Going into the next congressional term, the GOP will have control of the White House, the Senate and the House of Representatives. However, the House majority is slim and Democrats are ready to use that to their advantage, according to one lawmaker.
“I think we’re gonna be in good shape to exploit some of the conflicts and contradictions going on within the Republican conference,” said Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) this week during an interview with Jon Stewart on “The Daily Show” when asked what will be different for Democrats during the new session.
CNN reported last week that House Speaker Mike Johnson “will oversee narrowest House majority in nearly 100 years,” this term. Republicans are expected to hold 219 seats to Democrats’ 215.
Raskin mentioned the majority that seemed apparent during the November election has been whittled down by the departure of former representative Matt Gaetz and the expected departure of others. He noted that Indiana GOP Rep. Victoria Spartz has also said she won’t be working with House Republicans during the upcoming session. She said in a statement that she plans to support President-elect Donald Trump and the new Department of Government Efficiency to be led by billionaire businessmen Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy).
Tension between Musk and what Raskin termed the tech and business “oligarchs” who supported Trump in the recent election and his traditional MAGA base (described by Raskin as “enraged, nativist, racist”) has bubbled up as the nation prepares for the next four years with Trump as president.
Last month, the two factions butted heads on X – the social media platform owned by Musk – over immigration.
“Fortunately, they’re more divided than they are even hateful of us,” Raskin told Stewart. “They can’t get together to get anything done.”
Even selecting the House Speaker caused significant drama within the party, both last month and when Johnson was first selected to replace Kevin McCarthy in 2023. Still, the GOP will hold majorities and Stewart reminded Raskin that, in the wake of a presidential election that saw the Democrats replace their candidate with just months to go before election day, it isn’t clear who is in charge of their party.
He asked Raskin if the Democrats are planning to re-create the party ahead of the midterms. To that, the Maryland rep said that Democrats are ready to “organize for massive Democratic victory in 2026,” and that he expects Americans to reject what Republicans plan to bring to the table because “they’re headed is so extreme.”
At the same time, Raskin said that young Americans, particularly young men who turned out for Trump during the election, are “being targeted” by the right on social media. Going forward, he said Democrats have to find new, creative ways to reach young voters.
In other congressional news, The Hill also reported this week that House Democrats issued a report from refuting GOP claims that former Republican Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) acted inappropriately by being in touch with star witness Cassidy Hutchinson. Per this new report, the Republican report amounts to defamation.
While on the campaign trail, Trump made headlines for saying: “Let’s put her with a rifle standing there with nine barrels shooting at her, okay?” regarding his claims that Cheney was too pro-war.
In addition to acrimony between Democrats and Republicans in Washington, the two parties are squaring off in some state legislatures as well. For example, Axios Twin Cities reported that Minnesota House Democrats pledged Monday to boycott the start of the state’s legislative session if Republicans attempt to use their temporary 67-66 majority to take control of the chamber and elect GOP Leader Lisa Demuth as speaker. That session starts Jan. 14.