Midterm wins give Democrats power to reject nominees and probe the administration
Chuck Schumer, the soon-to-be Senate majority leader, said Democrats will block President Donald Trump from putting a “rightwinger” on the US Supreme Court, and that his party will not confirm “any crappy nominees” to the Supreme Court, the lower courts, or Trump’s cabinet.
“The bottom line is we’re not going to allow a rightwinger on the court,” Schumer said in an interview with the Associated Press. He said he anticipates Democrats will have enough power to reject Trump’s nominees and halt other policies.
The pledge previewed how Democratic leaders intend to wield their power when the new Congress is sworn in, after midterm wins that returned both chambers to Democratic control. Democrats have secured 54 Senate seats — a number that would rise to 56 if their candidates prevail in Mississippi and Alaska, where races have not been called but Democrats lead — and will hold at least 253 House seats after flipping more than 40 seats, as of Friday morning.
The Supreme Court is one area where Democrats plan to push back heavily. Four justices are in their 70s, and the two most conservative members — Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito — are the oldest on the court, at 78 and 76, respectively. Trump named three justices during his first term — Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett — cementing a 6-3 conservative majority that has rejected many, though not all, of the challenges to his second-term policies. Separately, the Supreme Court paused an appellate order against the Federal Communications Commission’s guidance extending discounted broadcast advertising rates for candidates to political parties and joint fundraising committees.
Should either Clarence Thomas or Samuel Alito retire, six weeks remain of a Republican Senate that could in theory confirm a Trump appointee to the high court. Thomas has not indicated that he plans to retire. Alito denied rumors that he was retiring and reiterated his plans to Fox News on Thursday, telling the network he intends to stay on the court for the remainder of the term, regardless of the Democrats’ sweeping win.
Beyond the courts, some Democrats are planning to launch investigations into Trump and members of his administration. Robert Garcia, the soon-to-be chair of the House oversight committee, warned Republicans on Tuesday evening to “lawyer up”.
Others are preparing legislation Democrats promised voters, and party leaders will have wide margins in both chambers to pass key priorities such as restoring Medicaid cuts from Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill” and halting funding for the war in Iran. Trump has indicated that he plans to veto bills he does not agree with.
Republicans, meanwhile, have spent the days since the election examining why they lost so badly. JD Vance, the vice-president, acknowledged that the war in Iran caused widespread frustrations. Ted Cruz, a senator from Texas, said Trump’s tariffs drove up costs. Ron DeSantis, the governor of Florida, said the party’s vote on the Epstein files reflected poorly on Republicans.
Trump has largely directed his attention to construction projects in Washington. On Friday, a federal judge blocked work from beginning on his planned triumphal arch for 14 days, one day after the commission gave the project the go-ahead.
The president has showcased the projects at a series of press conferences. On Monday, the day before the elections, he unveiled the latest upgrades to the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, a project that has been in and out of headlines over the past year after administration officials sought to blame “vandals” for its failures; a Trump-appointed US attorney later determined the failures were the result of poor work. On Wednesday, the day after Republicans lost the majority in Congress, Trump held another press conference to show off the latest renovation of the White House ballroom, speaking about the project for more than 20 minutes and addressing his party’s losses only when reporters asked him directly.
On Thursday, after further losses in Congress, Trump held a press conference in the Oval Office to sign a proclamation preventing future presidents from changing the design of the Oval Office and Cabinet Room. “I just thought it was very important that nobody be allowed to come and take it down and try and do something with it,” Trump said.