'We're just on day 1': Republicans and Democrats are gearing up for a new status quo in Congress

WASHINGTON – Republicans won't take full control of Congress until January, but lawmakers on both sides of the aisle returned to a new status quo on Capitol Hill this week. GOP leaders are gearing up to pass President-elect Donald Trump's priorities ? and Democrats are digging into their 2024 losses.

As sun rays hit the marbled steps of the Capitol building Wednesday morning, House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., stood behind a white podium with the words “New Day” printed in bright red letters. The sunny weather, Johnson said, was a “reflection” of how Republicans were feeling.

“We’re gonna raise an ‘America First’ banner above this place,” he said. The speaker declared a mandate to implement Trump’s agenda after the president-elect swiftly defeated Vice President Kamala Harris in the race for the White House, Republicans kept their control of the House and flipped enough seats to take hold of the Senate.

The trifecta gives the GOP sweeping power to enact major policy changes next year. Johnson, for example, told a crowd of supporters on the campaign trail last month that there would be "no Obamacare" and “massive reform” to health care if Republicans controlled the White House, Senate and House.

Democrats, meanwhile, largely ducked questions as they returned to Washington about how they plan to move forward.

“We're just on day one, so let's hold that,” Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., joked on Capitol Hill on Tuesday evening.

Rep. Jared Golden, D-Maine, who won reelection in a district that also backed Trump, advised his colleagues to “take a deep breath." He called on his fellow Democrats to avoid rushing to prognosticate on their losses while lawmakers return to the nation's capital after spending over a month in their districts.

Others on the left who won tight races in swing states offered limited advice for their colleagues about how to regain the trust of voters.

Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wisc., who narrowly won reelection 49.4% to 48.5%, in the battleground that Trump carried, suggested Democrats needed to listen to voters of all backgrounds ? and not count out any potential supporters ahead of the Midterm elections in 2026.

“Show up everywhere: red counties, purple counties, blue counties," she said.

Republicans get ready for a trifecta

Republicans weren’t shy about explaining their agenda for Trump's second administration.

Enthusiasm among the party soared Wednesday morning when Trump appeared at the House Republicans' conference’s meeting, greeting his fellow lawmakers in a hotel ballroom and telling them it was "nice to win."

Members beamed as they filed into the lobby of the Hyatt Regency on their way to the Capitol building, just a few blocks away, after listening to Trump speak. Many said they were eager to greenlight the president-elect's agenda.

Rep. Troy Nehls, R-Texas, was decked out in a red Trump tie and $399 gold Trump-branded sneakers. "Everybody here should be smiling," he said, with a grin on his face. Nehls argued Republicans needed to embrace “every single word” of Trump’s mission.

“A lot of hard work went into this election cycle. People were very, very happy with it... and really just taking a minor victory lap,” said Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Fla., one of Trump’s most steadfast supporters in Congress.

As far as policy priorities, GOP lawmakers told USA TODAY said they're still ironing out details, but they pointed to plans that mirror Trump's signature talking points on the campaign trail: ramping up border security, cutting taxes and axing environmental regulations in an effort to lower energy costs as some of their first priorities.

To start, the Republican trifecta could pave the way for Trump to appoint cabinet picks of his choosing.

The former president has already put forward a slew of loyal sitting senators and House members for posts in his next administration – including Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., as secretary of state; Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., as attorney general and Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y. as ambassador to the United Nations. He’s also proposed creating a Department of Government Efficiency led by Tesla CEO Elon Musk and former biotech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, though it's not clear if the new initiative would require Senate confirmation.

The DOGE received widespread praise from House Republicans. But Democrats didn't jeer at all of Trump's choices.

Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., praised Rubio's nomination. Warner, who works with Rubio on the Senate Intelligence Committee, told USA TODAY his colleague was a "very strong choice" shortly before Trump officially announced Rubio.

Other nominees ? namely Gaetz ? received more pushback, and not just from Democrats. Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, a more moderate Republican, told reporters she was "shocked" by his nomination to the Justice Department, which previously investigated Gaetz for sex trafficking.

Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., said the Florida Republican would have “a lot of work” to get through Senate confirmation.

“We got 53 members, not a Democrat that's going to vote for him," Tillis said. "But presumably the folks that have put them forward and gave that out. But I'm sure it'll make for a popcorn-eating confirmation.”

Contributing: Riley Beggin, Savannah Kuchar and Sudiksha Kochi, USA TODAY

(An earlier version of this story had incorrect party affiliations for three members of Congress. Reps. Troy Nehls and Byron Donalds are Republicans and Rep. Jared Golden is a Democrat.)

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump nominees, GOP priorities: Congress gears up for 2025 fights