It is clear that Donald Trump intends to take his management of the Executive Branch seriously. Foreign policy will be, for good or ill, Trump’s prerogative. However, what about the domestic agenda? Trump has a laundry list of campaign promises that he has no authority to carry out. The United States Congress controls the domestic agenda and Speaker Paul Ryan and Majority Leader Mitch McConnell control the United States Congress. So who’s the boss here?
Veto power isn’t control. A veto doesn’t write legislation, it doesn’t cross the T’s and dot the I’s. Frankly, I’m quite pleased that Presidents do not set domestic agendas. I voted for Congressman Wittman to be my voice in the United States Congress, not to serve as a Yes Man to Donald Trump. In fact, it is my hope that all our Congressmen will serve as checks and balances on President Trump; as they did on President Obama. Checks and Balances are good.
In reality, I expect that America’s domestic agenda will be controlled by Speaker Paul Ryan and his committee chairmen. Majority Leader Mitch McConnell will serve as a check to make sure that Ryan doesn’t bow to his conservative flank (which is likely to infuriate conservatives, myself more than others). President Trump will be given 100 days to sign off on popular legislation as Ryan and McConnell try to move common ground legislation first. After that, I believe Trump will be left to focus on executive management and foreign policy (and don’t worry snowflakes, he’s unlikely to start World War III).
I’m worried that President Trump’s biggest fans will believe that President Trump ought to wield even more power than President Obama tried to wield, primarily because populists have no respect for the Constitution, the rule of law, and our traditional checks and balances. President Obama’s skirting of the rules, as it were, has set precedent for Presidential mischief and it would not surprise me one bit if President Trump tries to go bigger and bolder than did Obama with his “pen and a phone” rhetoric. Frankly, this would highlight a profound erosion of our Constitutional Republic. I know populists get their panties most in bunch at the mere mention of the Constitution, but I believe that Speaker Ryan, and Senators Lee, Paul, and Cruz will remind the populists early and often that the Constitution ought to remain sovereign.
The question is, with such small minorities in the House and Senate, can conservative Congressmen and Senators serve as a check and balance on Ryan and McConnell? After the first 100 Days and a great deal of progress and enthusiasm as Republicans appear to be working together, does Ryan and McConnell begin to execute their own agenda? Will that agenda mirror the kind of corporatism we saw during the Bush Years, while President Bush’s focus was clearly overseas?
What does Trump do in response? It seems to me, given what we know of Donald Trump (the man), that he will use Ryan and McConnell, as well as Pelosi and Schumer’s agenda’s as leverage for making deals. The establishments of both political parties have a real chance of getting a great deal of what they desire so long as they give Trump some of what he wants as well. That’s the art of the deal, but will it serve the interest of the United States of America and Her economy?
Will Trump’s trillion-dollar infrastructure boondoggle merely be the beginning of a spend-happy federal government? Ryan and McConnell have already bailed on lawfully agreed-upon spending caps. Thrifty conservatives in the House and Senate do not have the muscle to stop Ryan or McConnell’s domestic agenda. If Trump doesn’t side with conservatives, then it seems reasonable to expect that conservatives will not have a seat at the table.
This is not pessimism. This morning I am simply documenting my own attempt to set my own expectations. I’m not convinced that this arrangement over the next two years will make me particularly unhappy. Real change happens at an excruciatingly slow pace. President Trump will do a far better job managing the Federal Government than did his predecessor. Speaker Ryan and Majority Leader McConnell can put their most conservative foot forward, given the fact that they will have a Republican President to sign legislation like a repeal of Obamacare and the passage of the REINS Act. The voters voted and kept Ryan and McConnell in power, and they voted to put President Trump in charge of the Executive, and we cannot undo, through wishing or principle, the will of the people.
For Constitutional Conservatives and Libertarians, the first 100 Days is our window for witnessing progress. After that, our expectations should be low. We should remain focused on sending more constitutionalists to the House and Senate, to the General Assembly, and to our local town council and Boards of Supervisors.
35 comments
[…] Can Trump control the domestic agenda? […]
Government can do nothing, and has no power without spending money.
Talk about tax reform? Let’s go back to Reaganomics. Reagan did Social Security reform. Raised the cost of Social Security, (the “fix”) and made it law so Congress can use the excess money in the Social Security trust for whatever they wanted, but law also says government has to pay the money back to the trust. And now, the government owes the Social Security Trust $2.8 TRILLION dollars. Everybody except me, says it cannot and will never be repaid. And now, the Republicans want to privatize SS. Sucked it dry, riped off the taxpayer, and now hand it over to Wall St. so government can blame the problem on anybody but themselves. The SS Trust was a cash cow for the government for many years. If the SS trust is not repaid, does this make Republican Reagan responsible for one of the largest tax increases in history?
And then Obama. Over a TRILLION dollars a year in QE, year after year, which was nothing but a bailout for Wall St. This and a another trillion dollar bailout for projects that were supposed to be “shovel ready”. And then the GM, Chrysler, and Wall St. bailouts on top of QE, and the Trillion dollar package for the “shovel ready” BS.
And then the other Bush 43’/Obama joint spending plans such as the $400 BILLION dollar F-35 “flying turd” job creation fiasco. We have no jobs, so government prints money and literally throws it out “there” to keep the entire country from collapsing, with projects like the F-35 “flying turd”. And $4 billion for a couple 747’s for the president. Obama set the tone for stopping this BS years ago when he cancelled the out of control spending to replace the presidential helicopters. Trump is just following Obama on this one.
Communist China has our jobs. Mexico has our jobs. Our government has subsidized Wall St. to build factories in communist China and Mexico. We have no southern border, and Mexico has basically become a “staffing agency” and “drug supplier” to the United States.
Trump will have to have money to do anything. Tax reform is apparently going to be the golden fascade, the “cash cow”,that Trump, Ryan, and McConnell have come up with to get the cash fast and to do everything that Obama wanted to do, but Republicans blocked.
Using your logic about domestic agenda, the Republicans are responsible for everything that has come out of Washington regarding domestic agenda (jobs/economy/healthcare) since 2010. Fascinating.
Trump stood on a podium at Carrier a few weeks ago, and said that companies who move outside the US are going to pay a 35% tariff to bring product back into the US. Now, did Carrier stop construction of its new factory in Mexico? Did Ford stop construction of its $1.6 BILLION dollar factory in Mexico?
No. And why didn’t they? Carrier was in the process of laying off 1300 workers at the same time Trump was talking about the 35% tariff.
I won’t feel any better relying on Ryan, Comstock and McConnell than I did relying on obama and pelosovsky and reidinsky!
I can only hope the GOP leadership in Congress is as generous to The Donald as they have been to the Obumbler regime over the past few years. I suspect they will have to be dragged kicking and screaming to do any true governmental reform, though.
As far as the infrastructure boondoggle goes, it depends upon how it is funded. If The Donald relies on private investment from the trillions of dollars stockpiled overseas that he is hoping to entice back to America through tax reform as some have suggested, perhaps it will not be as costly to the taxpayer as reported. Regardless, as someone that has a penchant for demanding things be done “on time & under budget,” I am looking forward to the next year of The Donald’s administration.
I predict The Donald will attack the problems of our country from unexpected angles, with far more success than the traditional big government ways that the “Swamp” is so used to doing business with. Stocking your cabinet full of extremely successful businessmen as The Donald has done so far, seems to be a smart first step.
I also predict it won’t be easy. Between the Lame Stream Media and the establishment types in Congress, our work is just beginning.
I think they are going to try to pass all the legislation they wanted to pass, but knew Obama wouldn’t sign.
I hope they pass all of the legislation that needs to be passed. The way they have allowed for RECORD tax revenues with those never ending deficits to go on over the past couple of years does not leave me with a whole lot of confidence in the GOP leadership.
Me neither. Not much confidence at all.
I’d be more worried about some of the Fat Cat Cabinet picks Trump has made.
Oddly, I’m not that worried about Trump’s Cabinet.
Realistically, one cannot go into Swamp City and burn it to the ground and expect to get anything done. His picks are people who know how to talk to other people, and they are largely people who can’t be bought off because they have enough money of their own. This too is an historic plus.
These are the best possible picks for the moment.
They are all very successful and experienced people. I take them seriously.
There is righteous anger focused on the GOP establishment by the Trump and GOP base. Trump knows how to tap into it to get things done. Stonewalling isn’t going to be an option for the likes of Ryan and McConnell as constituents will no longer tolerate excuses or delays.
In my experience, people fall asleep after elections. I hope you’re right.
The situation is too dangerous to fall asleep. Western Europe is combusting and it increasingly looks like war. Maybe Trump can produce miracles – Reagan did, but he had a less combustible situation to deal with than radical Islamic terrorism and expansion. The Russians are not fools. One cannot say that about fanatics.
I think Trump will try to lead from out front as opposed to leading from behind, but I think he’ll focus on managing the government and on foreign policy, leaving legislation up to Ryan and McConnell – for the most part.
Plan to sit back, eat some popcorn, drink some wine, https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/7cb64c43eab67e6812e17b85572d4f16fca10595accfe6def27087475ea47ddb.jpg and watch what happens.
./.,
So Congress sets the agenda, and the President manages the Executive branch ?? That sounds like grade school civics class, but it hasn’t worked that way for at least 80 years, since Roosevelt. In reality, the President sets the agenda; not Ryan and not McConnell. If you have any doubts, just ask Obama how he handled the Ryan and McConnell agenda. Trump will use the bully pulpit to get what he wants from this Republican Congress, to even greater effect.
But I do agree that there is a certain kind of Republican who can find a backbone only when they argue with other Republicans. When they argue with Democrats, they are eager to find agreement, at almost any cost. These Republicans view themselves as above all that ugly partisanship because they are so much wiser than the rest of us riffraff, on both sides.
I’ve had enough of that shtick, and so has the electorate. I do worry that McConnell and Ryan will be eager to once again find some way to distance themselves from Trump, so they can posture as independent thinkers and get that adoring press on their side, rather than help with the tough job ahead against serious Democrat opposition. If they are wise, they’ll argue in private, but strongly support Trump in public, though that takes a level of maturity not often found in politicians.
Any evidence that they are wise? Anything at all? 😉
You are funny, you my friend, are one of their “bitches”.
They’ll be glad to hear that.
Hilarious!
We do have a president who does something other than talk talking points within the crucible of language created by elites and their propaganda change agents. Because Trump spoke outside the script, the whole world has it confirmed that neither of the Bush boys are a smart as their dad and maybe less so than a rock. And a lot of other candidates who were on the primary stage are now seen by the many as being political hacks or outright cartoons without much in the way of credibility. In the course of election 2016, perceptions are now irrevocably changed.
Another thing Trump will do is to select key obstructing leaders and knock them over one at a time, and do it publicly on Twitter, in the media, and in the Alternative Media. This is what he did in the primary. And Donald did it so smoothly that most folks did not even realized that a divide to conquer strategy was smartly being effected.
And oh yes, given that the American military virtually mutinied against the Jacobin Factions (Obama, Clinton for two, and has no love for the Republican establishment version thereof) … and moreover conspicuously backed Trump through the intelligence agencies, there is likely a consensus in place that there is no going back. Trump as allies in addition to the backing of the people. A game of hardball is in play.
I think Congress and the President will be on the same page on a lot of the agenda, and all indications that they will be focused initially on tax reform and reworking the ACA law. I also think they’ll have the votes for just about anything they want to do – there are a LOT of Democrats in the Senate who are potentially on the chopping block in the next election (figuratively speaking, of course) and they will be reluctant to make waves for fear of all the “Wisconsins” in their districts. In my opinion, it’s time for something good to happen for a change. I know Republicans are used to never getting anything they want, but maybe its time to start imagining a future where, at least for a while, you get exactly what you’ve dreamed about.
“Elections have consequences” – Barack Obama
I think it is going to be a mixed bag – do you think this 1 Trillion Dollar Infrastructure bill Chuck Schumer is all excited about is “conservative”? Looks like they are going to continue to break the bank.
Democrats are only on the chopping block if Trump gets results. It’s all about jobs and the economy.
wow calling Ryan & McConnell both conservatives is like calling obama a moderate
neither one of them has shown any back bones in opposition to whatever obama wanted.
I know what they call themselves,– but– their actions don’t prove it.
another reason Trump beat out everyone the republican party put up against him..
lip service doesn’t work.
— the republican party owns part of that 10 trillion dollars that this country borrowed.
— the republican party owns the open borders we all suffer under.
personally– those two are part of the swamp that needs draining– if they are what is known as conservatives, they hide it much too well– we all know that they opposed Trump
— and I can only hope that the states they represents, watch them work with DONALD TRUMP our next president, or throw them out
but that’s only me, my opinion, my thoughts, my frustration with what we had all of these past 8 years
I didn’t say that they were conservative – I said that they’d put their most conservative foot forward.
Steven Brodie! Saying that ‘they’d put their most conservative foot forward’ is saying that they have a conservative foot to put forward, when in reality these folks a Globalist Marxist Confederates in Conservative Drag. Which is to say, Fakes and Pretenders.
Less fog, more harsh clear light!
Well, by most conservative I meant “least corporatist”. 🙂
In the future, I’ll have to consult my Aberrational Word Use Dictionary when reading S. B. Tucker indites. 🙂
Ha ha, that probably wouldn’t hurt.
If you think SBT considers Ryan and McConnell to be conservative, you likely have never read a single thing he’s ever written.
I know, right?
Yeah! Say it like it is! And amen!