congressional

And Trump should for now be able to avoid the kind of congressional investigations he faced in the second half of his first term.

In the last several days, Trump has nominated Pete Hegseth, a Fox television host and veteran who has never held a leadership post, as his secretary of Defense; Tulsi Gabbard, a former Democratic House member accused of spreading Kremlin talking points, as his director of National Intelligence; and Matt Gaetz, a Florida Republican who resigned his seat in the House on Wednesday while facing a congressional investigation into sex trafficking, as his attorney general.

When Trump’s congressional allies failed to repeal the Affordable Care Act in the summer of 2017, he seemed all too happy to let the issue go once and for all.

Gaetz, who led the group of right-wing Republicans who voted out House Speaker Kevin McCarthy in 2023, also voted against awarding congressional medals to the police officers who defended the U.S.

There could also be a constitutional crisis over the mere appointment of figures like Gaetz and Hegseth if Trump, as he has reportedly considered doing, tries to install them in the Cabinet during congressional “recesses” rather than through the traditional confirmation process.