President Joe Biden said, “Good night” a day after the midterm elections, but he still doesn’t know for sure which party will control Congress. He has a lot of work to do, though.
Republicans look to have won or are in the lead in enough races to give them a narrow majority in the House of Representatives, but a run-off election in Georgia in December could decide who controls the Senate.
Even if Republicans only win the House by the narrowest of margins, the balance of power in the nation’s capital is about to change after two years of unified Democratic control.
Here are four real effects that the next two years will have on American politics.
The Dangerous Road Ahead For Biden
At a press conference held the day after the midterm elections, Mr Biden claimed moral victory while acknowledging that actual victories were not always the case. The predictions of a Republican wave that would carry them to a large majority in the House and a multi-seat advantage in the Senate did not materialise, which led him to say that the Democrats had a “good night.”
One reason for this is that the predictions of a Republican wave failed to materialise. However, a Republican majority in either chamber of Congress will present Mr Biden with political obstacles that he has been able to sidestep during his first two years in office.
Is he able to maintain his poise in the face of a flurry of inquiries by the congressional? How does he plan to manage disagreements over the budget that could lead to a shutdown of the government? If he decides to run for re-election in two years, will he have the ability to reach any kind of legislative accords that he can use as a platform for his campaign?
The majority of first-term presidents experience electoral setbacks approximately halfway through their terms in office. Some politicians have overcome far more major setbacks than Biden did and still managed to win reelection for another term in government.
During his post-election press conference, the President stated to the reporters present that he still had every intention of running for re-election and that he may make his official decision as early as the beginning of the following year.
After 50 years in public office, he will be running one final campaign, and how he responds to the obstacles that lie ahead in the next months could go a long way toward defining what type of odds he will face in that race.
The End Of Joe Biden’s Political Agenda
Joe Biden and the Democrats were able to execute a pretty significant agenda during their two years in government. This plan included massive spending on the environment, healthcare, and other social programmes.
All of that would come to an end with even the narrowest of victories for the Republicans.
There is a possibility of working together; for instance, Republicans and Democrats did work together to pass legislation regulating firearms and investing in technology this year, as well as infrastructure spending the year before. On the other hand, significant liberal demands about abortion, education, and voting rights will be rendered moot by this outcome.
The Republican party has its agenda, which focuses on securing the border, reducing spending on law enforcement, making cutbacks to the budget, and extracting fossil fuels. But even if Republicans win control of both chambers of Congress, Democrats will still be able to prevent legislation from being passed by utilising the filibuster rule in the Senate and Mr Biden’s veto power in the White House.
The upcoming years of the 116th and 117th Congresses will be characterised by legislative paralysis.
Republicans Get The Right To Investigate
The Democrats have been in control of the government for the past two years, which has resulted in a comprehensive investigation of the attack that occurred on January 6, 2021, on the United States Capitol, as well as hearings on topics such as abortion, healthcare, and voting rights. If Republicans win control of legislative committees, there will be a dramatic shift in the priorities.
Conservative members of the House of Representatives have already committed to investigating the business ties that Joe Biden’s son Hunter has with China. In addition to this, they want to investigate the immigration policy of the Biden administration, the reasons behind the United States’ withdrawal from Afghanistan, and the beginnings of the coronavirus outbreak in China.
Review of presidential nominations to positions on the federal judiciary is the responsibility of the Senate Judiciary Committee. Over the past two years, the Democratic Party has established a new high mark for the number of new judges who have been given lifetime appointments.
It is reasonable to anticipate that the process of confirming Mr Biden’s candidates will come to a complete halt if Republicans also seize control of the US Senate. If a seat on the Supreme Court becomes vacant, there is a strong possibility that it will stay that way until after the next presidential election.
Possible Shutdowns Of The Government
The United States was given a two-year reprieve from the game of chicken that has led to shutdowns of the government and has brought the country dangerously close to defaulting on its national debt when the Democrats took control of Congress. That is going to come to an end.
Already, several Republicans, including Congressman Kevin McCarthy, who is in line to become speaker of the House if Republicans win control of the chamber, are threatening to coerce Democrats into agreeing to significant cuts to the federal budget. Already, Representative Kevin McCarthy is making threats to get his Democratic colleagues to consent to substantial cuts in the federal budget.
The United States has never been in default on any of its debts. Nevertheless, the inability of Congress to pass spending legislation on an annual basis has led to an increase in the frequency of partial shutdowns of the government. It occurred three times during the administration of Donald Trump and once during the administration of Barack Obama.
It is quite likely that there will be another shutdown of the government before the end of the following year if Republicans and Democrats are unable to reach an agreement on a fundamental framework for government spending.
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