The midterm elections may be over, but a new round of political combat in Washington is just beginning, pitting an emboldened Democratic-controlled Congress against a defiant White House.
The election was fought largely on the cost of living. A week later, Washington is talking less about prices and more about investigations and the looming political fights between the newly empowered Democrats and President Donald Trump’s administration.
Democrats are preparing a barrage of investigations into the Trump administration and have warned the president’s aides to “lawyer up”. The planned probes cover the war in Iran, the administration’s immigration agenda and its handling of the spy agencies. Democrats are also openly discussing another attempt to impeach Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth, and one targeting Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
The White House has warned that the Democrats’ investigations could venture into criminal activity, a threat lawmakers have largely shrugged off. With Democrats taking control of the House in January, the administration faces the prospect of far tougher oversight than it has known in its first two years.
Republicans, meanwhile, are mostly elevating figures known for a more confrontational approach as they prepare to resist. Trump has chosen Stephen Miller, one of the most divisive figures in his administration, as his new chief of staff. In the House, Republicans elected Jim Jordan of Ohio, a former wrestling coach known for his bare-knuckle politics, as their next leader, ejecting longtime party fixture Steve Scalise of Louisiana from leadership.
In the Senate, Republicans re-elected John Thune of South Dakota as their leader, though several lawmakers tried to delay the proceedings to allow a challenger to emerge. Trump has clashed with Thune and accused him of delaying elements of the White House’s agenda. After he was re-elected, Thune pledged to “be very, very active in asserting conservative priorities” when Democrats take control in January.
Both parties are holding gatherings to debate their future direction. Progressives met at the “Crooked Convention” in Washington, organised by Crooked Media, where activists argued the election vindicated their policies. More moderate Democrats gather for three days in Denver from Thursday to discuss how to bring the two major factions of the party together ahead of the 2028 presidential election. Republicans spent part of the week at “The Forum” in Maryland, assessing what went wrong, in a conversation one participant described as blunt.
“With all due respect to the political operation in the White House, you messed up,” said retiring Texas Representative Chip Roy. “You went around the country saying, ‘I want more power.'”
The election’s consequences are already rippling beyond Washington. More than 1,000 migrants were walking northward on Wednesday in a caravan through southern Mexico, spurred by last week’s Democratic victory, which raised hopes that US immigration policies could become more welcoming. The group, estimated at about 1,500 people including many families, set off on Tuesday from Tapachula near the Guatemala border.
With 2028 contenders already starting to emerge, the debate inside both parties over the lessons of the midterms will only intensify.
Sources: Reuters — “Democrats prepare probes as Republicans harden ranks” (https://www.reuters.com/world/us/democrats-prepare-probes-republicans-harden-ranks-2026-11-12/)
