Secretary of State and National Security Advisor, Marco Rubio, said it very succinctly. The Commander in Chief has extraordinary powers on the foreign stage. This is true, but it also must be noted that Congress, the elected officials that represent the population of the United States better than any other part of the government, also have enormous sway over the implementation of policies of the President of the United States.
The President can decide to attack or to apply crippling sanctions on Iran as he has done in the last year. But A Democrat -controlled Congress can put the squeeze on federal spending and use aggressive lawfare policies to obsessively supboena a sitting President under the guise of defending the Constitution. The odds of a Democrat majority in Congress not harassing President Trump are slim to none. President Trump’s 2nd term has been one of the most stark examples of leadership that largely ignores the opposition. Barack Obama’s two terms were similar – but from the Democrat side.
The way President Trump has governed may be legal, but it is risky if he loses Congress in the mid-terms. If he loses the Senate also, it will be a treacherous two years for President Trump.
In that situation, he will be dangerous. Odds are that President Trump will move to implement a massive attack to destroy Iran between the mid-term elections and January 2027. Netanyahu certainly is encouraging an attack to at least push back the Iranian threat by another few years.
Rubio, Hegseth, and the rest of the Trump administration will also have a rather miserable last two years to look forward to. One can expect a few defections from the Trump administrations as more and more politicians will not want to be associated with President Trump.
But if Congress does not fall decisively to the Democrats, expect President Trump to spend the next two years gloating and cementing his legacy as the ultimate truthteller and risk-taker who outsmarted the media, the nay-sayers, etc…He will also probably be the main decision-maker as to who will take over the Republican Party leadership in 2028. If he loses power, every future candidate will do anything to avoid being branded as a continuation of President Trump’s legacy.
These midterm elections – as they usually do – will have an enormous impact on the United States and the rest of the world for many years to come.