A House ally of President Trump and a former powerful chairman is warning the White House that Democrats are gunning for “anything and everything Trump.”
Oregon Republican Rep. Greg Walden, the past chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee, said that the new Democratic majority is teeing up several investigations that could last years.
“I fully anticipate the Democrats will devote enormous resources to investigating anything and everything Trump,” he told the moderate Republican Ripon Society at a Washington gathering.
“In this case, they now have the subpoena authority to back up their efforts. But these investigations can drag on for years, and the administrations of both parties know how to batten down the hatches and slow-walk responses to requests, demands, and subpoenas,” he added in comments provided to Washington Secrets.
Walden, who spoke Thursday before the new Congress was sworn in, said it is possible that Democrats, with 63 new members, will overreach in trying to satisfy their anti-Trump base.
[Related: House Democrat to introduce impeachment measure against Trump]
“Look, bold, new majorities overreach. We did, and they will. This is especially true in wave years like 2018, with 63 — I think it is — new Democrats. They will definitely have this problem, especially with the progressive-socialist wing of their party. They’ll have to satisfy their hardcore base. So what does that mean? It means that they have to take quick action on things like Net Neutrality, the Green New Deal, and Medicare for all, or their base will go into complete meltdown,” Walden explained.
And that, he added, could help Republicans in the next election in 2020.
“The American people will want results. If the Democrats yield too much to their progressive activists, then how will their grand plans ever make it through the Republican Senate or across the president’s desk? You need to legislate and enact laws. To succeed at legislating, one does have to do more than satisfy the most extreme in the crowd,” said Walden.
“If they go too far, 2020 might look a lot like 2010. After all, some 33 Democrats are now in seats that President Trump won. And while the Democrats did a marvelous job at recruiting candidates, most rode the wave named ‘check and balance.’ They’re going to need legislative results — not government shutdowns,” he added.
While Walden had warnings for Trump and Democrats, he spent much of his time highlighting the bipartisan achievements of his chairmanship in the past two years and the help he received from incoming Chairman Frank Pallone of New Jersey.
“Frank and I have worked pretty well together, and our staffs do as well,” Walden said. “We fought on the things where we disagreed — we fought hard at times. But we also worked together to empower our members and pass legislation to solve America’s problems. The proof is in the product — again, with over 93 percent of those bills achieving bipartisan support in the House.”
