Axios · Donald Trump · Republicans · Axios
President Trump tuned elected Republicans to obey him, even when they disagreed
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Years of Republicans submitting to Trump, often against their own judgment, have curdled into a rolling crisis as Washington nears the likely end of the GOP's two-year monopoly.
Key facts
- President Trump trained elected Republicans to obey him, even when they disagreed
- Trump has spent his second term steamrolling his own party, confident the lawmakers he humiliates will keep voting his way
- Trump is governing like a term-limited president with little patience for Congress, few concerns about the midterms, and an insatiable appetite for executive power
- Top Republicans tell them Trump's response, lashing out ineffectively, could be a preview of how he'll play his cards over the next 2½ years as his power wanes
Summary
President Trump trained elected Republicans to obey him, even when they disagreed. Elected Republicans trained Trump to expect obedience, even as his demands grew impossible to satisfy. Trump has spent his second term steamrolling his own party, confident the lawmakers he humiliates will keep voting his way. He canceled the signing of a landmark bipartisan housing bill hours before the ceremony, trying to strong-arm the Senate into passing the SAVE America Act, a sweeping voter ID bill with no realistic path to 60 (or even 50) votes.