JUST IN: Stunning Late-Night Revolt—Republicans Tell Trump “Game Over” | Lawrence O’Donnell

Tonight, something happened. Something we have been waiting years to witness and something that the record will show is unlike anything we have seen in modern American political history. Republican after Republican standing up, not in private whispers, not through anonymous sources, but publicly, defiantly, telling a sitting president of their own party that he has gone too far. Good evening.

 I’m Lawrence O’Donnell and tonight we have arrived at a moment that historians will study for generations. Let me be clear about what the record now shows. In the past several weeks, we have witnessed a cascade of Republican defections that would have been unthinkable just one year ago. Senators breaking with their president on war powers.

 A sitting Republican senator vowing to block every single Federal Reserve nominee until the Department of Justice abandons what he calls an attack on the independence of the central bank. one of Trump’s most loyal defenders in Congress, Marjgerie Taylor Green, not only breaking with the president, but resigning from Congress entirely.

 And as of tonight, according to NPR’s Congressional Tracker, a record 59 members of Congress have announced they will not return after the 2026 elections. 59 more than 10% of the entire United States Congress. What does this tell us? It tells us that something has fundamentally shifted in the relationship between Donald Trump and the Republican party.

 And that shift accelerated dramatically in the past three weeks. Let the record reflect what happened on January 3rd, 2026. On that day, President Donald Trump ordered a military operation to capture Venezuelan President Nicholas Maduro. United States forces bombed infrastructure across northern Venezuela to suppress air defenses and Delta Force soldiers stormed into Maduro’s compound in Caracus.

 According to the New York Times, at least 80 people were killed, including civilians and military personnel. Trump then declared, and I quote, that the United States would run Venezuela for an unspecified period of time. Think about what that means. The president of the United States announced that America would govern a foreign nation.

 And what was the response from his own party? Five Republican senators, Susan Collins of Maine, Lisa Marowski of Alaska, Ran Paul of Kentucky, Todd Young of Indiana, and Josh Holly of Missouri, voted with Democrats to advance a war powers resolution that would have blocked Trump from using military force in Venezuela without congressional approval.

 The vote was 52 to 47, a bipartisan rebuke. And how did Donald Trump respond to members of his own party exercising their constitutional duties? He posted on True Social that these five senators, quote, should never be elected to office again. That’s the president of the United States telling voters to remove sitting senators from his own party because they dared to assert Congress’s constitutional war makingaking authority.

 Senator Ran Paul, a Republican, stood on the Senate floor and declared, and I want you to hear these words, “Bombing another nation’s capital and removing their leader is an act of war.” Plain and simple. No provision in the Constitution provides such power to the presidency. That is a Republican senator saying those words about a Republican president.

 And then, and here is where it gets truly extraordinary, the Trump administration launched what can only be described as an unprecedented assault on the independence of the Federal Reserve. On January 11th, according to NBC News, the Department of Justice served the Federal Reserve with grand jury subpoenas, threatening criminal indictment of Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell.

The ostensible reason, his testimony about a building renovation project. But let me tell you what Jerome Powell said in response. In a video statement released that Sunday night, Powell said, and this is a direct quote, “The threat of criminal charges is a consequence of the Federal Reserve setting interest rates based on our best assessment of what will serve the public rather than following the preferences of the president.” Read that again.

 The chairman of the Federal Reserve of the United States is publicly accusing the president of using criminal prosecution as a weapon to pressure the central bank on interest rate policy. Powell went further. He said this is about whether the Fed will be able to continue to set interest rates based on evidence and economic conditions or whether instead monetary policy will be directed by political pressure or intimidation.

 And here here is where the Republican revolt became undeniable. Within hours of that announcement, Senator Tom Tillis of North Carolina, a Republican member of the Senate Banking Committee, issued a statement that will be studied by historians. He said, “If there were any remaining doubt whether advisers within the Trump administration are actively pushing to end the independence of the Federal Reserve, there should now benone.

 It is now the independence and credibility of the Department of Justice that are in question.” And then Tillis did something that no Republican senator has done to a Republican president on a matter of this magnitude. He said, “I will oppose the confirmation of any nominee for the Fed, including the upcoming Fed chair vacancy, until this legal matter is fully resolved.

 Let that sink in.” A Republican senator is blocking Donald Trump’s ability to replace Jerome Powell. He is using his position on the banking committee to prevent the president from installing a loyalist at the most powerful economic institution in the country. That is not a symbolic gesture. That is a Republican senator taking concrete action to check the power of a Republican president.

Senator John Kennedy of Louisiana, hardly a Trump critic, said of the DOJ investigation into Powell, “If you wanted to design a system to guarantee that interest rates would go up and not down, the best way to do that would be to have the Federal Reserve and the executive branch of the United States get in a pissing contest.

 We need this like we need a hole in the head.” And then there is the case of Marjgery Taylor Green. If you had told me two years ago that Marjgerie Taylor Green would publicly break with Donald Trump and resign from Congress rather than face a Trumpbacked primary challenger, I would have asked what you were drinking. But that is exactly what happened.

 In November 2025, Green was one of four Republicans who joined Democrats to force a vote on legislation requiring the release of the Jeffrey Epstein files, a measure Trump had lobbied against. According to ABC News, Trump withdrew his endorsement of Green, called her wacky and a traitor and a ranting lunatic on Truth Social, and announced he would support a primary challenger.

 And what did Green do? On November 21st, 2025, she announced she would resign from Congress effective January 5th, 2026. In her statement, she wrote, “And I want you to hear these words from one of Trump’s formerly most loyal defenders.” “I have too much self-respect and dignity, love my family way too much, and do not want my sweet district to endure a hurtful and hateful primary against me by the president we all fought for.

” She also said, “Standing up for American women who were raped at 14, trafficked, and used by rich, powerful men, should not result in me being called a traitor and threatened by the president of the United States. In an interview with CNN, Green said something that reveals just how deep this fracture runs.

 She said, “I feel very sorry for President Trump. I genuinely do. It has to be a hard place for someone that is constantly so hateful and puts so much vitriol, name calling, and really tells lies about people in order to try to get his way or win some kind of fight.” And then she said, “I think the dam is breaking. The dam is breaking.

” Those words from Marjorie Taylor Green, the woman who wore a Make America Great Again hat to Joe Biden’s State of the Union address, saying the dam is breaking against Donald Trump. And here is what the polling shows. According to the Maris poll conducted January 12th and 13th, 2026, Trump’s approval rating stands at 38% with 56% disapproving.

That is a net approval rating of -18, the lowest point of his second term. According to a CNN poll conducted around the same time, Trump’s approval rating stands at 39%. His approval among independents has collapsed to just 29%. According to Nate Silver’s polling average, Trump’s net approval has dropped to -3.

 This for a president whose party has narrow majorities in both chambers and faces a midterm election in November. And the Republicans know what that means. They know history. They know that the president’s party almost always loses seats in midterm elections. They know that 59 members of Congress have already announced they’re leaving, a record number at this point in any election cycle.

 They know that more Republicans than Democrats are heading for the exits. And they know why. Former Senator Jeff Flake, who left the Senate rather than continue supporting Trump in 2018, told NPR that he’s seen something change. He said there was a lot of fear about what he could do to you electorally. That’s diminishing. Think about what that means.

 The fear that kept Republicans silent through two impeachments through January 6th through four criminal indictments. That fear is diminishing. Representative Mike Lawler of New York, a Republican, said of the DOJ investigation into Jerome Powell, “The independence of the Federal Reserve is paramount, and I oppose any effort to pressure them into action.

” Representative French Hill of Arkansas, chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, expressed concerns that the investigation could undermine the ability to make sound monetary policy decisions. Representative Don Bacon of Nebraska, who announced he would not seek reelection, voted with Democrats onthe Venezuela War Powers Resolution.

 He told reporters, “This is appalling. Greenland is a NATO ally. The way we’re treating them is really demeaning.” And Senator Mitch McConnell, Mitch McConnell, the man who protected Trump through two impeachments, who refused to convict him after January 6th, even while saying Trump was practically and morally responsible for the attack.

 Even Mitch McConnell has spoken out on Trump’s threats to annex Greenland by force. McConnell said threats and intimidation by US officials over American ownership of Greenland are as unseammly as they are counterproductive. He called the use of force to annex the territory and especially catastrophic act of strategic self harm to America and its global influence.

 Now, let me tell you what happened with the Venezuela war powers resolution because it illustrates perfectly the pressure Republicans are under and the limits of their resistance. On January 8th, five Republican senators voted with Democrats to advance the resolution. Trump attacked them publicly, demanded they change their votes.

 According to NBC News, Trump personally called the defectors. And according to sources familiar with those calls, more than one senator was berated by the president. Sources described the president as sounding very upset, angry, yelling. And what happened? Two of those five senators, Josh Holly and Todd Young, flipped their votes.

 They said they had received assurances from Secretary of State Marco Rubio. The resolution was killed on a 50/50 vote with Vice President JD Vance breaking the tie. Senator Tim Kaney, who sponsored the resolution, said he was disappointed, but saw the initial vote as a growing set of cracks in the GOP’s willingness to stick with Trump.

 Growing cracks, a growing set of cracks. That is where we are tonight. Not a complete collapse of Republican support for Trump. Not yet. but cracks, visible, public, documented cracks. Senator Roger Wicker of Mississippi, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, has repeatedly criticized Trump’s efforts to scale back American presence in Europe.

 He called a potential peace deal with Russia that would require Ukraine to seed territory a plan with real problems and said he was highly skeptical it will achieve peace. Senator Susan Collins has broken with Trump on Venezuela, on Greenland, on tariffs. She warned that our lobstermen, our blueberry growers, our potato farmers will pay the price for Trump’s trade policies.

 Senator Lisa Marowski said Congress must affirm our role under article one, the constitutional article that gives Congress, not the president, the power to declare war. And here is what the record shows about where this party is headed. According to CNN, a record number of House Republicans are leaving Congress to run for governor.

 10 of them more than in any election cycle dating back to 1974. Why? Because, as Representative Tom Tiffany of Wisconsin put it, I just think that I’ll have more impact as a chief executive versus being a legislator. Translation: Congress is broken and they know it. Representative Michael McCall of Texas, who is retiring after two decades in the House, told CNN that Congress has changed for the worse.

He cited the level of partisanship, ranker, vitriolic debate, demonizing the other side of the aisle, not willing to work across the aisle to get good things done for the American people, and just the overall toxic environment. And there it is, a senior Republican congressman describing the environment in his own party’s Congress as toxic.

 Now, I want to be very careful about what I am saying tonight. I am not telling you that the Republican party is about to abandon Donald Trump on mass. That has not happened. Most Republicans are still standing with the president. The War Powers Resolution was defeated. The vetos have not been overridden. Tom Tillis is the only Republican blocking Fed nominees and he is retiring at the end of this term.

 But what I am telling you is this. The cracks are real. They are documented and they are growing. Republican senators are publicly contradicting the president on matters of constitutional significance. A Republican congressman who was Trump’s most loyal defender resigned from Congress rather than face his wrath. Poll numbers show the president underwater with the American people and collapsing among independents.

 A record number of Republican lawmakers are heading for the exits. Former Senator Jeff Flake said it best. A lot of us have been wrong on how long this has endured. We have been wrong before. We thought Republicans might break with Trump after the Access Hollywood tape. We thought they might break after January 6th.

 We thought they might break after the indictments. Each time, the party circled the wagons. But this time is different. This time, the threats are directed at Republicans themselves. This time, a Republican senator is blocking the president’s nominees to the FederalReserve. This time, the president attacked members of his own party for exercising their constitutional war makingaking authority.

 This time, the president’s most loyal defender in Congress resigned rather than face his attacks. And this time, the midterm elections are 10 months away. Every Republican running for reelection knows what Trump’s 38% approval rating means for them. Every Republican in a competitive district knows that independents have abandoned this president by more than 40 points.

 The question now is not whether some Republicans will break with Trump. They already have. The question is whether this trickle becomes a flood. The question is whether the cracks become a collapse. The answer to that question will determine the future of the Republican party, the future of this Congress, and the future of American democracy itself.

 Because if there are no consequences for threatening federal investigation against members of your own party who exercise independent judgment, if there are no consequences for using the Department of Justice to pressure the Federal Reserve, if there are no consequences for ordering military operations that kill civilians in foreign countries without congressional authorization, then the constraints on presidential power that our Constitution was designed to impose become meaningless.

 And that, my friends, is what is at stake in this moment. The record is there. The facts are documented. The Republicans who have spoken out are on the record. The question now is whether their colleagues will join them or whether they will continue to look the other way while the dam breaks around them. I will be watching this story very closely in the days and weeks ahead.

 And I will bring you every development as it happens. Let me leave you with one more thought tonight. Jaime Diamond, the CEO of JP Morgan Chase, hardly a liberal critic, expressed concerns about the DOJ investigation into Powell. He said publicly that this kind of confrontation between the Federal Reserve and the executive branch could damage confidence in American institutions.

 When Jaime Diamond is worried about institutional stability, you know, we are in uncharted territory. University of Michigan economics professor Justin Wolfers told CNN that attempting to criminalize the conduct of monetary policy is an outrage. Every American should oppose this. Bad economics, bad politics, bad for the rule of law, bad for markets.

And former Dallas Fed President Richard Fiser called it lawfare at its worst. These are not Democratic politicians. These are economists, bankers, former Fed officials, people who understand what happens when political leaders weaponize the justice system against independent institutions. The pattern is now clear.

 When Trump’s actions threaten external targets, immigrants, foreign leaders, Democratic politicians, Republicans find ways to justify or ignore the behavior. But when the threats turn inward, when they target the Federal Reserve, when they target Republican members of Congress for voting their conscience, when they demand personal loyalty over institutional integrity, even longtime allies eventually reach a breaking point.

 We saw it with Marjgerie Taylor Green, who voted with Trump 98% of the time until she didn’t and was immediately branded a traitor for it. We saw it with Senator Tom Tillis, who voted against Trump’s one big beautiful bill because it would cut health care for his constituents and is now blocking Fed nominees because he refuses to let the president dismantle the central bank’s independence.

 We saw it with the five senators who voted to restrict Trump’s war powers in Venezuela, including Josh Holly, who had been one of Trump’s most reliable allies. Yes, two of those senators flipped their votes under pressure. Yes, the resolution ultimately failed, but the initial vote happened. The public break occurred.

 The words were spoken on the record. And once words are spoken on the record, they cannot be taken back. The record shows what it shows. And the record now shows that Republicans are willing to publicly defy this president when he threatens the institutions they have sworn to protect. In her announcement video, Marjorie Taylor Green said something that I think captures this moment perfectly.

 She talked about the political industrial complex of both political parties that focuses on which side can convince Americans to hate the other side more. She said, “Americans are used by the political industrial complex of both political parties election cycle after election cycle in order to elect whichever side can convince Americans to hate the other side more.

” And the results are always the same. Nothing ever gets better for the common American man or woman. That is Marjgerie Taylor Green, the embodiment of MAGA politics for five years, saying that nothing has gotten better. That is a devastating indictment not of Democrats but of her own party and its leader.

 When your mostloyal defenders start saying that nothing has gotten better, when they start resigning rather than continuing to fight for you, when your approval rating drops to 38%. When a record number of your party’s members are heading for the exits. The dam is not just cracking. The dam is breaking. The question is whether anyone in the Republican party has the courage to acknowledge what is happening before it is too late.

 The question is whether the Republicans who spoke out this month, Tillis, Collins, Mowski, Paul, the retiring members heading for the doors will be joined by others. The question is whether the cracks become a flood. History will record what happens next. And I will be here every night documenting every word of it. That is tonight’s last