Trump setbacks fuel lame-duck talk
WASHINGTON: U.S. President Donald Trump is trying to project political strength as he turns 80, but setbacks at home and abroad are exposing the limits
WASHINGTON: U.S. President Donald Trump is trying to project political strength as he turns 80, but setbacks at home and abroad are exposing the limits of his power and pushing him toward the kind of lame-duck status he has told aides he is determined to avoid. Nearly 17 months into his second term, the courts are pushing back, his effort to wind down the Iran war has stalled, and his approval ratings have weakened. Some fellow Republicans in Congress are also defying him - though his hold on core supporters remains firm. Still, Trump has shown he retains significant clout: he has helped oust Republican incumbents in primary races and has pressed ahead with aggressive trade policies. He has also pursued high-profile construction projects in Washington in one of the most ambitious building drives by a U.S. president in years.Also Read| Trump's toughest immigration opponent isn't the Democrats. It's the courts This dynamic is unfolding just months ahead of November's midterm elections as Trump's Republican Party scrambles to maintain control of Congress. The loss of one or both chambers to opposition Democrats could hasten his slide into a lame-duck phase, historically when a president - if barred from running again - sees influence waning and domestic priorities stymied. The White House is trying to prevent that narrative from taking hold prematurely and has been forceful about letting Republican lawmakers know Trump can still make or break them, according to a presidential adviser, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive internal matters.
But with some Republicans already showing greater willingness to stand up to Trump, the adviser acknowledged it was inevitable that his authority would begin to diminish. "He'll naturally start to lose leverage, especially after the midterms," the adviser said. Trump has privately told staffers that one of the reasons he has mused about a third term, which is forbidden by the Constitution, is to ward off any public perception that he might become a lame duck and slip into "irrelevance," according to a former senior aide who spoke on condition of anonymity. White House spokeswoman Olivia Wales said, "President Trump is the unequivocal leader of the Republican Party who is committed to maintaining Republicans' majority in Congress." HEALTH UNDER SCRUTINY The questions about Trump's political standing come as scrutiny of his personal stamina is intensifying. A Reuters/Ipsos poll in February found 61 percent of Americans thought Trump had become more erratic with age, and another survey in April showed a majority concerned about his temperament and mental sharpness. Trump, who is the oldest president sworn into office, will celebrate his 80th birthday on Sunday by hosting a UFC cage fight on the White House lawn. After a flurry of near-weekly travel early in the year, Trump has largely stayed at the White House or his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida since he launched the Iran war on February 28. He has made only a handful of domestic trips since then.
The BriefWire