If you want to know how Donald Trump would govern if he wins in 2024 — or Ron DeSantis or for that matter Will Hurd — tune out the din of the Republican presidential campaign and cast your gaze toward the House of Representatives. What you will see is that it’s not Trump’s party so much as Jason Smith’s.
Jason who? Trump sucks up all the attention. But it is Smith, the chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, who would play the crucial role in setting the legislative agenda if the party retains the House and wins the presidency. And his plans for 2025 don’t look so different from Republican plans of 10, 20 or even 25 years ago.
Every four years, Americans tend to forget the reality that, on most topics, Congress governs. I am not immune to this phenomenon. I remember covering the debate in the 2020 Democratic primary about Medicare for All versus Joe Biden’s proposal for a public option — all of which came to naught when it turned out the votes weren’t there for any kind of big push on health care. I also covered debates in the 2008 campaign in which Barack Obama derided Hillary Clinton’s plan for an individual mandate — and then watched him become a strong believer in the idea once he became president and realized Senator Max Baucus supported it.
