Trump Vows To Be ‘Mr. Veto’ To Democrats
After Democrats were projected to win Congress, the president says he will use his veto and “tremendous” executive powers, while telling the New York Times he is willing to accept the results
ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) - President Donald Trump said he would welcome the nickname “Mr. Veto” and use his veto power against Democratic legislation, in remarks made as Democrats were projected to win control of Congress. NBC News projected early Wednesday that Democrats would win both the House and the Senate. On Truth Social late Tuesday, Trump wrote “I wasn’t on the Ballot” and said he would have won in a landslide if he had been.
Trump made the veto comments in a phone interview with CBS News correspondent Robert Costa before the polls closed on Tuesday, when asked about a Democratic-controlled Congress. “I have the ultimate power,” he said, adding that it is called the veto. He said that repeatedly rejecting Democratic bills for a couple of months would eventually push his opponents to come to him seeking a deal. He also said he is prepared to use “tremendous” executive powers in the coming year to advance his agenda, pointing to recent Supreme Court decisions he believes have strengthened presidential authority. CBS reported that the White House has already discussed possible executive actions in anticipation of divided government.
In a separate interview, Trump told The New York Times he was “absolutely willing” to accept the election results, according to NBC News. According to the text provided to Kurdistan 24, he also said he is ready to work with Democrats and that they might reach a shared view. His position had been more conditional earlier, when he told reporters last week that he would accept the results “if they’re honest.”
The president did not wait for the returns to set out how he would deal with Congress. White House staff had suggested in advance that Tuesday might be a “really bad night” for Republicans, NBC reported, and he stayed silent on Truth Social for about three hours as Democratic wins mounted. He posted shortly after 10:30 p.m. Eastern.
A veto would not be the end of the matter for Democrats. Overriding one requires a two-thirds majority in both chambers. Democrats have signaled that they would open investigations into the administration if they win control.