Congress
Schumer: ‘The days of Trump’s supplicant Senate are over’
Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer is vowing that his party will use control of the chamber next year to try to end the Iran war, launch investigations and act as a legislative stumbling block for President Donald Trump.
Speaking to reporters on the latest stop of his 12-hour victory lap Wednesday, Schumer said that he has not yet spoken to Trump since Democrats won the Senate majority Tuesday night, but warned that “the days of Trump’s supplicant Senate are over.”
“Whenever Trump defies the will of the American people or the law, we will launch investigations, take him to court, and entangle him in legislative razor wire,” said Schumer, who is on track to be majority leader in the next congress.
Asked if he thinks Democrats will be able to work with Trump, Schumer added: “We are going to work hard to drive costs down with the president or without him. Period.”
The New York Democrat sidestepped a question about whether the election results were a mandate to impeach Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth — he said that “everyone will make their own interpretation of what it meant in terms of Hegseth” — but vowed that Democrats “are going to end the war.”
Democrats have tried to limit Trump’s military actions against Iran through war powers votes, but they’ve also looked at ways of leveraging government funding bills to place restrictions on the president; an annual defense policy bill has also been held in limbo for months over the issue.
Ultimately, Democrats will still need help from Republicans to pass most legislation, and Trump can always veto a bill that gets to his desk that would attempt to hem him in. Schumer, however, was bullish Wednesday about Democrats’ impending power.
“We have some Republicans already who have joined us in ending the war,” he said, “and the founding fathers had the power of the purse as one of the ways of deterring a president who does war without the consent of the American people.”
He also said that while Democrats will launch investigations into the Trump administration because “there was such rampant corruption,” that it wouldn’t be their top focus.
“We’re not going to take our eye off the ball. Number one, reducing costs, ending corruption,” Schumer said.
President Donald Trump said Wednesday he’s staying out of the race for House minority leader.
Sitting Majority Leader Steve Scalise and Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan have both announced runs following Speaker Mike Johnson’s decision to step aside, and both are close allies of Trump. The president told reporters he’s not choosing sides.
“We’ll stay out of it,” he said, then briefly mentioning Jordan. “But the speaker was fantastic. The people under him were fantastic. All good people. I guess right now you have two candidates, right?”
Rep. Richard Hudson (R-N.C.), the chair of the GOP’s House campaign arm, conceded his race for reelection, according to two people with direct knowledge of the matter, granted anonymity to share not yet public details.
The Associated Press has not yet called the race. But the decision is a stark sign of just how far the country shifted left: The person responsible for getting House Republicans elected this cycle is accepting defeat in a district President Donald Trump carried by almost 16 points just two years ago.
He called Democrat Richard Ojeda to concede, the two people said.
This would be the first time ever a chair of the National Republican Congressional Committee has lost in a general election. In 1992, the NRCC chair lost in a primary.
North Carolina Republicans felt the pressure leading up to Election Day, with worries about a massive win by Roy Cooper in the Senate race likely endangering a slew of once safely red House seats like Hudson’s and others.
Ojeda, a veteran who lost a Senate race in West Virginia in 2020, was drastically outspent by Hudson. But in a sign that Democrats thought they could flip the seat, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee threw $130,000 behind Ojeda last week.
Rep. Lisa McClain of Michigan asked GOP colleagues Wednesday to reelect her as Republican conference chair, the No. 3 House leadership position, promising to “get back in the fight” after Tuesday’s sweeping losses.
In a letter obtained first by POLITICO, she said Republicans must “drive the national conversation” and “make sure the American people know what’s at stake” as Democrats take control of the House.
“We must also make sure every member has the tools and platforms to aggressively take the fight to the Democrats,” she wrote. “I know our members, understand the challenges facing their districts, and have built relationships and a communications operation ready to serve you immediately.”
McClain has held the conference chair position, which is traditionally focused on party messaging and internal member organizing, for the past two years. With Speaker Mike Johnson stepping aside as Republicans move into the minority, staying as chair would mean taking a step up the party leadership ladder.
“The Chair’s job is not to build a personal brand. It’s to elevate yours,” she said in the letter. “I represent a deep-red district in a purple state and understand that what works in one district may not work in another. I’ll make sure you have the resources, messages, and platforms to reach your constituents and bring your voice to a national audience.”
No other candidate has formally emerged but some Republicans want Rep. Kat Cammack of Florida to challenge McClain. The two ran against each other for the position in 2024, with McClain more than doubling Cammack’s support.
Republicans have until noon Friday to declare their candidacy. Leadership elections are scheduled to begin Tuesday after Congress returns to Washington.
McClain raised over $8.5 million this cycle, with $3.5 million given to other House Republicans.
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