Conservatives in Congress say they want Donald Trump to remain focused on promoting and advancing the policies on which he campaigned to win the presidency.
Curbing executive overreach, encouraging free enterprise, and repealing and replacing Obamacare are just a few things high on congressional conservatives’ wish lists of priorities for the new president.
“ I have told President Trump he is in a unique position in history to be a hero … by returning power to where it belongs,” @SenMikeLee says.
Here’s what 11 conservative lawmakers in Congress had to say to The Daily Signal about what Trump should do during his first 100 days in the White House.
“There’s a very good chance President Trump will have to restore some limits on federal power, especially executive power,” Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, told The Daily Signal in a phone interview.
The 115th Congress Should Get to Work Restraining the Powers of the Presidency https://t.co/jimfZgzpIe #A1P
— Mike Lee (@SenMikeLee) January 4, 2017
Lee said an oversight bill he cosponsored, dubbed the REINS Act, would be a good place for Trump to start.
“President-elect Trump has said he supports the REINS Act, which is a proposal that passed the House … It would require approval from Congress before a major regulation would take effect,” Lee said.
For Congress to be successful in its efforts to curb executive power, Lee said, government must not be seen as a solution to any given problem. He said:
We have been suffering for a long time under the delusion, created deliberately by some in Washington over the years, … that if there is a problem, there has to be a federal solution and the best solutions are federal solutions. That has misserved the American people.
Trump has the ability to correct this disservice and best serve the American people by reining in executive overreach, Lee said.
“I have told President Trump he is in a unique position in history to be a hero to the American poor and middle class by returning power to where it belongs,” Lee said.
Priorities: Reining in the bureaucracy, making healthcare affordable & accessible, fixing broken tax code so we can better compete in world. https://t.co/JV3iWduWgZ
— Don Bacon (@DonJBacon) January 16, 2017
Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb., told The Daily Signal he hopes Trump will address executive overreach by signing three bills that Bacon and his House colleagues have passed since the House convened Jan. 3.
The bills, which address executive overreach and regulations, will be taken up next by the Senate. They include the REINS Act, the Midnight Rules Relief Act, and the Regulatory Accountability Act.
“I hope the president will sign [these] so we can provide some relief for our businesses,” the newly elected Bacon said.
My House colleagues and I have just taken the first steps to repealing Obamacare. –>https://t.co/w7UsZrLxNT
— Marsha Blackburn (@MarshaBlackburn) January 13, 2017
Rep. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., said Republicans and Democrats alike are unhappy with the pattern of executive overreach that Obama set.
“I think there was bipartisan frustration in the House that this past administration felt that they did not need Congress,” Blackburn said in a phone interview with The Daily Signal. “If they wanted to do something, they would execute an executive memo or executive order and could make decisions by circumventing Congress and utilizing rulemaking to go around the will of Congress.”
Examples of what conservatives consider Obama’s executive overreach include changing immigration law to grant amnesty to millions of illegal immigrants; imposing Common Core education standards on the states; and stepping on Americans’ religious freedom in matters such as abortion, same-sex marriage, and access to girls’ school rest rooms and locker rooms based on gender identity.
Tomorrow the 45th President of the United States of America will be sworn in here ?? pic.twitter.com/CabFW18qS4
— Gary Palmer (@USRepGaryPalmer) January 19, 2017
Rep. Gary Palmer, R-Ala., said Trump has an opportunity to set a different precedent.
“I hope with a Trump administration we will see restoration of constitutional government under the executive branch,” Palmer told The Daily Signal in a phone interview. “That would be a huge success in this administration.”
Contrary to what some in the media are reporting, Palmer said, Republicans in Congress have been planning to repeal and replace Obamacare since its passage in 2010:
I told some of our members in the House … that Democrats and liberals in the media are all contending that we do not have a replacement plan. There’ve been people working on a replacement plan since the day that Obamacare was passed. The issue is, how do we want to go about it and what are the different ideas out there?
>>> House Takes Major Step in Repealing Obamacare
There are several steps to come but the goal is very clear: repeal it all – every regulation, tax, mandate – and do it this Congress
— Rep. Jim Jordan (@Jim_Jordan) January 13, 2017
Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio., told The Daily Signal that repealing Obamacare is one way that Trump can stand up for typical Americans.
“I want President-elect Trump to fight for everyday Americans,” Jordan said in a statement provided to The Daily Signal. “This means actually repealing Obamacare.”
What does the #Obamacare #repeal process look like? Step 3 is now complete. pic.twitter.com/s8RadlSfNh
— Rep. Dave Brat (@RepDaveBrat) January 13, 2017
Rep. Dave Brat, R-Va., told The Daily Signal that he is excited to begin addressing what to do about Obamacare once Trump’s Cabinet team moves past the confirmation phase in the Senate.
“We’re all just waiting because we know he’s in a tough position right now when the secretaries are being confirmed,” Brat said in a phone interview with The Daily Signal. “So obviously what we all want to see is a big green light with a go-ahead in agreement between the House, Senate, and [Trump] in how we are going to proceed and the specifics on Obamacare.”
Today I introduced legislation to recognize Jerusalem as capital of #Israel & move the U.S. Embassy located in Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.
— Rep. Trent Franks (@RepTrentFranks) January 4, 2017
Rep. Trent Franks, R-Ariz., told The Daily Signal in a phone interview that Trump should work to strengthen business and free enterprise.
“I think it’s important that he projects a sense that America’s back in business, and that we’re committed to using this magnificent free enterprise mechanism that we have to not only be productive but to be engines of innovation in the world,” Franks said.
Free market solutions, Franks said, are nearly always the answer to economic problems, but Obama has crippled their use.
“Innovation solves almost all economic problems, but it cannot exist in a socialist nightmare that Barack Obama tried to force on the nation,” he said.
Palmer also told The Daily Signal that a good place for Trump to begin strengthening American leadership abroad is to do away with the Iran nuclear deal:
[The Iran deal] was never a legitimately approved arrangement. It basically bypassed Congress and … the fact that the president entered into the agreement, he did it in violation of the law that he signed … that required the congresspeople to be informed of any changes in the agreement.
https://t.co/ke03fzZvcg
— Rep. Mark Walker (@RepMarkWalker) January 13, 2017
In addition to addressing policy issues, Rep. Mark Walker, R-N.C., said he hopes the new president will exhibit a heart for leadership.
“I hope it is not just about the policy but it is communicated through the conduit of the right heart, the right approach, the right voice,” Walker told The Daily Signal in a phone interview. “That is something that has been important to us from day one.”
While Republican lawmakers want Trump to prioritize specific issues, including strengthening the military and rewriting the tax code, others such as Rep. Ron DeSantis, R-Fla., refer to a big picture agenda.
“I hope President Trump honors the promises made by candidate Trump and moves immediately to rescind unconstitutional executive actions of the Obama administration, to announce the relocation of the American Embassy in Israel to Jerusalem, and to call on Congress to pass measures such as term limits designed to ‘drain the swamp,’” DeSantis said in a statement provided to The Daily Signal.
Sent a letter today to President-elect Trump expressing support for his policy to move the American embassy in Israel to Jerusalem. pic.twitter.com/kyWwZhcsPo
— Ron DeSantis (@RepDeSantis) January 11, 2017
Rep. Warren Davidson, R-Ohio, said he is counting on Trump to reverse Obama’s regulatory legacy.
“I’m glad that these past eight years are finally over,” Davidson said in a statement provided to The Daily Signal. “I hope that after being sworn in, President Trump will go to the White House and then immediately reverse as much of Obama’s legacy as possible by executive action.”
via @npr: GOP Rep. Warren Davidson On Trump Win And Freedom Caucus Vision #tcot #OH08 https://t.co/aqzQHcauQw
— Warren Davidson (@Vote_Davidson) November 10, 2016
Jordan said now is the time for conservatives to “follow through” on promises, and he expects the Trump administration to play a big role.
“It’s time for Republicans to follow through on the promises we’ve made to the American people over the past six years,” Jordan said, adding:
This means reforming the tax code so special interests no longer get special deals at the expense of ordinary taxpayers. This means actual border security and enforcing our immigration laws. I hope and expect these things and more from the Trump administration.
Despite the hefty to-do list, Rep. Jody Hice, R-Ga., said, he is confident conservatives will be successful in executing reform. In a statement provided to The Daily Signal, Hice said:
We have an aggressive to-do list to tackle, which includes repealing Obamacare, rewriting the tax code, eliminating burdensome government regulations, and implementing an affordable, patient-centered health care system. These tasks won’t be easy, but with a unified Republican government, I am confident that we will get our country back on track.
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