Trump Vows Comeback as Democrats and Administration Clash Over Impeachment Threats

On Friday, days after an election that went badly for his party, Donald Trump named Stephen Miller as his new chief of staff. The choice was read as a signal that the president intends to fight rather than retreat. It came even as many Republicans, Vice-President JD Vance among them, have been reflecting on why the party lost so heavily at the ballot box.

Miller is the architect of Trump's hard-line immigration policy, which analysts have identified as one factor in the Republicans' unpopularity. His elevation is therefore a notable decision in the wake of the losses.

The next day, Saturday, Trump said he was ordering the Justice Department to examine Democratic threats to impeach members of his administration. He likened those threats to "extortion". The remark followed Democratic warnings that administration officials should "lawyer up".

The dispute carried onto the Sunday talk shows. Attorney-General Todd Blanche, who once served as Trump's personal lawyer and now leads the Justice Department, told CNN he would actively defend the president and senior officials. He said members of Congress had done nothing since Tuesday but threaten everything the administration is doing, and he cited impeachment threats against Miller after his appointment. If Democrats came after Miller instead of conducting oversight and leading, Blanche said, the Department of Justice would of course be there to defend him.

Robert Garcia, the ranking Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, answered on CNN. He said one role of Congress under the Constitution is to hold the executive branch to account. Of Blanche he said all he wants is to protect Trump and his cabinet and administration officials, and that this is not his job. Garcia vowed to stop corruption and to investigate those committing crimes against the American public. "They can come after us however they want. We're not going to be intimidated," he said.

Democrats now hold control of committees in both chambers of Congress. That gives them the power to summon officials, demand documents and hold public hearings, which would put Trump and his senior aides under intense scrutiny. Likely subjects include the Trump family's business and cryptocurrency dealings, government contracts involving billionaire Elon Musk, cuts to federal agencies, immigration enforcement and the conduct of the Iran war.

The most concrete flashpoint is Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth, a key architect of the war on Iran, which began in February. Hakeem Jeffries, who is set to become Speaker of the new Democrat-controlled House, told ABC he is a "hard yes" on a resolution against Hegseth. He was responding to a question about a Republican lawmaker's reported plan to introduce an impeachment motion as early as Monday. Jeffries said Hegseth had abused his power, undermined national security and engineered a reckless and costly war of choice that has skyrocketed prices for Americans. "Pete Hegseth has got to go," he said.

Trump knows the terrain. He was impeached by the House twice during his first presidency and acquitted by the Senate both times. The thing to watch now is whether the Hegseth motion is introduced on Monday, and whether the Justice Department takes any action in response to Democratic threats against officials.