Democrats in Congress gained the power Tuesday night to more forcefully investigate President Trump and rein in his agenda, setting up confrontations that are likely to define the final two years of his presidency.
As party leaders on Wednesday celebrated retaking the House and Senate, they vowed to put Trump and his administration on the defensive with subpoenas and hearings, a role that voters made clear they want them to play. But they also said the top priority would be the issue that swept them to power: making life more affordable.
"We are going to work hard to drive costs down with the president or without him, period," Sen. Chuck Schumer, who is poised to become Senate majority leader, said at a news conference.
Schumer's fellow New Yorker and the House Democratic leader, Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, echoed those priorities on CNN: "We ran on affordability, we won decisively on affordability, and now we have a responsibility to govern on affordability."
With power split between the legislative and executive branches, to what degree Washington avoids gridlock will depend on how Trump wields his veto pen and how the Democrats negotiate with him — and how they follow through on pledges to investigate what they called a corrupt administration.

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