The Democrats now control U.S. Congress. Here’s how they could slow Trump down - Toronto Star

The president still has executive powers to impose tariffs, but the Democrats' return to power in Congress provides more mechanisms to force change.

U.S. President Donald Trump arrives to deliver remarks, ahead of the midterm elections at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, after being reopened following months of repairs, in Washington, DC on Nov. 2.

The Democrats’ return to power in Congress is welcome news for Canadians who have long yearned for a check on U.S. President Donald Trump’s power.

And while Trump maintains his executive powers to impose tariffs on Canada — even in the face of Tuesday’s historic blowback by voters in the midterm elections — the sea change in Congress does give his opponents more tools to exert pressure for change, from launching investigations to wielding greater influence over federal spending, said Canadian and U.S. trade experts.

“Trump’s own sense usually is to add more tariffs and more pressure,” veteran international trade lawyer Barry Appleton said. “Now, with a change in Congress, he’s probably got more reason to put more negotiation time and less pressure time.”

But Appleton cautioned that while Congress may have changed hands, the White House hasn’t, and Canadians shouldn’t get their hopes up.

By Wednesday afternoon, Democrats had gained seven seats in the Senate, leading Republicans 54 to 44, and held 237 seats in the House to the Republicans’ 139.

Ottawa will be celebrating the GOP’s losses in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives, even if it does not end the trade war.