President-elect Donald Trump called into Senate Republicans’ policy retreat on Tuesday, according to multiple sources familiar with the meeting, an early sign of their close coordination as the GOP prepares for unified control of Washington.
Senate Republicans huddled for hours at the Library of Congress, a stone’s throw from the Capitol, to discuss their priorities for next year.
At the top of the list is confirming Trump’s Cabinet nominees, some of whom face a difficult path through the Senate. Legislatively, Republicans have begun to sketch out their plan to reauthorize Trump’s 2017 tax cuts.
Trump has met repeatedly with congressional Republicans in recent months, including a visit with Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) and House colleagues shortly after his election.
His last in-person visit with Senate Republicans was in June, when he traveled to Washington for an appearance before the Business Roundtable.
In the phone call, Trump congratulated the newly elected senators, according to one source familiar with the matter. Republicans will control a 53-seat majority in January.
At other times, he has urged GOP unity. Over in the House, Republicans could start the year with the same razor-thin majority that contributed to Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s ouster.
Incoming Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD), who hosted the retreat with Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), the incoming policy chairwoman, has repeatedly warned his conference that the Senate could be in for long hours in the early months of Trump’s presidency.
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Confirmation hearings are expected to begin before Trump is sworn in on Jan. 20. Republicans will also have to navigate deadlines to extend the debt limit and government funding in the first half of the year.
In terms of a tax bill, Republicans are considering ways to attach energy and border wall provisions to a proposal that could circumvent the filibuster and get through the Senate with 51 votes.