The Republicans thought that President Donald Trump's surprising speech Tuesday would give them leeway to carry out their agenda. That feeling lasted only a day as the latest news threatens to derail the dreams of unopposed government.
Lull before the storm
The President’s first speech in Congress surprised many with its apparent references to changes in his agenda and mild tone that were at odds with the first month of the new Administration. This change of tone gave the Republicans some hope that the worst was past and that they would have been able to proceed despite storm clouds over the Presidency that were not mentioned in the address.
As noted by some newspapers, Donald Trump made no reference to the ongoing investigations over the alleged Russian interference in his victorious presidential campaign.
The lull in the storm lasted less than 24 hours as the New York Times, the Washington Post and the Wall Street Journal all reported developments that threaten to deepen the divide within the party over their ostensible representative in the White House.
Russia never disappeared
While he was still basking in the praise of his fellow Republicans over the previous night’s address, the three newspapers reported not only that the Obama Administration had left a trail for investigators to follow, but that arguably the most controversial member of his Administration, Attorney General #Jeff Sessions, may himself have been involved.
During his confirmation hearings then Senator Sessions confronted the issue as his future Justice Department was involved in the investigations. When asked by Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) Sessions replied that he knew of no contacts with Russians members of the Trump team. As reported yesterday in the Washington Post Sessions himself had spoken twice with Sergey Kislyak, Russia’s Ambassador to the United States, during the campaign and did not reveal this during the confirmation hearings.
Special Prosecutor
This news now throws into confusion the tactics of the Republicans in Congress and the Senate for at least the immediate future. Sessions role in both the campaign and as Attorney General are now under the spotlight.
Only a few day before Republican Congressman Darrell Issa had called upon Sessions to recuse himself from any involvement in the investigation and to appoint a Special Prosecutor on the matter.
While there was little public support for the appeal at the time, the latest developments will surely put pressure on members of the GOP to back Issa's appeal.
The news was definitely unwelcome in the Republican camp as it once more reveals embarrassing details about an election victory that few expected when Donald Trump decided to take part in the race for the White House.
The open antagonism towards the businessman become politician revealed cracks within the Party that his win in the Primaries and then the presidential race were unable to hide. House Leader Paul Ryan, as well as with John McCain, Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz were only a few of the Republicans who made public criticisms of the man who would go to the Oval Office.
Night time calls
Undoubtedly last night was filled with telephone calls about the issues that refuse to go away. Some of these calls would have been to the President, but many were surely between Republicans in both Houses as they decide what steps to take.
Sessions will be feeling the heat, but Paul Ryan and Mitch McConnell, the majority leaders in their respective Houses, will be under even more pressure to allow independent investigations of the team that fought the presidential campaign under the Republican banner.
Tuesday night’s truce after President Trump’s speech in Congress is well and truly over. The questions that were unaddressed that night now have centre stage and the GOP may well have some very tough decisions to make.
In the mean time how will President Trump react to the news? In any case, it is highly unlikely we will see the Tuesday’s moderate speaker any time soon.
