Democrats won the House and Senate. That's the headline. But if you're wondering what it does for your grocery bill, your heating bill, or the price at the pump, Mark Zandi has a sobering answer: not much, at least not right away.

The Moody's Analytics chief economist said on Sunday that any bill to ease Americans' financial strain still needs President Donald Trump's signature, and that signature "will be hard to come by."

Mr. Veto Goes to Washington

This isn't a surprise. Before the elections, Trump told the New York Post he would become "Mr. Veto" if Republicans lost the House, though he added that deals would likely follow eventually. So the new Congress can pass all the bills it wants. Getting them signed is another matter entirely.

Still, Zandi says the new Congress has some levers to pull.

He expects Democrats to use hearings, oversight and a war powers resolution vote to build pressure to end the war in Iran, which has cost the typical household an estimated $2,200 so far. Ending the war would ease costs for oil, diesel, jet fuel and home heating, Zandi added. The war has cost the U.S. military more than $47 billion, according to Pentagon data Reuters cited.

That's the kind of pressure that doesn't require a presidential signature. Hearings can be loud. Oversight can be relentless. And a war powers vote puts everyone on record.

The Lame-Duck Opening

Another opening may come in next year's lame-duck session, Zandi said.

"If Republicans can pass a budget and raise the Treasury debt limit on their own through reconciliation, Democrats will have less leverage," he wrote.

But with Republicans' paper-thin House majority, Zandi said the odds are "reasonably good" that they will fall short. If that happens, Democrats could then use their votes to restore enhanced Affordable Care Act subsidies and reverse SNAP and Medicaid cuts. That's the scenario where the midterms actually start to show up in household budgets.

Democrats Vow Affordability

Democrats have campaigned on lowering prices for voters squeezed at the pump, at the grocery store and on utility bills. Following the Tuesday night win, House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.), the presumptive House speaker, pledged to fight to make the country affordable for every American.

Investor Peter Schiff isn't buying it. He said Democrats say they will fight to lower prices, but prices will keep rising unless they cut government spending, because the Federal Reserve is monetizing deficit spending. That's the eternal argument in Washington: everyone wants lower prices, nobody wants to cut the thing that's actually driving them.

Price Action

The State Street SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSE:SPY) closed 0.31% higher on Friday at $735.29 and was up 0.38% in overnight trading early Monday to $738.05.

MarketDash Edge rankings indicate the State Street ETF has a Momentum score in the 56th percentile with a negative price trend in the short and medium term. Over the long term, it has a positive trend.

Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by MarketDash editors.