In case the Republicans took control of Congress

The American people are holding their breath in light of the country’s preparations for the midterm congressional elections scheduled, Tuesday, in light of an intense battle between the Democrats and Republican parties, as polls indicate that the latter is relatively close to controlling the House and Senate.

Immediately after the release of opinion polls in recent days, Western reports, especially American ones, quickly spread predicting the conceivable situation regarding foreign policy – including the Ukrainian crisis, strained relations with Russia and Iran, and competition with China, if the Republicans took control of the Congress.

CNN said: that, this year may be a new peak of political instability in the country if the Republicans took control of Congress.

In its report, CNN stated, that the midterm elections have always been bad for the party that heads the White House, noting that they are particularly bad when most Americans are dissatisfied with the economy and the president’s performance.

CNN report added that the last two reasons are perfectly consistent with the status quo, with polls showing that most Americans don’t agree with how President Joe Biden has dealt with crime and borders, especially the economy and inflation.

“This may be how elections will eventually play out, particularly in House and state legislative races where individual candidates are less well known, and many voters are likely to express their dissatisfaction with the country by voting against the ruling party”.

CNN continued, “Democrats continue to be able to unexpectedly compete in the Senate and state governor races by focusing attention not only on what Biden has done, but what Republicans may do with power”.

“The Republican victory in the elections will simply continue the long-term trend towards instability” in the US political system, and heralds an era similar to the era of former US President Donald Trump.

The Foreign Policy magazine highlighted the internal and external political situation in the shadow of a Republican-led Congress, and said that Republicans are likely to start many investigations and impeachment if they regain majority control of the Capitol, noting that the consequences will be felt around the world.

On the domestic front, the Foreign Policy magazine quoted a politician as saying that if the Republicans win the election, there will be many investigations into public and private entities, and he said there has been talk of investigations into the so-called vigilance culture.

For example, the politician, speaking with the Foreign Policy magazine, made it clear that Hunter Biden (the son of the US president) would be the focus of the House Oversight Committee because of his business ties abroad.

“There have been calls to impeach the Minister of Homeland Security, Alejandro Mallorcas… migration will also be a big focus”.

On the foreign policy front, the Foreign Policy magazine saw that the Republicans’ top priority would be for Afghanistan, in light of the chaotic withdrawal from there, and said, “We haven’t seen any kind of detailed accountability from the Biden administration, about what went wrong, and why the Afghan government collapsed so quickly and the Afghan army withered as Event”.

“We’ve already seen some early hints of this from the interim report from the House Foreign Affairs Committee, and on another dossier, Republicans will be looking at the origins of the novel coronavirus and the Biden administration’s response to that, too”.

On the Chinese issue, Foreign Policy reported that at times, the Biden administration appears to continue Trump’s aggressive policies when it comes to China, as the administration continues to impose sanctions on Beijing, in addition to significantly expanding controls on technology flowing into and out of the country.

The Foreign Policy magazine said Republican control of Congress could mean more confrontational politics when it comes to Biden’s approach to China.

With regard to Iran, the Foreign Policy magazine saw that the Republicans seizure of power would negatively affect the Biden administration regarding the Iranian nuclear issue, and would hinder the administration’s movement regarding reaching a nuclear agreement, noting that the Republicans would always use Iran as a talking point to hit Biden who they believe has been too lenient with Tehran.

The Foreign Policy magazine said that although the nuclear agreement is considered dead at the moment, Tehran has somewhat implicated itself in the Ukrainian war, as Russia has become increasingly dependent on its actions; what may change the Biden administration’s calculations, in any future negotiations to revive the Iranian nuclear agreement.

As for Ukraine, and also Russia, will be watching the congressional elections closely, as Ukrainians fear any disruption to US support for their country, which they consider an existential issue in light of their war with Russia.

The United States has provided more weapons, financial support, and other assistance to Ukraine than the other members of NATO combined, at more than $60 billion; this made the war in Ukraine the largest in Europe since World War II.

This support has persisted despite deep partisan divisions in Washington, which are made full display in the congressional campaign, which is expected to culminate in a vote tomorrow.

But while the Russian war hasn’t topped Americans’ concerns, a growing number of Republican lawmakers, and a smaller number of Democrats – are expressing concerns about an open financial commitment to Ukraine.

Representative Kevin McCarthy, the Republican minority leader in the House of Representatives, would become House leader if Republicans took over.

In the lead, he has stated that there will be no blank check for Ukraine if his party takes control of Congress.

As Speaker of the House, McCarthy will have broad freedom to appoint skeptical Ukraine lawmakers as chairs of the budget and foreign affairs committees, as well as the power to decide which bills will be put to a vote.

Pre-election polls show record inflation, soaring gasoline and energy prices, rising crime rates, a looming recession and other economic issues that top US lists of concern, issues traditionally seen as Republican strengths.

The Ukraine war and other foreign policy issues have not been seen in election campaigns across the country or in advertisements flooding American television sets, however, and a small number of congressional lawmakers have openly questioned President Joe Biden’s rush to support Kyiv.

On the other hand, there may be cracks in the ranks of the Republicans in Congress over the file of aid to Ukraine, and if the Republicans control the Senate, in the meantime, it will become Mitch McConnell, the leader of the Senate, who has been the most forceful senator in his public statements in support of Ukraine.

“Helping Ukraine isn’t a symbolic gesture of complacency,” he said in a speech to the Senate in September.

It is, quite literally, an investment in our national security and the security of our allies.

The Biden administration and our allies need to do more to provide Ukraine with the tools it needs to thwart Russian aggression”.

And regarding the American public’s feeling about the war in Ukraine, opinion polls indicated that support remains high, but there are signs that it has eased as the war continues.