After last week’s elections handed Democrats control of both chambers of Congress, President Trump has restructured his White House team in a way that signals he intends to rely heavily on executive authority rather than legislation for the remainder of his term. Stephen Miller now runs the White House policy operation, while Susie Wiles oversees the political operation — a division of labor that allows the administration to pursue policy fights with Congress while separately managing the Republican Party’s direction heading into 2028.
With Democrats set to take over the House and Senate in January, Trump’s legislative agenda is widely seen as stalled. But the executive branch retains significant authority that does not require congressional approval, and analysts say the administration has several avenues to keep pursuing its priorities.
Money already appropriated
Congress approved nearly $70 billion in additional Department of Homeland Security funding earlier this year, much of which remains available through 2029. Because that money has already been appropriated, Democrats cannot claw it back without passing new legislation — which Trump could veto. That gives the administration room to continue expanding detention capacity, accelerating deportations, and deepening cooperation with state and local police without needing further immigration legislation from Congress.
A Dec. 11 government funding deadline is seen as one of the last chances for Republicans, who still control Congress until January, to lock in provisions before the handover. Senate Republicans are also expected to face pressure to confirm as many judicial nominees as possible in the remaining weeks of GOP control.
Regulatory and grant authority
Budget director Russ Vought has been pursuing changes that would give political appointees greater influence over federal grants. Congress temporarily blocked that overhaul through Dec. 11, and that restriction is set to expire. Even without the proposed changes, existing grant authorities already give the administration discretion to favor projects that meet federal objectives while applying more scrutiny elsewhere, within the bounds of existing statutes.
The administration also has latitude on regulatory decisions affecting environmental permitting, energy production and other industries. In June, the Supreme Court overturned decades of precedent limiting the president’s ability to remove officials at certain independent agencies, and Trump has separately moved to make thousands of policy-influencing positions easier to dismiss — changes that give the White House more leverage over officials who implement its decisions.
Democrats retain some tools to push back, including the Congressional Review Act, which lets lawmakers challenge certain regulations — though Trump could veto those resolutions too. Other disputes would likely end up in court, where litigation can take months even when challengers ultimately prevail.
National security and personnel tools
Trump’s confrontation with Iran and ongoing competition with China give the administration a framework for treating energy projects, semiconductor plants and computing infrastructure as strategic assets, using authorities under the Defense Production Act, trade statutes and emergency powers to support industries it considers essential to national security. Those powers have limits — emergency declarations cannot override existing law or congressional spending rules — but they allow the administration to frame disputes in national-security terms.
On personnel, a Democratic Senate can block Trump’s nominees, but acting officials can still exercise substantial authority, and recess appointments remain available under limited constitutional circumstances, giving the administration options when Senate confirmation isn’t feasible.
What Democrats can still do
Democrats will retain subpoena power, oversight hearings, investigations and control of annual appropriations once they take over Congress. The White House can contest subpoenas, invoke executive privilege where it believes justified, and fight disputes in court. And if Democrats pass legislation Trump opposes, he can veto it; without the votes to override a veto, Democratic-passed bills would have limited practical effect.
Political observers note a risk to this approach: voters removed Republicans from congressional control amid frustration over prices, the war with Iran, and Trump’s conduct in office. A strategy built around repeated confrontations with Democrats could reinforce the very grievances that cost Republicans their majorities, regardless of how much executive leverage the White House retains.
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