Failures of the Republican-controlled 119th Congress
Vote Them Out!
FEATUREPOLITICS
10/19/20263 min read
The Republican-controlled Congress failed to enact legislation to constrain executive overreach, reassert its Article I authorities, or protect individual civil liberties during President Trump's current second term. Vote them out!
The Republican Congress failed to protect the Constitution and the American people. They failed to do their job and need to be voted out! Here is a partial list of the Republican Congress failure:
1. Immigration enforcement
Trump used the 1798 Alien Enemies Act to deport people. Sent migrants to a prison in El Salvador (CECOT) without hearings. Kept wrongly deported people abroad despite court orders. Sent the National Guard and federal agents into cities like Los Angeles, Chicago, Portland, and Washington, D.C. over local objections.
The Republican Congress failed to require due-process hearings before deportation. Tie ICE funding to court compliance and body cameras. Limit domestic military deployment by tightening the Insurrection Act. Hold real oversight hearings.
2. Tariffs
Trump imposed sweeping tariffs by declaring “emergencies” under IEEPA, which affected consumer prices, supply chains, small businesses, and farmers without explicit congressional authorization.
Republican House leaders used procedural rules to block tariff votes. Republican Senate disapproval votes were symbolic, and the courts acted where Congress didn’t.
3. The war with Iran
Trump took the U.S. into hostilities with Iran without a declaration of war or an authorization to use force, spending over $1 billion a day on an unapproved conflict.
The Republican Congress failed to pass a binding War Powers Resolution, cut off funding for the hostilities, or demand a formal authorization vote. What passed in June 2026 was a non-binding resolution, 50–48 in the Senate. Only four Republicans voted for it: Cassidy, Collins, Paul, and Murkowski.
4. Demolishing the East Wing
Trump tore down a historic part of the White House with no congressional review, no public review process, and private donor money.
The Republican Congress failed to require open public disclosures, historic preservation reviews, and explicit congressional approval before making permanent changes to historic federal property. They should have barred the work through appropriations riders and investigated the donors.
5. Defunding health care
Trump pushed and signed the 2025 reconciliation bill. It made deep Medicaid cuts and added work requirements. He also let the enhanced ACA subsidies expire, cut NIH and CDC grants, and sharply reduced HHS staff.
The Republican Congress failed to vote down the cuts, extend the subsidies, and protect the funding it had already approved. Here Congress didn’t just fail to act: the Republican majority passed the cuts itself.
6. Firing independent officials
Trump fired about 17 inspectors general without the legally required 30-day notice. Removed members of the FTC, NLRB and MSPB despite for-cause protections. Fired the BLS commissioner after a bad jobs report. Tried to remove Fed Governor Lisa Cook.
The Republican Congress failed to enforce for-cause protections in law or prohibit political loyalty tests and mass civil service dismissals. They failed to block confirmations until the fired officials were reinstated or the firings explained. They failed to defend agency independence in court filings.
7. Gutting environmental rules
Trump moved to repeal the EPA’s greenhouse-gas “endangerment finding.” Rescinded or halted enforcement of key clean air, clean water, toxic chemical, and public land protections. Rolled back power plant and vehicle standards. Cut EPA staff and grants.
The Republican Congress failed to write key standards into law and protect EPA budgets. Instead, it used the Congressional Review Act to cancel California’s clean-car waivers, which sped the rollback up.
8. Using the FBI and DOJ against perceived enemies
Trump publicly pushed for prosecutions of critics such as James Comey, Letitia James, and John Bolton. Indictments followed, some filed by a hand-picked U.S. attorney. He exerted executive pressure on the Department of Justice and FBI to investigate, charge, or retaliate against named political opponents, critics, journalists, donors, and disfavored institutions. He also purged FBI agents and prosecutors.
The Republican Congress failed to hold Judiciary Committee oversight hearings and issue subpoenas. Write anti-retaliation protections for DOJ independence into law. Condition confirmations and funding on safeguards against politicized prosecutions.
9. Threatening university funding
Trump froze billions in research grants to Harvard, Columbia, and other universities to force policy changes, which critics call viewpoint coercion. He also pressured schools to sign a “compact.”
The Republican Congress failed to require the legally mandated civil rights process (notice, hearing, and report to Congress). Protect the grants it had already funded through appropriations. Failed to mandate that all grant conditions be authorized by Congress. Hold First Amendment oversight hearings.
10. The power of the purse
Trump withheld funds Congress had approved, which is impoundment. Used a “pocket rescission” to cancel foreign aid. Let DOGE dismantle agencies like USAID that Congress created.
The Republican Congress failed to enforce the Impoundment Control Act. Back GAO’s findings that the withholding was illegal. Write strict spending requirements into funding bills. Instead, it approved the rescissions package that cut public broadcasting and foreign aid.
The Republican Congress already had the tools: binding votes, the power of the purse, subpoenas, confirmation leverage, and the power to change laws. The Republican majority mostly chose not to use them, and the courts were left as the main check.
Vote them out!