WASHINGTON (AP) — For Senate Democrats, such a slim majority of 51 to 49 never sounded so good.
Victory for Senator Raphael Warnock in the swing state of Georgia is giving Democrats a welcome “lift,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said Wednesday on Capitol Hill – newly convinced to sideline Trump-inspired Republicans in Congress and to reach out to other GOP lawmakers to address bipartisan priorities with President Joe Biden.
“If we can do bipartisan things, of course it will be better for the country. And it will be better for the Republican Party,” he said.
Tuesday’s election was for one seatbut Warnock’s victory in the tight second round provides an unexpected cornerstone in the midterm election bicycle for his party. This makes it easier for Senate Democrats to organize and govern and provides a crucial advantage in a divided Congress as Republicans take over the House.
Gone is the particularly intense political pressure of a 50-50 Senate that forced all Democrats to toe the line — and allowed a single senator, notably Joe Manchin, to thwart party priorities.
When the new Congress convenes in January, the extra seat will give Senate Democrats a solid majority that will allow for greater control not only of floor votes, but also of the committees, which drive legislation.
And for the most part, the days of Capitol Hill stopping to wait for Vice President Kamala Harris’ motorcade for his role as the tie-vote breaker will be over. — especially for Biden nominees — which she has had to do more often than any predecessor.
“Chuck Schumer’s job is going to get a lot easier,” said Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va.
After the longest evenly divided Senate in modern times, the new dynamic ensures that the chamber will serve as a barrier to Republican House legislation that Democrats disagree with — and a potential bridge for the conclusion of a bipartisan agreements as Republicans assess the post-Trump landscape.
While it will still take 60 votes to overcome a filibuster and get most bills through the Senate, there will be plenty of reason to compromise, especially if Republican Leader Mitch McConnell is eager to show voters that his party can keep its promises before the presidential and legislative elections of 2024.
McConnell was silent Wednesday on the Warnock victory and the new political reality.
In January, for starters, Democrats will have an easier time using their 51-49 majority for simple governing duties, including votes on Biden’s nominees for judicial and executive positions, which Republicans have wielded as weapons. .
The same goes for committee action. Democrats will now have full power to send legislation to the Senate, overcoming Republican objections that can drag out the process. They will also have subpoena power, which they plan to use to investigate US companies.
Judiciary Committee Chairman Dick Durbin, D-Ill., had kind words for top Republicans on what was his equally divided panel.
“Chuck Grassley is a friend, we were able to work together. And I’m confident we can do it again with Senator Graham,” Durbin said, referring to South Carolina’s Lindsey Graham, who will take Grassley’s place in the new Senate.
“But,” Durbin said, “we’re in a better position to negotiate.”
Leading Republicans on Wednesday regretted their failure to clinch that vital 51st seat, blaming their losses largely on the party’s focus on reviving the 2020 election that Donald Trump, the former president, lost to Biden. .
“It was a lost argument,” Sen. John Thune of South Dakota, the No. 2 Republican, said of the stolen campaign claims.
His party lost the GOP-held seat in Pennsylvania that was open due to a retirement. Every Democratic incumbent won, an unexpected achievement and a first for a ruling party in decades.
As Republicans struggle to get out of the midterms, Democrats intend to capitalize on Trump’s GOP splits and win over some Republicans for bipartisan plans — much like they did this session by passing a bill. bill on bipartisan infrastructure, a package of computer chips and the like.
“There are a good number of Republicans in the Senate and the House who are not MAGA,” Schumer said, referring to Trump’s campaign slogan, Make America Great Again.
“I intend to reach out to them” and see how the two sides can work in a bipartisan way, he said.
“You say, ‘Oh, that’s never gonna happen,'” Schumer said, responding to likely doubters. “Well, look what happened this summer with 50-50.”
Schumer declined to outline the party’s program for the new term, saying it’s still a work in progress. Both parties are expected to take their annual retreats early in the year to put their priorities together.
“It just gives us a boost – the fact that we got all 51 votes,” Schumer said.
Sen. Bernie Sanders, the influential Vermont independent who caucus with Democrats, said the increased majority will make it “much easier to move forward in a progressive way.”
