GOP Fights Back Against Criticism It Has Done Nothing

Defensive Republican lawmakers are pushing back on criticism that they haven't achieved anything in the first 200 days of President Donald Trump's tenure despite majorities in both houses, The Hill reported.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said this Congress should be judged by its full two-year term, not by the first 200 days.

"Congress goes on for two years, and part of the reason I think that the storyline is that we haven't done much is because in part the president and others have set these early timelines," McConnell told constituents in Kentucky, the Hill reported.

Republicans are getting hit from both sides, with the White House just last week decrying the GOP's inability to pass "simple things" like healthcare and tax reform.

But it was House Speaker Paul Ryan in February who touted a 200-day plan with McConnell and Trump, saying then that "we are exactly on track."

But Republicans came up empty on healthcare and have yet to take up tax reform, making recess an uncomfortable time to be back home, the Hill reported.

However, Republicans assert that they've done a lot thus far, only to have it ignored by the media that instead covers every tweet and crisis coming out of the White House, even launching a website to tout their accomplishments.

"This Congress has got about a year and a half  to go, and I think we will have success by the end of that time period. We'd like to have it quicker," Sen. Mike Rounds told the Hill.

• Republicans Move on, Shift Focus to Tax Reform
• House Heads Into Recess With Shutdown Over Budget Looming Upon Return