The stunning results of the USA elections surprised both Democrats and Republicans alike. Trump’s unprecedented victory was accompanied by Republican wins in the US Senate and House of Representatives. Before the 2024 elections, Democrats controlled the Senate with 51 seats to Republicans’ 49, while Republicans held a narrow majority in the House with 220 seats to Democrats’ 212.
After the elections, Republicans gained control of the Senate with 53 seats, and in the House, they retained their majority with 220 seats to Democrats’ 213, with 2 races undecided. This outcome resulted in unified Republican control of both chambers of Congress.
This has emboldened President-elect Donald J. Trump to undertake one of the boldest policy and administrative decisions in the US history, which could be a potential game changer. Trump has established the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), to streamline federal operations by identifying wasteful spending, reducing regulatory burdens, and restructuring or potentially abolishing certain agencies to enhance government efficiency.
He is poised to substantially reduce the size of the U.S. civilian and military bureaucracy, which, according to the strategic reform team led by Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, has grown excessively large. They argue that the bureaucracy has become a de facto “fourth branch” of government, assuming overriding control over decision-making processes and diminishing the power of the democratically elected political leadership.
Qamar Bashir
Copyright Business Recorder, 2024
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