A frustrated President Donald Trump escalated his push on Wednesday for Republican senators to get rid of the filibuster, which would allow Republicans to bypass Democrats, reopen the government and codify more of Trump’s sweeping agenda.
Trump’s effort found new urgency after Tuesday’s election. Republicans suffered crushing losses from the top of the ticket to down-ballot races that empowered Democrats across the country.
“It was not expected to be a victory,” Trump told Republican senators gathered at the White House on Wednesday morning. “I don’t think it was good for Republicans.”
Trump hosted Republican senators for the second time in a matter of weeks during the government shutdown, which just became the longest in U.S. history.
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During remarks to senators, he railed on the results from Tuesday night, saying they were a poor reflection on Republicans, not the shutdown and his not being on the ballot.
“I thought we’d have a discussion after the press leaves about what last night represents and what we should do about it, and also about the shutdown, how that relates to last night,” Trump said. “I think if you read the polls, the shutdown was a big factor — a negative for the Republican, and that was a big factor. And they say that I wasn’t on the ballot, the biggest factor. But I don’t know about that.”
In the State Dining Room, senators sat with some of Trump’s closest allies, including Vice President JD Vance, Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Director of Legislative Affairs James Braid. They sat at eight-person tables, each with multiple microphones placed in front of senators for the upcoming discussion.
Some, like Sen. Bill Cassidy, took notes on Trump’s remarks. Most sat stone-faced when the president said his absence from the ballot was a reason for Democratic gains during elections Tuesday night. Few gave away facial cues as to whether they were more moved by the president’s argument on Wednesday than they were Tuesday, when Republican leaders reiterated they didn’t support or have the votes to nuke the filibuster.
Majority Leader John Thune, Majority Whip John Barrasso, Sen. John Cornyn and Senate appropriators Susan Collins and Katie Britt all attended the meeting. Sen. Rand Paul, who wasn’t invited to the last White House meeting, was in attendance Wednesday.
While the president had posted on social media repeatedly calling for Republicans to “go nuclear” and end the shutdown by revoking the filibuster, Wednesday’s breakfast represents a new phase.
NOTUS asked White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt on Tuesday how much political capital the president was willing to expend to make nuking the filibuster happen.
“I think you’ll see,” Leavitt said at the press briefing. “I think you’ll continue to see the president engage very strongly and consistently with his friends on Capitol Hill.”
Senate leadership has continued to reject calls from rank and file Republicans in the Senate and House to get rid of the filibuster to end the shutdown. Even after Trump gave the green light, Thune and Barrasso haven’t wavered on the issue.
Supporters of the filibuster say that without it, a Democratic majority would have more power to act without Republican vote. Trump argues that Democrats will end the filibuster regardless — so his party ought to end it first.
“We have to get the country going,” he said Wednesday. “We will pass legislation at levels you have never seen before, and it will be impossible to beat us. By the way, if they do, they are going to do it anyway. They are going to immediately do the filibuster. And when they do the filibuster, they’re going to pack the court.”
Trump painted the filibuster as the difference between partisan gridlock and Republicans making his agenda law with ease while they hold control of the White House and Congress. He said that doing so would keep the party in the majority long-term.
“They’ll never — they’ll most likely never attain power, because we will pass every single thing if you can imagine that it’s good and open for the country, and there’ll be no reason to go,” he said. “If we don’t do that, people say ‘They’re not doing much and they’re in power.’”
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