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Talk of pressures, options, and temptations, and we have Washington DC where President Donald Trump finds himself suddenly in a tight spot, and none of this has to do with the constant nagging he faced from his base just a couple of weeks ago over the Epstein files. That is precisely the scene in the capital city where political dramas get played out, some at the instance of parties and others in the media. For reasons that are difficult to explain, the focus keeps shifting from domestic to foreign policy and ever so quickly at that.
There is no doubt that President Donald Trump is facing heat all around: his approval rating is at an all-time low of 36 percent; his base remains strong, but there are rumblings in the Republican Party, with some lawmakers even engaging in bold talk. Even within his supporters, there is apprehension that the backing from those who supported him in 2024, like the Hispanics, is slowly and surely slipping away; the same is said for Independents who are classified as “leaning” Republican; and this is not to forget the young and first-time voters. All this has to do with the Congressional midterm elections of November 2026.
Republicans continue to be jolted by special elections. A few weeks ago, it was all about Zohran Mamdani and his mayoral win in New York City; with this came the Democratic governors’ victories in Virginia and New Jersey, a few state wins, and three Supreme Court races in Pennsylvania, to mention a few. But the real shocker came last week from Tennessee, where the Grand Old Party managed to retain its seat in the House of Representatives but with such a reduced margin that it sent shock waves not just in the red state but nationally.
In a district that President Trump carried by 22 points in 2024, the current winner barely managed it with a nine-point spread. And after making Make America Affordable Again his catchy slogan last November, President Trump is now saying that the whole thing about affordability is nothing but a Democratic hoax and a con job, making Republicans quite uneasy.
President Trump is also taking some flak over two of his senior administration officials: the Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Kash Patel. Venezuela has been in the news for some time now over the operations in the Caribbean involving boats supposedly carrying narcotics for America — about 20 boats have been destroyed, resulting in the loss of over 85 lives.
But the latest furor has to do with the “double tap,” where two survivors clinging to wreckage were targeted all over again and killed. The Department of War is under intense pressure from Republicans and Democrats to release the video of the “double tap.” Few question whether narco boats can be sunk; the focus is on violations of international and domestic laws of operations that could also fall in the realm of war crimes.
But Secretary Hegseth’s problem is not just confined to narco boats, Venezuela, or the rewriting of America’s global security strategy with an emphasis on the Western Hemisphere. It also has to do with something called “Signalgate” — the use of an unsecured messaging app, Signal, during operations involving the Houthis in Yemen earlier this year.
The controversy has been going on for some time now; but an Inspector General’s report of the Pentagon sharply criticizing the Defense Secretary’s use of the app and putting American forces in harm’s way has reignited the debate on whether he should remain in office. As for Director Patel, he has been taken to task for abusing official resources. For now, President Trump is standing by his top officials.
In the midst of all the noise came a Supreme Court ruling endorsing the state of Texas’ redistricting plan that critics said amounted to race-based gerrymandering. The Texas idea was at the urging of President Trump, but now Republicans are wondering if the whole thing could badly backfire even in the red states, forgetting for a minute that the blue states have already started putting in place a similar reshuffling that is advantageous to Democrats.
In the midterms of November 2026, the Republicans have to better the razor-thin majorities in the House of Representatives and the Senate, with Democrats keen on becoming the majority party, at least in the House. The GOP is already alarmed at the fact that some 30 of its elected members have decided not to contest the coming midterms, in the process opening the door for a brutal primary season within the party.
Getting back to the Monroe Doctrine of 1823 — essentially warning third countries against interfering in an area where the United States is a dominant power — is one thing; but using this logic for a land invasion of Venezuela is a totally different matter. There is worry in many quarters, domestic and foreign, that President Trump may order a land invasion using the pretext of narcotics and a staging or transit point for illegals entering the United States.
And then there are others who warn Washington that the geopolitical environment of today is much different from that of the 1800s. Russia, China, and Iran may not be content to sit on the sidelines and be silent spectators. And there is a nagging fear that, in order to shift attention from domestic goings-on, there could be a temptation to shift gears to foreign policy.
Disclaimer: The opinions and views expressed in this article/column are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of South Asian Herald.
