Rep. Thomas Massie, a Kentucky Republican who has been one of the few Republicans to consistently defy Trump, said that “there was some bully pulpit intimidation going on” from the president that caused the veto overrides to fail.
Still, Democrats are making the case that Trump is becoming distracted from the needs of Americans, especially after the attack on Venezuela.
“He’s lurching towards another endless, expensive war, all the while American families here are struggling with skyrocketing costs,” said Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer.
The GOP senators who voted for the legislation tried to defuse the conflict with Trump by arguing their positions were in line with his own campaign promises to scale back U.S. commitments overseas.
“A drawn-out campaign in Venezuela involving the American military, even if unintended, would be the opposite of President Trump’s goal of ending foreign entanglements,” Sen. Todd Young, an Indiana Republican who voted for the war powers resolution, said in a lengthy statement explaining his vote.
Trump reacted with fury. The president promptly called for the five Republicans, which included Maine Sen. Susan Collins, who is up for reelection this year, to “never be elected to office again.”
Republicans are already dealing with retirements from several lawmakers who had uneasy relationships with Trump, and there was worry that such clashes could complicate their campaign picture even more.
“If Susan isn’t the senator from Maine, we’re going to end up with a Democrat,” said Sen. Bernie Moreno, an Ohio Republican. “That would be 10 times worse. But I do appreciate that President Trump is absolutely pissed off.”
Sen. Thom Tillis, a North Carolina Republican who is retiring after crossing Trump last summer, took to the Senate floor to proclaim that he was “sick of stupid.” He specifically criticized White House deputy chief of policy Stephen Miller, who made comments that Greenland should be part of the U.S.
“I want good advice for this president, because I want this president to have a good legacy,” Tillis added. “And this nonsense on what’s going on with Greenland is a distraction from the good work he’s doing, and the amateurs who said it was a good idea should lose their jobs.”
Other Republicans, including Thune and Senate Armed Services Committee chair Sen. Roger Wicker, also gently pushed back on military threats against Denmark, which is a NATO ally of the U.S.
After meeting with the Danish ambassador, Wicker said it was Denmark’s right not to sell Greenland.
“I’m troubled by Greenland. I’m troubled by some of the things he does. I don’t get it,” said Nebraska Rep. Don Bacon, another retiring Republican. “I do feel like Congress should be more independent and should provide checks and balances here.”
Bacon added that Trump still had the ability to “bully” his Republican colleagues, but that Trump’s threats had “stiffened my spine.”
“People recognize the challenge here, which is to address health care affordability,” said Rep. Mike Lawler, a New York Republican who voted for the proposal.
He still criticized the Affordable Care Act, a hallmark piece of legislation for Democrats, yet the health care debate unfolding in Congress is one that Democrats feel confident making a central campaign issue.
“In this first, full week of the new year, House Democrats — every single one of us joined by 17 Republicans — have partnered in a bipartisan way to protect the health care of the American people,” said House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries following the vote.
On the fifth anniversary of the attack on the Capitol, Trump told House Republicans that he had told his supporters to go “peacefully and patriotically” to confront Congress from certifying the 2020 presidential election. The White House also unveiled a website that portrayed the Jan. 6 attack as a “witch hunt” against him by Democrats and some Republicans in Congress.
It was Tillis again who pushed the issue on the Republican side. He said it was important to honor the police and staff who risked their own lives and safety that day.
Democrats who joined in the effort said they were alarmed by the White House’s attempt to recast the narrative.
“It’s so important we be honest with the American people about what happened,” said Sen. Jeff Merkley, an Oregon Democrat.
