Washington: US President Donald Trump has warned that he would use his presidential veto power extensively if Democrats gain control of Congress in the midterm elections. Trump also indicated that he could issue sweeping preemptive pardons to protect members of his administration from potential legal action.
Speaking to The New York Post’s Miranda Devine in an interview on the 'Pod Force One' podcast, Trump made it clear he would use his presidential power to stop any opposition legislation from becoming law and compel Democrats to negotiate.
"I guess I'll become Mr. Veto. I'm not going to let them ruin it," Trump said.
"Look, if we didn't win—I think we're going to do great, but if we didn't win, I veto everything. I'll be vetoing, vetoing, and then they'll come along and we'll probably make some deals along the way," he said.
Trump said he expects a few months of fighting before Democrats are forced to sit down with him.
"They'll be sending stuff up. You veto it. And eventually, after a month or two of getting all vetoed, they're just wasting [time], they come over, and you make a deal. I think that probably would happen, but hopefully we don't have to worry about that," he stated.
Warning supporters that Democratic majorities would attempt to roll back his signature economic policies and expand progressive agendas, Trump vowed to use the presidential veto as an impenetrable shield.
"They want to get rid of your Second Amendment, have transgender for everyone... I can stop it because it's veto. But it wouldn't be as good, because we have the great, big, beautiful bill. We gave tremendous tax cuts. It's amazing what we've done: no tax on tips, no tax on Social Security for our seniors, no tax on overtime. I mean, the tax cuts are incredible. They want to put them back," the US President stated in the podcast.
Beyond blocking legislation, Trump signalled he would aggressively exercise his clemency powers to shield his aides and officials if Democrats win control of Congress and launch retaliatory investigations or prosecutions.
Asked directly whether he would issue sweeping preemptive pardons to everyone who worked in his administration, Trump did not hesitate and said, "I would if I needed to. Sure," Trump stated. "I'd do it. I did it for J6."
Addressing potential inquiries targeting former Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) leader Elon Musk and former agency staff member Edward Coristine, Trump confirmed he would utilise presidential clemency powers to prevent prospective prosecutions.
"If they do it, we'll just have to protect those people," Trump stated when asked about prospective Democratic efforts targeting Musk and his DOGE team.
Trump justified the potential move by pointing to actions taken by former President Joe Biden during his final hours in office: "That's what Biden did. He gave everybody a pardon," Trump said, referencing Biden's outgoing pardons for Dr. Anthony Fauci, General Mark Milley, members and staff of the House January 6 committee, and his son Hunter.
Taking a final swipe at the congressional panel that investigated his first administration, Trump dismissed the committee as "the unselect committee" and "a corrupt committee."
Meanwhile, the Trump administration appealed to the Supreme Court on Monday in its push to sideline thousands of disputed California mail ballots the day before the pivotal midterm elections.
The emergency appeal came after an appeals court rejected the request to set aside some 20,000 ballots from people the federal government suspects may not be citizens.
The Republican Trump administration has prioritised identifying noncitizen voters this year, despite them being rare.
The federal government says those ballots should not be counted until the voters' status can be verified.
California officials say the list is highly unreliable and likely includes many people who are US citizens.
A district court judge forcefully denied the Justice Department's request and warned that the demand could disenfranchise citizens in the November 3 midterm elections to determine control of Congress.
(With inputs from ANI & AP via PTI)