Fractures are starting to show in Trump's GOP at the start of this
election year
[January 10, 2026]
By STEPHEN GROVES
WASHINGTON (AP) — For House Republicans, the political year started with
a pep rally of sorts as President Donald Trump gathered them at
Washington's Kennedy Center for a stemwinder of a speech. But by the
time lawmakers had completed their first week of work this midterm
election year, fractures in the party were already showing.
From pushback to Trump's self-described “Donroe doctrine” of aggression
in the Western Hemisphere to breaks in party unity over health care,
Republican lawmakers are displaying signs of independence from Trump
after spending much of the last year acquiescing to his practically
every demand. It showed a new dynamic in the GOP as Republicans embark
on difficult campaign to keep control of both the House and Senate.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, speaking at the U.S.-Mexico border
Friday with a group of Republican Senate candidates, said that
Republicans were “going to be focused like a laser” on issues of
affordability and pointed to legislation in the works on housing and
health care.
Thune's border trip and talk of affordability were a nod back to some of
the core themes of Trump's presidential campaign. But the focus in
Washington of late has instead been dominated by Trump's military
operation to capture Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro, his threats to
use military force to take control of Greenland, the release of case
files on Jeffrey Epstein and a debate over extending subsidies for
insurance offered under the Affordable Care Act — an issue where
Republicans have long struggled to find unity.
Recent shootings by Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers in
several U.S. cities, including one that killed a woman in Minneapolis,
have also raised new questions about Republicans' hard-line immigration
agenda and shifted attention away from Trump's handling of the border,
which they see as a political success.
Even so, Trump still has plenty of command over most of the party. That
was demonstrated this week by a pair of unsuccessful House veto override
votes in which most GOP members stuck with the president despite
previously voting for the low-profile bills.
Rep. Thomas Massie, a Kentucky Republican who has been one of the few
Republicans to consistently defy Trump, said that “there was some bully
pulpit intimidation going on” from the president that caused the veto
overrides to fail.
Still, Democrats are making the case that Trump is becoming distracted
from the needs of Americans, especially after the attack on Venezuela.
“He's lurching towards another endless, expensive war, all the while
American families here are struggling with skyrocketing costs,” said
Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer.
Venezuela war powers vote draws GOP support
To prove their point, Democrats are forcing votes on war powers
resolutions that would stop Trump from attacking Venezuela without
congressional approval. Such measures are rarely successful, but a
procedural vote on the legislation drew support from five Republicans
Thursday, setting up a final vote next week. House Democrats are also
pushing forward a similar resolution.
The GOP senators who voted for the legislation tried to defuse the
conflict with Trump by arguing their positions were in line with his own
campaign promises to scale back U.S. commitments overseas.
“A drawn-out campaign in Venezuela involving the American military, even
if unintended, would be the opposite of President Trump’s goal of ending
foreign entanglements,” Sen. Todd Young, an Indiana Republican who voted
for the war powers resolution, said in a lengthy statement explaining
his vote.
Trump reacted with fury. The president promptly called for the five
Republicans, which included Maine Sen. Susan Collins, who is up for
reelection this year, to “never be elected to office again.”
Republicans are already dealing with retirements from several lawmakers
who had uneasy relationships with Trump, and there was worry that such
clashes could complicate their campaign picture even more.
“If Susan isn’t the senator from Maine, we’re going to end up with a
Democrat,” said Sen. Bernie Moreno, an Ohio Republican. “That would be
10 times worse. But I do appreciate that President Trump is absolutely
pissed off.”
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Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., speaks during the Senate
Republican policy luncheon news conference at the Capitol, Tuesday,
Jan. 6, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Rod Lamkey, Jr.)
GOP pushes back on Trump's Greenland plans
Trump's desire to possess Greenland and his administration's
decision not to rule out military force also met significant
resistance from GOP lawmakers this week.
Sen. Thom Tillis, a North Carolina Republican who is retiring after
crossing Trump last summer, took to the Senate floor to proclaim
that he was “sick of stupid.” He specifically criticized White House
deputy chief of policy Stephen Miller, who made comments that
Greenland should be part of the U.S.
“I want good advice for this president, because I want this
president to have a good legacy,” Tillis added. “And this nonsense
on what’s going on with Greenland is a distraction from the good
work he’s doing, and the amateurs who said it was a good idea should
lose their jobs.”
Other Republicans, including Thune and Senate Armed Services
Committee chair Sen. Roger Wicker, also gently pushed back on
military threats against Denmark, which is a NATO ally of the U.S.
After meeting with the Danish ambassador, Wicker said it was
Denmark's right not to sell Greenland.
“I’m troubled by Greenland. I'm troubled by some of the things he
does. I don’t get it,” said Nebraska Rep. Don Bacon, another
retiring Republican. “I do feel like Congress should be more
independent and should provide checks and balances here.”
Bacon added that Trump still had the ability to “bully” his
Republican colleagues, but that Trump's threats had “stiffened my
spine.”
Health care votes expose divisions
During Trump's speech at the Kennedy Center on Tuesday, he urged
Republicans to own the issue of health care. Yet when the House
voted Thursday on a Democratic proposal to extend expired health
care subsidies for Affordable Care Act health plans, 17 Republicans
broke with party leadership to help pass the bill.
“People recognize the challenge here, which is to address health
care affordability,” said Rep. Mike Lawler, a New York Republican
who voted for the proposal.
He still criticized the Affordable Care Act, a hallmark piece of
legislation for Democrats, yet the health care debate unfolding in
Congress is one that Democrats feel confident making a central
campaign issue.
“In this first, full week of the new year, House Democrats — every
single one of us joined by 17 Republicans — have partnered in a
bipartisan way to protect the health care of the American people,”
said House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries following the vote.
Jan. 6 plaque coming out of storage
On the fifth anniversary of the attack on the Capitol, Trump told
House Republicans that he had told his supporters to go “peacefully
and patriotically” to confront Congress from certifying the 2020
presidential election. The White House also unveiled a website that
portrayed the Jan. 6 attack as a “witch hunt” against him by
Democrats and some Republicans in Congress.
But the Senate, which Republicans control, this week agreed to
display a plaque honoring the police who defended the Capitol — a
cause that has become a point of contention with Trump as president.
The plaque had been kept in storage rather than being displayed
because House Speaker Mike Johnson had said the memorial did not
comply with the law.
It was Tillis again who pushed the issue on the Republican side. He
said it was important to honor the police and staff who risked their
own lives and safety that day.
Democrats who joined in the effort said they were alarmed by the
White House's attempt to recast the narrative.
“It's so important we be honest with the American people about what
happened,” said Sen. Jeff Merkley, an Oregon Democrat.
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Associated Press writers Kevin Freking, Steven Sloan, Lisa Mascaro
and Nathan Ellgren contributed.
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