President Joe Biden was the big winner in the Nov. 8 Midterm election, the first time in 20 years that the incumbent’s party hasn’t suffered big losses. When former President Donald Trump faced the 2018 Midterm election, he lost both Houses of Congress, in an historic shellacking, leaving the last two years of his presidency in limbo. Biden walks away with the same number of votes in the U.S. Senate, leaving him in a flatfooted tie with Republicans, with Vice President Kamala Harris casting the decisive vote. When it comes to the House, it looks today like the GOP will narrowly win the House majority when all the votes are finally tallied. But let there be no mistake, no “red wave” materialized for Republicans, leaving the talking class to point fingers at Trump. What Trump has to do with Republicans winning a decisive majority in the House and Senate is anyone’s guess.
Blaming Trump doesn’t begin to tell the real story of what happened on Nov. 8, where Democrats more than held their own, bucking an historic trend. Republicans can thank the Supreme Court for its reckless June 24 ruling to end 1973 Roe v. Wade, giving women the right to abortion. Republicans cheered the ruling while destroying themselves politically, especially among single women and everyone under 40-years-of age. What kind of a self-destructive party thinks that bucking a popular Supreme Court precedent in Roe v. Wade would help their cause? Republicans got what they deserved, all because a zealous conservative majority found a case in Dobbs v. Jackson that gave them a way to end Roe v. Wade. Consequences to the shock June 24 ruling could reverberate for years for the GOP. Had the ruling not occurred, the GOP might have seen their “red wave.”
Biden’s abysmal approval ratings, runaway inflation, dangerous proxy war in Ukraine, wrecked diplomatic relations with Russia and China, all would have given voters reason to vote for Republicans. No, Republicans had to muck it all up with the Supreme Court ending Roe. v. Wade. Just like the 2020 presidential election, voters blamed Trump for mishandling the Covid-10 global pandemic, causing the deaths of one million Americans. George Floyd’s death by Minneapolis cops—and the months of riots that followed—allowed Democrats to associate Trump with White Supremacy or nationalism. Covid-19 gave election officials the chance to use universal mail-in ballots, giving Democrats a 20% advantage over the GOP. So when Trump claims election fraud, there’s no reason to conclude anything other than Democrats did a good job of demonizing him.
Looking at the Nov. 8 Midterms, all the blame going to Trump by the Republican Party signals they do not want him as the party’s nominee in 2024. Democrats, especially the Jan. 6 House Select Committee, have been obsessed with stopping Trump from running in 2024. All the worry and fretting about Trump running in 2024 should be of no consequence to Democrats. Trump faces some stiff opposition to becoming the GOP’s nominee in 2024. Other younger candidates, like Gov. Rick DeSantis (R-Fl.) or Gov. Glen Youngkin (D-Va.), will make it difficult for Trump to win the nomination again. Republicans, especially after the Nov. 8 Midterms, have misgivings about Trump, even if he’s getting unfairly blamed for the lack of a “red wave.” More than anything, the GOP’s support for ending Roe v. Wade came with a big cost to independents, crossover Democrats and young voters.
When you look at the shellacking Republicans took in the 2018 and 2020 elections, their performance in the Nov. 8 Midterms was quite remarkable. Keeping the Senate the same and winning the House by a narrow margin was a unexpected feat, considering trends in the electorate toward Democrats. If the GOP takes over the House, it will wreck Biden’s legislative agenda for the next two years. Everything Biden touches he messes it up, one way or another. Fighting a costly proxy war against the Russian Federation should alarm all Americans, not only for the waste of tax dollars but also the harm caused to U.S. national security. U.S. national security is at the lowest point since after WW II. Biden has wrecked U.S. relations with China and Russia, to the point to starting WW III. No one wants to see WW III or nuclear war with Russian Federation or China.
If Biden hadn’t messed up the economy and foreign policy so badly in his first two years in office, Democrats would have won decisive majorities in both Houses of Congress. Biden pounded his chest at the White House Nov. 9 but, if he’s being honest, Democrats would have made more impressive gains in the House an Senate if Biden did anything right. Roe v. Wade turned off the youth vote to the GOP, leaving Democrats with a clear advantage. When it comes to Trump dragging down the GOP, it’s a farfetched analysis. While it’s true there’s Trump fatigue that could do in any future presidential run, it’s also true that ending Roe v. Wade turned off single women and youthful voters. Even with that obstacle, the GOP held their own the Senate and looks poised to win the House. Any honest analyst shows that Biden was the biggest drag on the Democrat Party.
About the Author
John M. Curtis writes politically neutral commentary analyzing spin in national and global news. He’s editor of OnlineColumnist.com and author of Dodging The Bullet and Operation Charisma.
