Donald Trump Stops Short Of Saying Republicans Will Keep House After Mid-Terms
Donald Trump on Wednesday said that Republicans are going to hold on to the Senate following the 2018 mid-term elections, but even he stopped short of saying that Republicans will keep the house, Business Insider is reporting.
Every seat in the House of Representatives is up for re-election next Tuesday, as the Constitution dictates that each House term is only two years. Over in the Senate, only a third of the seats are up for re-election. That naturally makes for pretty long odds of the minority taking over that chamber in any election, mid-term or otherwise, and this year especially.
In fact, according to a Wednesday Reuters report, Republicans currently hold a 23-seat majority in the House, Democrats are expected to win 30-40 seats currently held by Republicans, thereby giving Democrats a comfortable majority.
Over in the Senate, however, things are less rosy for Democrats. Republicans currently hold a two-seat majority in the Upper Chamber, but they’re expected to hold on to most of their seats that are up for re-election, and indeed even gain one or two. Right now, tight Senate races in West Virginia, Indiana, North Dakota, Montana, and Missouri – all states Trump won in 2016, and all seats currently held by Democrats – could go the Republicans’ way, spelling doom for any hopes of a Blue Senate.
Can Claire McCaskill Hold On to Her Senate Seat in Missouri? | 2018 Midterms https://t.co/QuSDAI0gZK pic.twitter.com/ocWdnelq05
— QuorumCall (@QuorumCall) November 1, 2018
On board Air Force One on Wednesday, Trump took questions from a reporter from Christian Broadcasting Network, who asked him about his party’s chances in Congress this November. He was excited about the Senate, less so about the House.
“I think we’ll win the Senate, and I think we’re gonna do well on the House.”
Trump was also asked about comments made by House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi. After weeks of being cautious and equivocating when speaking about her party’s chances of taking over the House, Pelosi this week came out with guns blazing, saying on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert that a Democrat takeover of the House is all but a sure thing.
“Let me say this. Up until today, I would’ve said, ‘If the election were held today, we would win.’ What now I’m saying is, ‘We will win.'”
Trump wasn’t so sure.
“She’s been saying she’s gonna win for a long time, she hasn’t been doing too well. We’ll see what happens. I think we’re gonna do very well in the house also.”
Earlier Wednesday, Trump broadly hinted that if Republicans lose control of the House, Speaker of the House Paul Ryan would be to blame. Specifically, Ryan has opposed Trump’s overtures at revoking birthright citizenship, and Trump suggested that Ryan’s opposition to Trump (on that point alone) could cost his party the House.
“Paul Ryan should be focusing on holding the Majority rather than giving his opinions on Birthright Citizenship, something he knows nothing about!”
