absolute power to do what it wants even if it is Congress that gives money for the entire government with specific instructions on how it should be spent.

“White House’s lawyer’s office believes this is within the President’s power to do so, and therefore he does,” Karoline Leavitt, White House Press Secretary, told reporters this week on the president’s directive to pause federal funding approved by Congress, which was later blocked temporarily by a federal judge.

The original order from the Office of Management and Budget was repealed on Wednesday following an extensive confusion over its impact, high warnings from the Democrats that important services were at risk and a lawsuit that resulted in a court decision to stop it.

The turnaround was definitely not because the congressional republicans had complained that the president exceeded his authority. On the contrary.

“I’m too happy to have a president of the White House who delivers his promise to get our tax house in order,” Representative Tom Emmer from Minnesota, No. 3 -Republican, told reporters at the house Gop Retreat held at Trump’s Doral Golf Resort near Miami when he and others defended the president’s plan.

The absence of Pushback from Congress Republicans is a strong recognition that Trump is great and responsible and controls their political future while carrying out an agenda that they believe that Republican voters demanded. It is a clear interruption from the past, when legislators from both parties would greatly defend the power of the congress – especially the expenditure power granted in Article 1 of the Constitution – regardless of who was in the White House.

Other top republicans tried to minimize imports of expenditure. They noted that President Joseph R. Biden JR had moved quickly after the inauguration in 2021 to keep money to complete the first Trump administration’s border wall. This measure was much less sweeping than the new Trump scheme and was later validated as within the administration’s power of the government’s liability office.

“I think any of these financing decisions are not uncommon for a new administration,” said Senator John Thune, South Dakota Republican and majority leader. “They pause, look at where money is spent, how they are spent and ensure that they are spent wisely and well and in accordance with the plans of this administration.”

The Democrats were apoplectic and accused the administration of a serious abuse of power.

“If this stands, Congress may as well interrupt, as the consequences of this are the CEO can choose and choose which congress proposals they will execute,” said Senator Angus King, the independence from Maine as Caucus with Democrats.

The administration’s hasty turn heard Democrats who have been back on the heels since the opening of the congress, with limited alternatives to prevent the White House given their minority status in both chambers. But they expect Trump to continue in what they depicted as a lawless effort to undermine the will of the congress and intend to protest in every way they can.

“Makes no mistakes,” said Senator Patty Murray in Washington, the best Democrat in the grant committee, “The struggle is far from over.”

A leading Republican, Senator Susan Collins from Maine, noted that a mechanism existed for Trump, in conjunction with Congress, to “reprogram” expenses that the White House did not like, although so far there are some signs that the administration wants to take the potentially time -consuming and controversial approach.

“It is not as if there is no process if it has been found during the year that money must be redistributed within a department,” said Collins, chairman of the expenditure order. “But it requires congressional approval, as it should.”

The White House met mild two -party resistance against his decision to suddenly shoot several inspectors general from various agencies. Senators Charles E. Grassley, the Republican in Iowa and a long -term advocate to strengthen inspectors General, and Richard J. Durbin, Democrat in Illinois, joined and wrote him and asked him to account for why he had done the burn without the necessary 30 – Day announcement to Congress and accompanying justification.

“Although IG is not immune from committing documents that require them to remove, and they can be removed by the president, the law must be followed,” the letter said.

But their foundation was thrown aside, both in the White House and by other Republicans.

“This is a lot about nothing,” Emmer said at CNBC when he dismissed the notification requirements as insignificant details. “The US president has the complete and absolute right to decide whether or not these people will continue with the administration.”

Other Republicans characterized the scream over the Trump administration’s actions as an excessive reaction to a new white house that got the foot.

“This is an ongoing work,” said Senator Jim Risch, Republican in Idaho. “Everyone takes a deep breath, stay calm.”

It seems doubtful that calm will settle at any time soon. But it certainly seems that any challenge for the Trump administration’s efforts to erode the power of congress does not come from Republicans at Capitol Hill, but from Democrats, the states and the courts.

“I would be surprised if Congress started a trial or asked for a stay,” Mr. Cramer, North Dakota senator. “But there will be many others who will do.”

Catie Edmondson Contributions reporting from Miami.