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- The first months of 2019 have given rise to multiple vetoes from President Donald Trump, while Republicans are rebelling against the frustration caused by the policy of the administration.
- There have been several instances where the administration has been embarrassed by quarrels in the Senate.
- With massive trade talks on the table, it is likely that Trump and the Senate will fight more.
- Visit BusinessInsider.com for more stories.
WASHINGTON – The administration of President Donald Trump has continued to be volatile and chaotic in 2019, which should come as no surprise if we take into account the past few years.
But a development that began only in 2019 is an endless stream of embarrassment for the White House at the Senate exit.
There have been a host of resolutions reprimanding the President on signing policies held on the finish line by Republicans joining a united minority of Democrats seeking to resist the President at all costs. This has created headaches for the White House and could signal additional problems as the electoral cycle of 2020 heats up, in which Senate Republicans must defend 22 seats to retain their majority.
Read more:Republicans are furious with Trump's decision to withdraw his troops from Syria
As early as January, at the beginning of the new Congress, legislators were at a dead end. The longest partial closure of the government in US history has worn out senators on both sides of the political aisle. And the closure was entirely at the origin of Trump's decision, demanding the construction by Congress of the necessary funds for the construction of his long-promised border wall, otherwise he would sign nothing to reopen the government.
But Trump's stubbornness failed when he signed a resolution to reopen the penniless government to beef up security at the border. The Congress then convened a bicameral conference committee to put its affairs in order. Their conclusion gave Trump a fraction of what he claimed for the boundary wall.
This prompted Trump to act, declaring a national emergency to divert billions of dollars in additional military funding to add physical barriers along the border. This decision angered a large number of Republicans who protested against the use of executive power by former President Barack Obama over immigration issues.
After the Democrats drafted a resolution to end the declaration of national emergency, the Republicans joined the president to reprimand him. Vice President Mike Pence tried to negotiate an agreement to stave off a Republican uprising and deeply embarrass Trump. The plan was to convince Trump to pass a bill that would limit future use of emergency powers in the event of membership in Trump. But Trump rejected that and the rebellion snowballed.
Trump finally vetoed the resolution, but not after seeing more than half a dozen Republican senators vote for a resolution that tacitly accused him of abusing his authority.
The veto was the first of the Trump presidency and came relatively early in his term. For context, Obama has not issued any veto until the last year of his presidency.
Senate Republicans reprimand Trump after inaction on Jamal Khashoggi's assassination
Several days after the declaration of national emergency that covered Capitol Hill and the White House, Trump found himself in the same place, forced to reprimand a bipartisan group of senators angry at the policy of his government.
The Senate passed a resolution withdrawing US military support for the Saudi-led war in Yemen. This was partly due to genuine frustrations over the Saudi-led war, but another was due to the lax management of the Washington Post's murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.
Read more:US Senators angry at Saudi Arabia after a confidential briefing with CIA Director Gina Haspel
Senators were furious that the Trump government was not informing them properly about the circumstances surrounding Khashoggi's murder. In addition, the administration has maintained its close relations with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, widely regarded as the architect responsible for the assassination.
The resolution was passed easily by the Senate, with several Republicans joining all the Democrats. Trump vetoed the resolution later in April, adding another to his record.
More fights are on the horizon
The Trump agenda is largely based on the development of its new North American trade agreement, the USMCA. His trade negotiations were also a major issue of contention among Republicans.
Republicans are traditionally ardent advocates of free trade policy, which Trump does not.
The administration of tariffs by the Trump administration on various industries is doing more harm than good, say the Republicans. And their deployment as a means of bringing other countries to the table represents a serious political risk, as they could jeopardize Trump's high economic approval.
The USMCA has already encountered several obstacles. Democrats do not agree with the plan, which a Republican senator has described as essentially dead in the water.
"Obviously, this ship has sailed and now we are in a position where our fellow Democrats are – I am not aware of any single elected Democratic Congress member who has approved this," said Sen. Pennsylvania, Pat Toomey, at a meeting in February. "Maybe you are, but I am not, I'm aware that many people have done it."
"I do not see clearly what is the way forward," he added. "As I warned the administration, there is a lot of resistance from the Democrats."
Read more:Republicans and Democrats agree: Trump can not do what he wants with NAFTA
And if Trump tries to take matters into his own hands regarding NAFTA, as he often threatens it, he could face a quick resistance from lawmakers on both sides.
Toomey said that a unilateral withdrawal of NAFTA by the president would not only be illegal, but would plunge the US economy into chaos.
And Republicans already do not like the USMCA. While the US Trade Representative, Robert Lighthizer, quietly met with Capitol legislators, little progress has been made.
"They obviously do not think they'll have enough votes on their side to adopt it, they do not," said Democratic Representative Bill Pascrell at INSIDER. "Even if every Republican has voted, he still does not have enough votes."
While the seared beginning of 2019 could worsen, there are still many areas where Republicans are taking advantage of Trump. The economic successes of the administration are probably the most important, but new radical and radical proposals could hinder these gains with upcoming elections.
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