Republicans Win Control of the U.S. Senate

Election Day 2014 is now over. The Republican Party has wrestled control from the Democrats in the United States Senate as they now hold 52 seats. There are still some races that are too close to call.

The Senate finally came back under Republican control when John Ernst (R) won the Iowa Senate seat. He defeated incumbent Bruce Braley (D). In the 113^th Congress, the Democrats held the majority with 53 seats, Republicans had 45 and there were two independents. The tide has turned.

The Republicans also maintained their control in the House of Representatives (Congress) making President Barack Obama (D) a lame duck for the remainder of his term.

This is just the beginning for the Republicans as they need to prove they are capable leaders on the Senate level. This is a much more daunting task than actually winning today. In other words, this is not the real victory, but merely the first step. The actual victory, and one they will need if they hope to have a viable presidential contender, is actually demonstrating to the voters that when they hold majority in both house, they can get things done. They need to demonstrate unity with everyone while they pass policy that reflects the conservative principles they believe will help American citizens. That is the true challenge and the real hard part.

With that said, they will pursue several goals from tax reform to energy infrastructure.

One goal they will pursue with abandon will be the chamber’s banking committee. They will look to reform the Dodd- Frank legislation. This is also known as the Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act.

More importantly, they need to show the voters they can play nice with the Democrats and get along. After eight plus cantankerous Democrat controlled years, there are a lot of ill feelings here.

Let’s look at the investment opportunities that will arise from the Republican win. The new senate will support America’s fossil fuels as they will focus on shale oil production and unconventional oil drilling. This new senate will focus less on alternative energy sources, like solar power and wind. They will also, with the new demographics in the Congress, look to reform corporate tax and minimum wage laws. This will help boost the corporate bottom line, supporting stocks.  With that said, traditionally, Republicans never supported wage increases, that era looks to be done.

The precedent has already been set in two Republican states, Nebraska and Arkansas, which increased minimum wages. This will help support consumer sales with extra disposable income.

There is a new day in the United States. The Democrats have lost their control in the Senate and House of Representatives. President Obama is a lame duck. Does this change bring anything better? We will have to wait and see. Recent history shows that Democrats and Republicans should not play in the same playground.