President
“With a very tight Majority, I don’t want to take a chance on anyone else running for Elise’s seat,” Trump said in a Truth Social post on Thursday. “There are others that can do a good job at the United Nations.”
Stefanik’s nomination had threatened an already-slim Republican majority in the House, as the party moves to advance Trump’s legislative agenda on taxes, energy and immigration. Trump’s decision is an implicit acknowledgment of the difficulties Republicans face passing those priorities in the coming months.
Securing an increase in the debt limit and approving tax and spending legislation using the reconciliation process, which allows Republicans to circumvent Democrats, would already be a tough without losing an additional vote, a senior White House official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. The official expressed a desire to move as quickly as possible on the president’s priorities.
House Speaker
Keeping Stefanik, 40, in the House preserves a consistently loyal Trump vote. She has been an ardent supporter of the president in Congress, including during a stint in House leadership.
It will also avoid a public fight over Trump’s trade policies in Stefanik’s northern New York district, which borders Canada. Democrats had already begun raising millions of dollars for Blake Gendebien, a dairy farmer, seeking to flip the seat.
Gendebien has campaigned on the harms that he says Trump’s tariffs on Canadian imports will do to the region, which is closely connected economically with its northern neighbor. Trump on Wednesday announced a new round of 25% tariffs on car and auto imports and has said he will soon impose levies on Canadian lumber.
Earlier:
Replacing Stefanik in the chamber would have taken several months. New York law requires the special election to take place within 90 days of a House member resigning. That potentially could have left the seat vacant into the summer. Stefanik won her seat by a wide margin in 2024. A Democrat hasn’t held that seat since 2015.
Both Florida districts are solidly Republican, but Democrats seeking to flip the seats have strong backing from donors, pulling in millions more than their GOP challengers. An upset in either race could further destabilize Johnson’s tenuous control over the chamber.
Polling in the race to replace Waltz shows a tighter-than-expected margin in a district Republicans have easily carried in prior elections. Trump is planning to call into virtual campaign events for Florida candidates on Thursday, another sign Republicans are worried about losing their edge.
Asked about the sharply divided House in an interview with Fox News on Thursday night, Stefanik said, “I know the stakes. She added that “I have been proud to be a team player, the president knows that.”
Earlier:
Stefanik’s devotion to Trump has a long public track record. She was among the 147 House Republicans who voted against certifying then President-elect
The decision also creates a hole for the administration at the UN, which has long been a target of Republican ire. Stefanik had said in her confirmation hearing that she intended to deliver “much-needed reforms” and push back against China’s growing influence at the global body.
She also condemned what she called “antisemitic rot,” a reference to criticism by UN agencies and member countries of Israel’s actions in the Palestinian Territories, including the devastation of Gaza in the war against Hamas.
The Trump administration has already made one major shift at the UN, aligning its votes with Russia in a matter related to the war in Ukraine. That move broke with allies and the Biden administration, who have blamed Moscow for the invasion and called for Russia to withdraw.
Earlier:
(Updates with Stefanik on Fox News, in the twelfth paragraph.)
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Meghashyam Mali, John Harney
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