Democrats are already drawing up battle plans ahead of January next year, when new members of Congress will be sworn in, and the U.S. legislature will have its first Democratic majority since 2023.
Reining in President Trump
President Donald Trump speaks to the press outside Air Force One Sunday, November 1, 2026, at Dubuque Regional Airport in Dubuque, Iowa. (Official White House Photo by Molly Riley)
President Donald J. Trump delivers remarks the day before the midterm elections, Monday, November 2, 2026, at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. (Official White House Photo by Joyce Boghosian)
“The days of the House of Representatives functioning like a wholly owned subsidiary of the Trump administration are over,” House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries told reporters after the Democrats’ midterm rout of the Republicans.
Jeffries, who would be the first Black House leader if his colleagues elect him to the post, added, “We don’t work for Donald Trump. We work for the American people.”
As it became clearer that the Democrats would take Congress, many high-profile figures seemed to relish the idea of holding the Trump administration to account.
On the night of November 3, Democratic California Representative Robert Garcia, who is set to become chair of the House Oversight Committee, posted on X, “LAWYER UP.” Democratic Oregon Senator Ron Wyden shared similar sentiments: “Subpoenas,” he posted on social media.
Wyden later said that he plans to investigate the Trump administration’s agreements with pharmaceutical firms on drug pricing.
Defiant Trump Unfazed, Touts New White House Ballroom
Speaking to reporters after the Democrats’ victory, Trump seemed unfazed by the prospect of working with a Democratic majority in both chambers of Congress.
Trump has never worked with a Democrat-controlled Congress — Congress was Republican-dominated in the first half of his first term, and split between the two parties during the second half.
He also enjoyed a unified conservative front in the legislature during the first two years of his current term.
A day after his party’s defeat, Trump took the media on a tour of the White House’s new ballroom, which is nearing completion.
The controversial new construction is estimated to cost more than $600 million.
As the president signed the last beam of the building before it was fitted into the structure, he touted the project as a “thing of beauty” and a part of his administration’s “beautified” Washington, D.C.
Trump said managing the construction was a “relaxing” exercise, and that he expects to “get along” with the Democrats in Congress.
Unless, he said, the opposition decides to “be destructive,” in which case the president said he would use the “power of the veto.” While Democrats hold the majority in Congress, their numbers fall short of the required two-thirds majority needed for Congress to overrule a presidential veto.
A First Half of Bad Decisions and Questionable Spending
The Republicans’ massive defeat in the midterms suggests that Americans — despite not being wholly impressed by Democrats — also see the need to keep the president in check.
A poll released in April this year indicated that more than half of Americans — 56% — opposed tearing down the East Wing of the White House to make room for the new ballroom, with only 28% saying they were okay with the construction. Rep. Garcia also said that an investigation into the donations for the ballroom construction was possible.
Donald Trump in NH Doing the Trump Dance
An Associated Press voter poll, released a day after the midterm elections, showed that two-thirds of voters felt that Trump did not have his priorities straight.
The poll also reported that seven out of ten Americans believed Congress was not doing enough to provide checks and balances against the executive branch’s decision-making.
The Iran War Was the Final Straw
Despite the devastating effects of Trump’s tariffs on American farmers, allegations of corruption and hidden connections with Russian oligarchs, and ICE’s alleged abuse of power, the final nail in the coffin for the Republicans was the war in Iran.
With gas prices reaching record highs before the midterm elections due to the conflict in the Middle East, Republicans are admitting that the decision to escalate America’s offensive in the region had much to do with their rout at the polls.
The most glaring admission came from Vice President JD Vance of all people, who said on X, “The reason we lost is the war [in Iran].”
“To the people who are pissed off and want to say, ‘I told you so’: you’re right, you did tell us so,” he added. “Everyone knows why we lost. And any honest conversation about where we go from here must start there.”
About the Author: Tim Ramos
Tim Ramos has written for various publications, corporations, and organizations, covering everything from finance, politics, travel, entertainment, and sports – in Asia and the U.S. for more than 10 years.
