Source : NEW INDIAN EXPRESS NEWS
Republican opponents in Congress have been pushed out or retired
In 2017, the House speaker was Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., who had pulled his endorsement during the 2016 campaign and later called Trump an ” authoritarian narcissist.” The Senate majority leader was Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., who labeled Trump “stupid,” “ill-tempered” and a “despicable human being.”
Ryan did not run for reelection in 2018. McConnell has stepped down as party leader but remains in the Senate. Vocal critics such as Utah Sen. Mitt Romney and Wyoming Rep. Liz Cheney are gone. Trump’s aggressive plays in Republican primaries have created a new generation of members who listen to him. House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., and the new Senate Majority Leader, John Thune of South Dakota, know their power depends, in large part, on Trump’s backing.
“He’s single-handedly changed the party,” said Sen. Jim Banks, R-Ind. Banks was sworn in as a member of the House as Trump arrived in Washington in 2017, when Banks said, Trump often have to deal with Republican pushback.
Now, “everyone knows that Donald Trump is calling the shots,” Banks said. “He’s the quarterback … and we’re going to follow his lead and back him up and pass the agenda that the American people voted for when they elected him this time.”
Banks cited the reaction when Trump addressed Senate Republicans in the Capitol while in town for former President Jimmy Carter’s funeral. All the members, including past critics, he said, were on their feet, expressing their support for Trump, his agenda and his Cabinet nominees.
SOURCE :- NEW INDIAN EXPRESS
