Trump urged to forget about Twitter
– Near the end of President Donald Trump’s rocky first year in office, White House aides view imminent victory on a tax overhaul as a starting point to strengthen his weak approval ratings ahead of key congressional elections next November.
Some Republicans said any effort at a political turnaround must include reining in Trump’s habit of lashing out at critics on Twitter.
White House aides said they recognised that Trump’s poll numbers needed to start rising to limit the damage in 2018 elections in which his fellow Republicans’ continued control of Congress will be at stake.
A Democratic takeover of the House of Representatives and Senate could jeopardise Trump’s agenda.
“We have to grow, we have to move up, and I think having more successes like the tax vote will be important to us,” said a senior White House official.
Administration officials said Trump would seek to use momentum generated from the biggest tax rewrite in 30 years to help propel other legislative priorities, including an infrastructure program and welfare reform.
Final passage of the Republican tax bill is expected on Wednesday in what would be Trump’s first major legislative victory since taking office in January.
But the tax bill carries risks. Republicans insist it will boost the economy and job growth. Democrats condemn it as a giveaway to corporations and the rich. In a Reuters/Ipsos poll, some 52% of adults said they opposed the tax plan, while 27% supported it.
Unless Trump practices greater discipline, some Republican strategists see disaster looming in the congressional elections, in which a third of the 100-member Senate and all 435 seats in the House will be up for grabs.
“Stop tweeting and start the new year with a new level of message discipline. Just try it. It’ll work. And you’ll get those poll numbers back up,” said Republican strategist Scott Reed.
Trump has repeatedly caused controversy with early morning tweets, particularly those aimed at individuals. He raised hackles recently when he tweeted that Democratic senator Kirsten Gillibrand “would do anything” for campaign donations.