Germany Economists Warn Trump Faces Deadlock After Democrats Win U.S. Midterms

Congress turns against Trump

Economists in Germany warned that the United States could enter a period of domestic political deadlock and rising international tensions after President Donald Trump and the Republican Party suffered a big defeat in the midterm elections.

Anadolu said unofficial results showed Democrats winning 54 seats in the Senate and 228 in the House of Representatives, depriving Republicans of the majority in both chambers.

Marcel Fratzscher, president of the German Institute for Economic Research (DIW), said Democrats’ victory sends a positive message for the global economy and noted that Congress could curb some of Trump’s policies, including his approach toward Iran, through its budgetary powers.

Moritz Schularik, president of the Kiel Institute for the World Economy, described American democracy and the rule of law as the biggest winners of the election and called the results a turning point.

Axel O. Frost, president of the Ifo Institute for Economic Research, warned that losing the Republicans their majority would limit Trump’s ability to push through projects such as tax cuts and could lead to recurring budget crises and spending freezes.

Reporting for this sectionAnadolu Ajansı

Oversight, investigations, veto fights

The midterm outcome shifted Washington’s balance of power, with Democrats seizing control of both the House and the Senate and ending Republican dominance in Congress. Trump posted a tweet on Truth Social claiming that the Republicans would have achieved a big victory if his name were on the ballot sheet, and the president criticized candidates who lost their seats instead of viewing the result as a direct rejection of his policies. A Democratic majority in the House would chair all committees and have unilateral authority to issue subpoenas to compel government officials and people close to Trump to testify under oath and to produce documents.

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Democrats could draft articles of impeachment against the president and his administration and vote on them, while impeachment may reemerge as political discussion even though impeachment does not mean removal automatically. Democrats could reject any settlement with the Republicans even if that leads to a government shutdown, and controlling the Senate would let Democrats block, delay, or reject Trump’s appointments including heads of federal agencies and Supreme Court justices.

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Reporting for this sectionBBCFrance 24

Europe and markets brace

Business Standard said the Democratic takeover of both the House of Representatives and the Senate could significantly weaken President Donald Trump’s political authority and potentially turn him into a lame-duck president during the final two years of his term. V K Vijayakumar, chief investment strategist at Geojit Investments, said, "This can even create a constitutional crisis, with adverse consequences for the US market." Europe should brace for what comes next, as Trump’s domestic agenda could face stiff resistance in Congress and he could turn increasingly to foreign policy where he has greater room for manoeuvre.

An EU diplomat said, "He will be more a ‘mad dog’ than a ‘lame duck,’" and Centre-left Italian MEP Brando Benifei said Trump could pursue an even more erratic foreign policy over the next two years. The midterms were already causing ripples across the rest of the world, and the energy market wagered on Nov 4 that the elections could breathe more life into US-Iran peace talks.

Reporting for this sectionBusiness StandardEuronews