WASHINGTON, November 4. /TASS/. Republican US President Donald Trump can now pursue the normalization of relations with Russia without worrying about possible electoral consequences for his party in the United States, former US Ambassador to Saudi Arabia and former US Charge d’Affaires in China and Thailand Charles Freeman told TASS, commenting on the defeat of Trump’s fellow Republicans in the midterm elections.

"Trump is now a 'lame duck.' He has been humiliated. There is a danger that he will do something irrational and destructive to reassert dominance. The obvious initial victims if he lashes out would be Iran and Cuba," he said.

"But there may be a bright side to the fact that he is now free to act without regard for the electoral consequences of his actions. He has wanted to end the [West’s] proxy war in Ukraine and pursue a rapprochement with Russia. He will face enormous backlash [if he pursues this course] from Democrats as well as members of his own party who have beatified [Vladimir] Zelensky and embraced Ukraine as a heroic underdog in its confrontation with Russia, but that will not necessarily deter him," Freeman added.

Freeman previously held senior positions at the headquarters of the US Department of State and the Pentagon. From 1993 to 1994, he served as US Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs. For the past several decades, he has headed a Washington-based consulting firm and has periodically contributed foreign policy commentary to the English-language press.

The United States held its midterm elections on Tuesday. Voters elected primarily one-third of the Senate and the entire House of Representatives, as well as governors in 36 states and territories. Local elections were also held. Both chambers of Congress are currently controlled by the ruling Republican Party. The next Congress, the 120th, which will be formed following the elections, will begin its work on January 3, 2027. Democrats will hold majorities in both the House of Representatives and the Senate in the new Congress.