Democrats who will control Congress next year plan a fast start in January. Their early agenda targets voter concerns after the party's strong November 3 showing, including the Iran war, prices and healthcare.
Senator Brian Schatz of Hawaii put a ban on lawmakers trading stocks at the top of his list, alongside ending the Iran war and reversing Medicaid cuts. Republican Senator Josh Hawley of Missouri also backs the stock trading ban and has a bill pending, but Democrats will need Republican votes to reach the 60 votes most Senate bills require.
Religious conservative activists took a heavy hit in last week's midterms, their steepest setback since gaining major influence under President Trump. With their goals closely tied to his, the losses suggest their grip on his party has loosened, and activists are scrambling to plan for 2028.
Terry Schilling, who leads the American Principles Project, says the administration delivered few wins beyond some executive orders. He argued the movement could have passed laws to protect children, contrasted that with the Iran war, and said there is no standout accomplishment to point to.
Michigan Democrat Abdul El-Sayed warns that voters' backing for his party may be temporary unless Democrats act boldly in Congress. He wants new Senate leadership and would like Sen. Chris Van Hollen to challenge Chuck Schumer in December.
He wants to end the Iran war, pass Medicare for All and abolish ICE, and he's willing to work with Republicans to do it.
He has invited Trump to meet and even floated naming major healthcare legislation after the president. El-Sayed is the first Muslim ever elected to the U.S. Senate.
Democrats have taken control of both chambers of Congress, and their first goals include ending the Iran war and stopping Trump's tariffs. Leaders from both parties tied voter anger over those policies to higher gas, diesel, and grocery prices.
Democrats lack the numbers to override a veto, so they may lean on the power of the purse instead. A Dec. 11 funding deadline could soon test how far they will go, and some on the party's left are already asking whether leaders would accept a funding lapse to end the war.
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth faces possible impeachment by Congress and is fighting back. At a Pentagon news conference Tuesday, he said the effort will fail and blamed critics on the left for wanting him gone out of ego and resentment.
Republican Rep. Thomas Massie, who is leaving Congress, filed eight articles of impeachment, one accusing Hegseth of breaking the 1973 War Powers Resolution by waging the Iran war without congressional approval.
Hegseth noted that his predecessor Lloyd Austin was never impeached, despite the Afghanistan withdrawal and the Chinese spy balloon incident.
Kentucky Republican Rep. Thomas Massie filed a resolution to impeach Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth as soon as the House returned after the midterms. It centers on the Iran war and also cites military actions in Yemen and Venezuela. A House vote could come by midweek.
Massie accuses Hegseth of knowingly carrying out unlawful orders. Hegseth plans a rare press briefing Tuesday, his first in over 180 days.
Trump said the Iran conflict is largely over militarily and backed Hegseth, while calling Massie a loser.
JD Vance and his circle are privately weighing a 2028 presidential run, and some allies doubt any Republican can win the White House in two years.
Democrats flipped seven GOP Senate seats this week, including Vance's old Ohio seat, and some major donors say they won't back him.
Vance has blamed the Iran war for the losses, while allies argue voters rejected the war rather than Trump. Vance has told associates he hasn't decided, and Trump has not endorsed a successor.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is pushing back against fresh calls for him to step down after the midterms. In a video on X, he waved off impeachment articles that Rep. Thomas Massie plans to bring back when Congress returns next week.
Rep. Adam Smith, the top Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee, expects enough Republicans to back impeachment. Trump has said he intends to keep Hegseth at the Pentagon.
Smith has also called for more forceful Pentagon oversight in the new Congress, with the Iran war at the top of his list.
Mortgage rates have dropped since Democrats won control of the House and Senate on Tuesday, even as votes are still being counted. The average 30-year fixed rate fell to 7.18% this week, its third weekly decline in a row.
Stocks rallied and bond yields dropped after the results, and oil prices fell on hopes the vote could help end the war with Iran.
Rates were under 6% earlier this year before the war pushed them toward 8%. Realtor.com economist Hannah Jones says they're still above 7%, and more than 40% of listings nationwide now have price cuts.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio may be considering leaving the Trump administration after GOP midterm losses and the fallout from the Iran war.
He could step down to prepare for a possible 2028 presidential run, but he has yet to say whether he will resign or seek the nomination. JD Vance is seen as his chief likely competitor.
Republicans lost their majorities in both chambers of Congress, and up to five cabinet officials might step down. The White House and State Department both dismissed the report as baseless.
Republicans took a heavy beating in the midterms, and President Trump now has to decide whether to escalate or wind down his eight-month-old war with Iran. He has warned that he may resume full-scale bombing if Tehran refuses terms he accepts.
Trump said the war pushed gas prices up a bit, but that he would make the same decision again. A national voter survey found about 6 in 10 people called the decision to go to war the wrong choice.
Brent crude fell below $95 a barrel after the vote, its lowest level in two months, a sign that markets do not expect major new strikes.
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