President-elect Donald Trump learned the limits of his power Thursday in the form of a disastrous day on Capitol Hill, a new analysis contended.
And that was never the plan for the incoming president who vowed to install a loyalist within the Justice Department. But Sen. J.D. Vance’s inability to sell Trump’s pick of former Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) to Republican senators showed the president-elect he can't bully his party to simply do his bidding, according to Politico.
The Gaetz episode gave Trump "a brutal reality check,” according to the report. “The implosion of Matt Gaetz’s nomination for attorney general reveals the president-elect isn’t all-powerful despite the Republican trifecta in government.”
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While Trump insisted Tuesday he wasn't reconsidering Gaetz as his choice for attorney general, the incoming president faced resistance from Senate Republicans from the start, showcasing there are still checks on his power.
“Though Republicans will control both chambers of Congress, the resistance from Senate Republicans to Gaetz’s nomination proved that there are still some checks on Trump — no matter how limited — that can hold, despite fear on the left that he will squeeze Congress into submission, get carte blanche from the conservative-dominated Supreme Court and enact his agenda at will,” Politico reported.
While some cautioned against reading too much into Gaetz's unique situation, others warned that Trump's ability to push through controversial nominees may indicate unchecked power.
“In fact, if Trump is able to muscle through his other controversial nominees, the lesson may be that Trump is more unchecked by Congress than ever, said Edward Foley, an Ohio State University constitutional law expert,” according to the report.
