The Patriot Post® · Herding the GOP Cats
President Donald Trump and Senate Republicans aren’t exactly getting along right now.
Earlier this week, things seemed to be going so well. The Senate and the House both overwhelmingly passed the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act, which President Trump favored and promised would help lower housing costs for more Americans. As I wrote on Tuesday, I’m underwhelmed by the specifics, but at least it had wide bipartisan support.
Then, around 10:30 yesterday morning, Trump announced on Truth Social, “Today’s Housing News Conference and Signing is hereby cancelled until such time as we pass the desperately needed SAVE AMERICA ACT, which I consider to be a National Emergency. Thank you for your attention to this matter! President DJT”
The president didn’t veto the bill, which would have been a waste of time given its veto-proof margins of 85-5 in the Senate and 358-32 in the House. And because Congress is still in session, it’ll become law after 10 days even without his signature. So what’s his play?
Well, for one thing, I think he’ll still sign it — after a bit of theatrical chest-thumping and irate demands. Ten days from yesterday, by the way, is … July 4. What better day for him to proclaim victory over housing prices and the restoration of the American Dream than America’s 250th birthday? Vintage Trump.
He’s also forcing attention away from the Reflecting Pool drama and the Iran MOU frustrations and toward an issue that more than 80% of Americans support — namely, election-integrity measures like voter ID. It’s literally an 80/20 issue, and Senate Democrats are obstructing the bill. They should be made to vote on it, made to look bad, made to look like they stand against 80% of Americans, and then held accountable come November.
Unfortunately, that’s not what Donald Trump is doing. Instead, he’s fighting Republicans.
That’s not entirely without reason. Yes, Senate Democrats are the ones blocking the SAVE Act from reaching the 60-vote threshold. But Senate Republicans haven’t exactly exhibited profiles in courage while “deliberating” the bill in recent months. In short, they’ve done almost nothing to pass it.
And on housing, at the moment, it seems all Trump has done is hand Democrats another campaign ad.
“The bipartisan housing bill was an accomplishment that the American people want, are proud of, and need,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said on the Senate floor. “Trump runs away from it. He’s not going to sign it. He’s petulant, he’s angry, and he looks ridiculous canceling it just two hours before he’s supposed to sign it.”
Schumer wasn’t alone. “I just, I don’t have any idea” why he wouldn’t sign it, Senator Elizabeth Warren said. “This just doesn’t make any sense, other than whatever it is he wants to do, it’s a complete indifference to the cost squeeze on American families and to genuine efforts to do something about it.” She added, “You know, he could be over here trying to claim a victory lap, and instead he’s saying no, no, he doesn’t want anything to do with it.”
Here’s where the media fact-checkers should chime in to clarify that’s not what Trump said. I won’t hold my breath.
Trump was ready even before he canceled the signing ceremony. “The Elizabeth ‘Pocahontas’ Warren centric housing bill, which is of minor importance compared to lower interest rates, and even FISA, pales in comparison to passing THE SAVE AMERICA ACT,” he posted yesterday morning. “That is what Americans, both Dumocrats, Republicans, and everyone else, care about.”
In terms of importance, he’s spot on, given the Democrats’ efforts to undermine election integrity.
Shortly after canceling the ceremony, Trump had lunch with Senate Republicans and aired several grievances. I mentioned that Trump was turning attention away from Iran, but that lasted all of about two hours. At the lunch, he blasted Bill Cassidy, Lisa Murkowski, and Rand Paul for voting with Democrats on a resolution pushing the commander-in-chief to remove U.S. troops from any action against Iran. Paul and Cassidy changed their votes after the rebuke.
That’s also vintage Trump. But so is his ability to gauge what Americans care about. According to a person briefed on the meeting, he made it plain: “At my rallies, no one cares about the housing bill. They’re falling asleep. But when I say SAVE America, I can’t get them to sit down.”
Trump has some justification for complaining that Senate Republicans are more interested in scolding him than in working on the SAVE Act. Murkowski has a point in saying, “If you don’t have the votes, sir, you don’t have the votes.” But Senate Majority Leader John Thune could be making life a lot harder for Democrats who oppose 80/20 legislation, and he’s not doing it.
In return, Trump has made life harder on Senate Republicans, defeating Bill Cassidy and John Cornyn in primaries, and now this week’s theatrics, including pushing again to — unwisely, in my estimation — “Terminate the Filibuster and approve” the SAVE Act.
The Republican Party has long resembled more a herd of cats than elephants, but the squabbles right now are something to behold. Trump may be underwater on his approval rating, but Congress is less popular than a root canal, and for good reason. Obviously, Trump is hoping to leverage all of that into a win or two.