CNAS Insights | National Security Agenda in the New Congress: A 10-Item To-Do List

When Democratic majorities sweep into Congress in January, Washington will return to divided government. The prospect of stalemate will be real, with Democrats prone to opposing the administration’s foreign policy moves and the president ready to wield his veto pen. But protracted political logjams would squander a major opportunity to take real foreign policy action—at a moment when world events demand it.

In our polarized era, and with strong presidential authority over foreign policy, racking up real accomplishments will not be easy. But Democrats and Republicans can and should come together around a series of steps that improve America’s competitive position, strengthen ties to allies and partners, and address geopolitical dangers and risks. The new Congress should take the following steps:

1. Shape the endgame in Iran. Democrats and some Republicans will be tempted to immediately defund the war in Iran. This would be a mistake; the goal should be to improve the chances for a successful outcome rather than forcing the United States to walk away. Congress should require the administration to set out clear objectives for the war’s next phase, explain costs and munitions expenditures, and present a plan to end the acute phase and contain Iranian threats over the long run. Members should critique and attempt to shape that plan rather than simply condemn it. While many in Congress did not support the decision to attack Iran, they should see the war end with the Strait of Hormuz reopened and with meaningful checks on Iran’s nuclear pursuits.
2. Invigorate competition with China. Vigorous competition with China has become something of an afterthought in the past two years, even as Beijing remains America’s greatest long-term strategic challenge. The administration has relaxed technology export controls on China, for example, and stood mostly silent as Beijing pressured Japan over Taiwan. Now, Congress should push to speed arms deliveries to Taiwan, appropriate funds for munitions suited to the Indo-Pacific, fund the AUKUS submarine and advanced capabilities pillars, and strengthen export controls on advanced semiconductor sales to China.
3. Back Ukraine and pressure Russia. After years of encouraging Europe to diversify from Russian energy imports, and last year imposing tariffs on India for buying Russian oil, the administration in October struck a deal with President Vladimir Putin and eased sanctions on Russian diesel. The move undermines economic pressure on Moscow and has done little to lower diesel prices, even as President Donald Trump simultaneously pushed Kyiv to halt attacks on Russian refineries. Congress should block the deal by statute and amend the Graham sanctions law, both to repeal the tariff authorities and to require congressional approval of any sanctions waivers for Russia.
4. Go after the axis of upheaval. Chinese and Russian satellite imagery and other intelligence aided Iran in striking American bases in the Middle East, while North Korean troops and Chinese components have helped Moscow fight Ukraine. The four countries are actively working to shape a world antithetical to U.S. interests and values. Yet U.S. policy is insufficiently responsive to adversarial alignment, and Congress can sharpen its focus. It can sanction Chinese and Russian entities that have helped Iranian targeting, require regular intelligence assessments of axis activities, and hold hearings on policy responses.
5. End the trade war with Canada. The trade war has been economically costly and politically destructive. Together with the insulting rhetoric the administration regularly aims north, U.S.-Canada ties have entered a needless and counterproductive tailspin. Congress should repeal the Section 338 tariffs on Canada, restore full United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement (USMCA) treatment for both Canada and Mexico, and clear the decks for a new, improved North American relationship.
6. Claw back congressional authority over tariffs. The administration has imposed tariffs on much of the world at once—on friends and adversaries, large countries and small, and without consideration for the net effects on the U.S. economy or our bilateral relationships. Congress should pursue legislation to reverse this troubling pattern. It should require congressional review or approval of existing and newly imposed tariffs, narrow the president’s power to impose tariffs on national security (Section 232) grounds, repeal Section 338 (which permits tariffs in response to trade discrimination) and Section 122 (responding to balance-of-payments problems), and raise the evidentiary requirement to impose Section 301 forced-labor tariffs. Congress should also assert its authority to approve trade agreements, including reviewing the administration’s Agreements on Reciprocal Trade and revisions to USMCA.
7. Maintain defense spending. Newly elected Democrats may be tempted to slash appropriations for the U.S. military, particularly given the costly and unpopular Iran war. A big cut would, however, be a big mistake. In an ever more tumultuous world, U.S. military resources remain vast but stretched. Having secured commitments from most U.S. allies to boost defense spending in light of new threats (as in the NATO Hague summit pledge to spend 5 percent of GDP on defense), the United States should put its money where its mouth is.
8. Encourage a democratic transition in Venezuela. The administration has pleaded for stability and collaboration in post-Maduro Venezuela, working through the existing government and only recently, without a timetable, pressing for elections. Yet the democratic aspirations of Venezuela’s people matter and should be a near-term focus of U.S. efforts. Congress should hold the administration to a specific timeline.
9. Fund soft power. U.S. soft power tools—humanitarian aid, development assistance, international broadcasting, and democracy support activities—have taken a major hit over the past two years. American policymakers should possess a complete set of foreign policy instruments, including the kinds of non-military, non-diplomatic tools that have long proved useful. Congress should robustly fund the most effective of them and insist on close oversight of the use of funds.
10. Take on AI safety and innovation. Data centers emerged during the midterms as a particularly controversial issue, with more than 40 data center ballot measures in 10 states. The United States possesses major advantages in AI that, if managed correctly, will augment national power and increase prosperity and innovation. Harnessing those advantages while mitigating AI risk will require multiple actions: U.S. government and third parties testing and evaluating frontier models, restricting the sale of advanced chips to adversaries like China, working with international partners to diffuse the benefits of AI, and much more. Here, the new Congress may have a unique opportunity to work with the Trump administration, whose approach to AI regulation has evolved quickly, to establish a legislative framework.

These 10 items would represent an ambitious agenda for any Congress, and that is doubly true in an era of divided government. The president enjoys major structural advantages in the making of U.S. foreign policy, and there are limits to what Congress can and will accomplish. But that’s no reason to avoid trying. Nothing in this agenda is impossible, and none of the 10 tasks need be partisan. Together, they would represent a major step on the path toward a new and stronger form of U.S. global leadership when it is most needed. Time to get on with it.

Richard Fontaine is the chief executive officer of the Center for a New American Security.