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Republicans Hold The House And Senate But Will That End The Washington Gridlock Even With President Trump

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Buoyed by the victory of Donald Trump, Republicans kept control of the House on Tuesday and hung on to their majority in the U.S. Senate, enshrining at least two years of single-party rule in Washington.

Democrats lost the chamber in 2014 and would have needed a net gain of five seats to retake the Senate with Trump in the White House.

They fell well short.


Election 2016: FULL RESULTS »

Many experts and political analysts had predicted a Democratic takeover, given the daunting math facing Republicans — who had to defend far more seats — and Trump’s erratic campaign.

But just as they underestimated the Republican nominee, they failed to account for the resiliency of some of the GOP’s most endangered incumbents.

Republicans staked victories in every one of the hardest-fought contests, with one exception. In Illinois, Democratic Rep. Tammy Duckworth knocked off Mark Kirk, long seen as the most vulnerable GOP member of the Senate.

In Wisconsin, Ron Johnson had been all but written off by strategists in both parties. Instead, he handily fended off a comeback attempt by former Democratic Sen. Russell D. Feingold. In North Carolina, Richard M. Burr won a second term despite waging a lackluster campaign.


Republicans, who currently hold 54 of 100 seats, also posted victories in two states once eyed by Democrats as promising takeover opportunities.

Voters seemed equally skeptical of change.

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Control Of The Us Senate: What Does History Tell Us About How Much It Affects Legislative Policymaking


With the U.S. Senate evenly split between the Republican and Democratic caucuses—something that’s only happened three other times—two political science scholars at the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences were inspired to study one of those periods. Their research regarding the Senate during the 1953–54 session of Congress, published in the American Political Science Review, examines a period of time when nine senators died and one resigned, flipping party control twice.

USC Dornsife’s Christian Grose, associate professor of political science and public policy, and Nicholas Napolio, a Ph.D. candidate in political science, share insight on their research and what it might tell us about today’s Senate.

The period you studied was particularly tumultuous for the U.S. Senate. What from your research surprised you the most?

Grose: A couple of things stand out. First, conventional wisdom is that because the U.S. Senate is very individualistic, party control of the Senate isn’t that important to advancing a policy agenda. Older research also supports that belief, particularly compared to the U.S. House, where the controlling party rules almost everything. Our research from this period upends that notion by showing that even a one-vote margin of control changed not just the Senate’s policy agenda, but the outcomes. We find this to be true not just for the unusual period we studied, but all the way through the present day.

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Control Of The Us Senate: What Does History Tell Us About How Much It Affects Legislative Policy

Two USC Dornsife political science scholars examine a period in the 1950s when the Senate was evenly divided, nine U.S. senators died and party control of the Senate flipped twice.

With the U.S. Senate evenly split between the Republican and Democratic caucuses — something that’s only happened three other times — two political science scholars at the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences were inspired to study one of those periods. Their research regarding the Senate during the 1953–54 session of Congress, , examines a period of time when nine senators died and one resigned, flipping party control twice.


USC Dornsife’s Christian Grose, associate professor of political science and public policy, and Nicholas Napolio, a Ph.D. candidate in political science, share insight on their research and what it might tell us about today’s Senate.

The period you studied was particularly tumultuous for the U.S. Senate. What from your research surprised you the most? 

I was also surprised by the suddenness of the changes in the Senate and that so many titans of the upper house unexpectedly and sadly died in such a short time period. It’s a reminder that history is shaped by who lives, and who does not.

We’re not even a year into the current session of Congress. How likely do you think it is that the 50/50 party balance in today’s Senate will change before the 2022 election?

USC Dornsife political science scholars Nicholas Napolio and Christian Grose.


Democrats May Have Control At The Federal Level But Republicans Are Pushing Back Through States

30 state legislatures are now controlled by Republicans, while only 18 are controlled by Democrats.

Though the hotly anticipated “Blue Wave” did not sweep over the country as thoroughly as some analysts had predicted in the weeks and months leading up to the American election on November 3, 2020, there’s no denying that Democrats notched major victories in both the Senate and the White House, despite losing several seats in the House of Representatives.

But that victory is beginning to be undercut by the majority of state legislatures, which are Republican-controlled, as they begin to enact stricter voting laws, pass state sovereignty bills and push through highly conservative legislation to push back against Democratic ideologies in Washington.


Pelosi Says It Doesn’t Matter Right Now If She’ll Seek Another Term As Speaker Beyond 2022

Much ado about nothing

 In a press call, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi shot down a question about whether this upcoming term would be her last as speaker, calling it the “least important question you could ask today.” She added that “the fate of our nation, the soul of the nation” is at stake in the election.

“Elections are about the future,” Pelosi said. “One of these days I’ll let you know what my plans are, when it is appropriate and when it matters. It doesn’t matter right now.”

After the 2018 election, Pelosi agreed to term limits on Democratic leaders that would prevent her from serving as speaker beyond 2022.


The Gop Has Yet To Land A Single Top Recruit To Run For The Senate Anywhere In The Country

The surest way that Republicans can stop whatever legislative agenda President Biden has in mind after the 2022 midterm elections is to win a majority in the US Senate.

Even more than the House, a simple majority in the Senate could let Republicans gum up everything from gun control legislation to Supreme Court nominations.

On paper, it seems easy enough. Republicans need to win just a single seat in order to flip the 50-50 Senate and possibilities for doing so are all over the map. Given that midterm elections often benefit the party out of power, and Democrats control two out of three levers of the federal government, Republicans wouldn’t be overly optimistic in assuming Mitch McConnell might soon rule the Senate again.


But here is the thing about the GOP’s chances: At this early stage, they are having problems getting good candidates to sign up. And while the historical trends look good for Republicans you can’t win something with nothing.

Republicans have yet to land a single top recruit to run for the Senate anywhere in the country — even in places where they have an opportunity to flip a seat — and a good candidate could make all the difference.

In Nevada, Republicans are pinning their hopes on getting former state attorney general Adam Laxalt in the race to challenge Masto, who won in 2016 by just 3 percentage points. So far, Laxalt has not announced plans to run and he comes with baggage: he lost a bid for governor in 2018.

Opinionhow Can Democrats Fight The Gop Power Grab On Congressional Seats You Wont Like It

Facing mounting pressure from within the party, Senate Democrats finally hinted Tuesday that an emboldened Schumer may bring the For the People Act back for a second attempt at passage. But with no hope of GOP support for any voting or redistricting reforms and Republicans Senate numbers strong enough to require any vote to cross the 60-vote filibuster threshold, Schumer’s effort will almost certainly fail.

Senate Democrats are running out of time to protect America’s blue cities, and the cost of inaction could be a permanent Democratic minority in the House. Without resorting to nuclear filibuster reform tactics, Biden, Schumer and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi may be presiding over a devastating loss of Democrats’ most reliable electoral fortresses.

Max Burns is a Democratic strategist and founder of Third Degree Strategies. Find him on Twitter @themaxburns.

States With Republican Governors Had Highest Covid Incidence And Death Rates Study Finds

Dareh Gregorian

States with Democratic governors had the highest incidence and death rates from Covid-19 in the first months of the coronavirus pandemic, but states with Republican governors surpassed those rates as the crisis dragged on, a study released Tuesday found.

“From March to early June, Republican-led states had lower Covid-19 incidence rates compared with Democratic-led states. On June 3, the association reversed, and Republican-led states had higher incidence,”the study by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and the Medical University of South Carolina showed.

“For death rates, Republican-led states had lower rates early in the pandemic, but higher rates from July 4 through mid-December,” the study found.

Democrats Control House And Senate For First Time Since 2011 As Schumer Ousts Mcconnell

U.S.Mitch McConnellChuck SchumerSenateKamala Harris

On Wednesday, Democratic Senator Chuck Schumer of New York took on the role of Senate Majority Leader, taking the title away from Republican Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky as Democrats regained control of both congressional chambers for the first time since 2011.

Control of the Senate shifted over to a 50-50 party split on Wednesday as Democratic Georgia Senators Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock were both sworn in as the 49th and 50th Democratic senators, leaving Vice President Kamala Harris as the deciding vote should the chambers’ votes ever end in a tie.

Also sworn in on Wednesday was Democratic Senator Alex Padilla of California. Padilla was appointed by California Governor Gavin Newsom to fill the vacated seat of Vice President Kamala Harris, who had previously served as a Californian senator. On Wednesday, Harris swore in Padilla, Ossoff and Warnock.

At the virtual 2020 Democratic National Convention, Schumer said that Democrats would work with Biden to help him achieve his ambitious agenda.

“We will make health care affordable for all, we’ll undo the vicious inequality of income and wealth that has plagued America for far too long, and we’ll take strong, decisive action to combat climate change and save the planet,” Schumer said.

Newsweek contacted Schumer’s office for comment.

Incoming Biden Administration And Democratic House Wont Have To Deal With A Republican

Democrats Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff wave to supporters during a joint rally on Nov. 15 in Marietta, Ga.

Democratic challengers Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock have defeated Georgia’s two incumbent Republican U.S. senators in the state’s runoff elections, the Associated Press said Wednesday, in a development that gives their party effective control of the Senate.

Ossoff and Warnock were projected the winners over Sens. David Perdue and Kelly Loeffler by the AP following campaigns that drew massive spending and worldwide attention because the runoffs were set to determine the balance of power in Washington. The AP , at about 2 a.m. Eastern, then followed with the call for Ossoff over Perdue on Wednesday afternoon.

President-elect Joe Biden’s incoming administration and the Democratic-run House of Representatives now won’t face the same checks on their policy priorities that they would have faced with a Republican-controlled Senate, though analysts have said the slim Democratic majority in the chamber could mean more power for moderate senators from either party.

“It is looking like the Democratic campaign machine was more effective at driving turnout than the Republican one,” said Eurasia Group analyst Jon Lieber in a note late Tuesday.

Warnock then made just before 8 a.m. Eastern time on Wednesday.

With Control Of White House And Congress Democrats Have 2 Years To Make Big Changes

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U.S. Democrats secured unified control of the White House and Congress on Wednesday with the inauguration of President Joe Biden followed by Vice President Kamala Harris swearing in three new Democratic senators.

The three new senators bring the U.S. Senate to a 50-50 Democratic-Republican tie, with Harris as the presiding officer representing the tie-breaking vote.

With the U.S. House continuing under the leadership of Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Biden begins his term with the opportunity to work with the two Democrat-controlled chambers to enact significant legislative changes. 

As a result of the shifting political power on Capitol Hill, Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer of New York has succeeded Republican Mitch McConnell as Senate majority leader. The Kentucky senator, who served in the top leadership post for six years, was highly skilled at blocking Democratic legislation, as well as advancing former President Donald Trump’s judicial and administration nominees through the confirmation process. 

Schumer acknowledged some of those challenges Wednesday in his first speech as majority leader.

“This Senate will tackle the perils of the moment: a once-in-a-generation health and economic crisis. And it will strive to make progress on generations-long struggle for racial justice, economic justice, equality of opportunity and equality under the law,” Schumer said.

Opinion:the House Looks Like A Gop Lock In 2022 But The Senate Will Be Much Harder

Redistricting will take place in almost every congressional district in the next 18 months. The party of first-term presidents usually loses seats in midterms following their inauguration — President Barack Obama’s Democrats lost 63 seats in 2010 and President Donald Trump’s Republicans lost 40 in 2018 — but the redistricting process throws a wrench into the gears of prediction models.

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President George W. Bush saw his party add nine seats in the House in 2002. Many think this was a consequence of the 9/11 terrorist attacks on America nearly 14 months earlier, but the GOP, through Republican-led state legislatures, controlled most of the redistricting in the two years before the vote, and thus gerrymandering provided a political benefit. Republicans will also have a firm grip on redistricting ahead of the 2022 midterms.

The Brennan Center has found that the GOP will enjoy complete control of drawing new boundaries for 181 congressional districts, compared with a maximum of 74 for Democrats, though the final numbers could fluctuate once the pandemic-delayed census is completed. Gerrymandering for political advantage has its critics, but both parties engage in it whenever they get the opportunity. In 2022, Republicans just have much better prospects. Democrats will draw districts in Illinois and Massachusetts to protect Democrats, while in Republican-controlled states such as Florida, Ohio and Texas, the GOP will bring the redistricting hammer down on Democrats.

Republicans Introduce 253 Bills To Restrict Voting Rights In States Across The Us

Why do so many Australian crossbench parliamentary members ...

Republican lawmakers in 43 states have introduced a total of 253 bills aimed at restricting access to the ballot box for tens of millions of people. Republican-controlled states, including Southern states that employed “lynch law” terror to block African Americans from voting during the decades-long period of Jim Crow segregation, are flooding their legislatures with measures to effectively disenfranchise working class, poor and minority voters.

The laws largely focus on tightening voter ID requirements, purging voter rolls and restricting absentee and mail-in ballots.

In the United States, state governments have the authority to oversee elections and determine election procedures and rules, including for national elections. Within each state, individual counties have a great deal of latitude in the conduct of elections.

Republicans control both the lower and upper legislative houses in 36 of the 50 states, and both the legislatures and governorships in 23 states, making it very possible for far-reaching barriers to the ballot box to be imposed across much of the country.

Despite opening the door for a return to restrictive and discriminatory voting practices, the 2013 ruling met with little resistance on the part of the Democratic Party. Neither the Obama White House nor the congressional Democrats mounted any serious effort to reverse the evisceration of the Voting Rights Act by enacting new legislation in the years since the reactionary Shelby ruling.

Texas

Cbs News Projects Hickenlooper Wins Colorado Senate Seat Democrats’ First Pickup

Democrats picked up their first Senate seat of the night, with CBS News projecting former Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper has defeated incumbent GOP Senator Cory Gardner. Hickenlooper decided to run for Senate after running briefly in the Democratic presidential primary.

Gardner was considered one of the most vulnerable Republican senators up for reelection this year, especially since he’s the only major statewide elected GOP official. Gardner has also been trailing Hickenlooper in polls leading up to Election Day.

While this is a victory for Democrats, they will have to pick up several other seats to gain a majority in the Senate.

I Do Not Buy That A Social Media Ban Hurts Trumps 2024 Aspirations: Nate Silver

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sarah: Yeah, Democrats might not have their worst Senate map in 2022, but it will by no means be easy, and how they fare will have a lot to do with the national environment. And as we touched on earlier, Biden’s overall approval rating will also make a big difference in Democrats’ midterm chances.

nrakich: Yeah, if the national environment is even a bit Republican-leaning, that could be enough to allow solid Republican recruits to flip even Nevada and New Hampshire. And then it wouldn’t even matter if Democrats win Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

One thing is for sure, though — whichever party wins the Senate will have only a narrow majority, so I think we’re stuck in this era of moderates like Sens. Joe Manchin and Lisa Murkowski controlling every bill’s fate for at least a while longer. 

sarah: Let’s talk about big picture strategy, then, and where that leaves us moving forward. It’s still early and far too easy to prescribe election narratives that aren’t grounded in anything, but one gambit the Republican Party seems to be making at this point is that attacking the Democratic Party for being too progressive or “woke” will help them win.

What do we make of that playbook headed into 2022? Likewise, as the party in charge, what are Democrats planning for?

With that being said, the GOP’s strategies could still gin up turnout among its base, in particular, but it’s hard to separate that from general dissatisfaction with Biden.

House Candidate In Georgia Who Promoted Qanon Conspiracy Theories Likely To Win

Republican Marjorie Taylor Greene, a QAnon supporter who has promoted conspiracy theories, is likely to win her Georgia House race. The QAnon mindset purports that President Trump is fighting against a deep state cabal of satanists who abuse children.

Greene has referred to the election of Muslim members to the House as “an Islamic invasion of our government,” and spread conspiracy theories about 9/11 and the 2017 Las Vegas shooting.

Mr. Trump has expressed his support for Taylor and called her a “future Republican star.” Senator Kelly Loeffler of Georgia, who is locked in a tight reelection race, campaigned with Taylor last month.

The House passed a bipartisan resolution condemning QAnon in early October.

Mcconnell Not Troubled At All By Trump’s Suggestion Of Supreme Court Challenge

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell defended Mr. Trump for falsely claiming that he won reelection, although he acknowledged that the presidential race had not yet been decided.

“It’s not unusual for people to claim they have won the election. I can think of that happening on numerous occasions,” McConnell told reporters in Kentucky. “But, claiming to win the election is different from finishing the counting.”

“Claiming to win the election is different from finishing the counting,” Mitch McConnell says, adding that Americans “should not be shocked” that Democrats and Republicans are both lawyering up for the close races https://t.co/fxHKy8hSEppic.twitter.com/2pNlka2Jl4

— CBS News November 4, 2020

He also said he was “not troubled at all” by the president suggesting that the outcome of the election might be determined by the Supreme Court. The president cannot unilaterally bring a case to the Supreme Court, what it’s unclear what case the Trump campaign would have if it challenged the counting of legally cast absentee ballots.

McConnell, who won his own closely watched reelection race on Tuesday evening, expressed measured confidence about Republicans maintaining their majority in the Senate. He said he believed there is a “chance we will know by the end of the day” if Republicans won races in states like Georgia and North Carolina.

Lindsey Graham Wins Reelection In South Carolina Senate Race Cbs News Projects

Republican Senator Lindsey Graham won reelection, CBS News projects, after a contentious race. Although Democratic candidate Jaime Harrison outraised Graham by a significant amount, it was not enough to flip a Senate seat in the deep-red state.

Graham led the high-profile confirmation hearings for Judge Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court, and Harrison hit him for his reversal on confirming a Supreme Court nominee in a presidential election year.

Meanwhile, Republican Roger Marshall has also won the Senate race in Kansas, defeating Democrat Barbara Bollier.

A Different America: How Republicans Hold Near Total Control In 23 Us States

In those states, Republicans hold the governorship and the legislature, giving them the power to take aim at abortion access, trans rights, voting and gun safety

Last modified on Tue 15 Jun 2021 14.38 BST

Democrats across the US cheered last month, as Texas legislators staged a walkout from the statehouse to block the passage of a Republican bill that would enact a number of restrictions on voting access.

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But the victory seemed short-lived, as the state’s Republican governor, Greg Abbott, quickly announced he planned to call a special session to get the legislation passed.

The walkout and the probably only temporary relief it provides for Democrats demonstrated the immense legislative power that Republicans have in dozens of states across the country and the ability that gives them to pass a hard-right agenda on a vast range of issues from abortion to the ability to vote.

In 23 US states, Republicans hold the governorship and the legislature, giving the party near total control to advance its policies. This year, Republicans have used that power to aggressively push their conservative social agenda – taking aim at abortion access, transgender rights and gun safety, as well as voting laws.

During the Texas legislative session, which concluded late last month, Republicans approved bills to allow permitless carry of firearms, ban abortions after about six weeks of pregnancy and increase criminal penalties for protesters who block intersections.

These 3 Maps Show Just How Dominant Republicans Are In America After Tuesday

When it comes to control of state government, Republicans dominated at record levels during the Obama years. On Tuesday, they somehow managed to become even more dominant.

In part because Americans like a check and balance on their president, in part because Republicans played their cards right, Republicans grabbed more of America’s statehouses and governor’s mansions during the Obama administration than at any time in the modern era. And they held onto those majorities Tuesday.

Results are still trickling in, but it looks like Republicans will still control an all-time high 69 of 99 state legislative chambers. They’ll hold at least 33 governorships, tying a 94-year-old record.

That means that come 2017, they’ll have total control of government in at least 25 states, and partial control in 20 states. According to population calculations by the conservative group Americans for Tax Reform, that translates to roughly 80 percent of the population living in a state either all or partially controlled by Republicans.

Things are just as good for the GOP at the federal level, where Republicans have reached the trifecta. They just won the White House, they’ve kept their majorities in Congress and they have a chance to reshape the Supreme Court to a  strong conservative ideological leaning.

Democrats, meanwhile, will go into 2017 without any significant gains in Congress and with total control of just five states.


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