Prior to Donald Trump's presidency, many predicted that it would be as horrific as it is currently turning out to be. Now, six months in, the world has witnessed that there are no limits to what President Trump will do in order to get his agenda through. If only he would submit to legislating appropriately and compromising on hard issues. When it comes to Congress, bullying and threatening lawmakers has been a signature move for the Trump administration.

Previous threats to lawmakers

This was the case recently when it was reported that the Secretary of the Interior, Ryan Zinke, threatened Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) over the phone last Wednesday.

Prior to Congress passing the omnibus spending bill earlier this year, in trying to get Capitol Hill to pass the President's draconian budget proposal; Mick Mulvaney demanded that Congress cancel subsidies for Obamacare a.k.a the Affordable Care Act (ACA).

In fact, Mulvaney wanted Congress to move subsidy money to defense programs instead as President Trump's budget proposal demanded. As a side note, Trump's controversial budget proposal wanted to strip billions from federal agencies and human welfare programs. Lawmakers initially refused this but the tactics of intimidation against lawmakers has only evolved -- especially for those who refused to vote to repeal or replace the ACA.

Murkowski pushes back on 'threat' language

Zinke reportedly called Sen. Murkowski on Wednesday to tell her that the administration would pull their support from energy projects in her state. This was a day after Murkowski voted against repealing Obamacare. The Alaskan senator had already been targeted by "Trumpublicans" (Republican lawmakers who support Trump's agenda) for voting against previous repeals where she was accused of not being a Republican, among other things.

While Murkowski was making her way through the halls of Capitol Hill on Thursday, a reporter asked her about the "threat" Zinke made over the phone.

She apparently turned to the reporter and said that she didn't think it was "appropriate to use words like that." According to the report, it was clear that she didn't agree with the word "threat." She made this apparent when she preferred to say that it was a "difficult conversation" which is a clear sign of diplomacy with the Trump administration on her part.

As a Republican, her diplomatic gesture is not surprising, as many Republican lawmakers are becoming more flexible to President Trump's irrational demands.

Alaska's dependency on federal support

Another lawmaker for Alaska, Sen. Dan Sullivan, reportedly also received a call from Zinke with the same "threat" which he said he tried to push back on. Sullivan said that he expressed how Alaska was having difficult times, and, therefore, was supportive of Trump's energy agenda. For instance, Trump has made no secret of wanting to drill in Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, just as he's made no secret of wanting to drill in others.

But Sullivan said that despite trying to push back, the message was clear and "troubling." Democrats and supportive organizations are looking to sue the Interior Department if they don't get details of those conversations.

Democratic lawmakers have already motioned that they want to investigate Zinke for blackmail.

Republican senators deny pushing back

In the same article by the New Yorker, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) is also described as seeing members of his party begin to adjust and even mimic the President's style of "legislation." This is because they seem to be bent on violating decency where they're willing to do the worst just to win. Murkowski, for the time being -- perhaps in retaliation to the call -- appeared to show that she still has some moral fiber to resist.

This is because, as chair of the committee that overlooks the Interior Department, she has delayed confirmation hearings for that agency. But in "Trumpublican" fashion, she has shown that she might not be resisting the Trump administration's tactics of intimidation after all, denying that that she was using her power of the committee to retaliate against Zinke's threats.
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