U.S. President Donald Trump reacts on the day of delivering remarks at Rockland Community College in Suffern, New York, U.S., May 22, 2026. REUTERS Kylie Cooper
President Donald Trump is already a lame duck, argued a conservative columnist on Thursday, thanks to his own actions.
“Here’s why so many Americans voted for Donald Trump and continue to cheer him on: They were sick of D.C. stasis, tired of GOP politicians whiffing on promises, eager for someone to break lots of Wedgwood,” wrote The Wall Street Journal's Kimberley A. Strassel. “Here’s where things go off the rails: When the president fails to acknowledge some hills simply can’t be held, and charges up anyway. That’s what happened in the fight over Bill Pulte, wiretapping and the SAVE America Act. His no-win standoff with his Senate GOP risks more than national security. It’s accelerating his lame-duck status.”
Strassel argued that, although Trump had an opportunity earlier this week to push through Jay Clayton as director of national intelligence and reauthorize the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance, he blew those opportunities to make progress by pushing for his voter suppression legislation.
“In a post combining a stream of complaints about ‘blue slipping,’ ‘Dumocrats,’ FISA, a U.S. attorney nomination and the fate of the ‘talented’ Mr. Pulte, the president unilaterally announced the cancellation of the Clayton hearing and vowed to not sign any FISA reauthorization until it was accompanied by his elections bill, the SAVE Act (which encompasses voter ID, proof of citizenship, the end of most mail-in ballots, and prohibitions against men in women’s sports and so-called gender-affirming surgeries on minors),” Strassel wrote.
After reviewing the political fallout of Trump’s various moves, Strassel concluded that “the only thing Mr. Trump is accomplishing is earlier lame-duck status. Growing numbers of Republicans are furious over the unrelenting stream of sideshow brawls that suck headlines, divide the caucus, tank bills and divert from an election message. The ballroom. The ‘weaponization’ fund. The Pulte silliness. Washington is getting a renegade feel, especially as members internalize that Mr. Trump won’t be on another ballot.”
As a result of Trump’s waning influence, the Republican Senate Majority Leader John Thune only has 46 functional votes despite there being 53 Republicans in the Senate. GOP senators like Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, Susan Collins of Maine, Thom Tillis of North Carolina, Rand Paul of Kentucky and others have proved willing to stand up to him, especially in cases like Cassidy and Tillis where they are no longer facing the need to get reelected.
“As for MAGA enthusiasts who think they’ll fix this by getting ‘better’ senators out of the midterms, good luck with that, too. Realistically, the best-case scenario is that the GOP ends up with a smaller Senate majority, and even that depends on returning moderates like Maine’s Ms. Collins,” Strassel explained. “If the House is lost, that tinier majority will be crucial to protecting Mr. Trump from investigations, as well as facilitating his nominations, including for judges. But by all means, sir, keep unmaking friends by using the Senate GOP as whipping boy for dead-end legislation.”
She concluded, “There’s plenty this president can be getting on with. Even more were he to work with his Congress. It’s that, or his voters can watch him flail on this hill.”