'Not a repudiation': Joe Biden holds off red wave, gets unexpected boost from midterm election

[sqwakvfr]

56 minutes ago, HappyExpat57 said:

I watched both Fox and MSNBC this morning to see their reactions. Hats off to Fox - the hour with Bret Baier et al were blunt and honest. They were getting the point across that in a midterm election, the out-of-office party usually has a solid victory. This year, the Republicans should have swept across the country but didn't, so the question kept coming up, "What could the Republicans have done better to get the expected victory?"

 

MSNBC and Biden were embarrassing. Victory dances over a less-than-spectacular defeat, and when Biden was asked what he could do better over the next two years to improve Democrats' numbers, he replied, "Nothing." The hubris of that man is part of what is killing the Democratic party.

 

It's easy to predict a Republican presidential win in 2024. If Joe runs, it's a total fail. If VP Harris runs, the same. And who else to the Dems have?

Brett Baer is about the only objective and honest person on at Fox News.  Many will not know this name but I really miss Charles Krauthammer.  For 2024 I see DeSantis and possibly a Tim Scott or even a Niki Haley on the ticket.  I think the Trump Train has run out of steam.  Dr.  Oz couldn’t even beat an obviously impaired guy with a bad goatee who was wearing a hoodie.   The person who gave Dr. Oz his show, Oprah, endorsed Fetterman.  Trump endorsed Oz.  

[Eric Loh]

37 minutes ago, marin said:

Best showing in an off year election since before Reagan. Do a little research. No red wave, just a little ripple. 

Biden surprised many pundits even with so much headwinds and yet emerged in much better shape than either of his Democratic predecessors, Barrack Obama and Bill Clinton, both took a hammering at the midterm. This midterm election will be remembered more about the Republican Party not able to seize the moment for a landslide victory and the Trump's gamble that didn't pay off. Trump now has the dishonour of presiding over 2 disastrous midterm elections. He should take the cue and stay out of politics. 

[Berkshire]

57 minutes ago, JonnyF said:

I didn't predict any such thing. 

 

I am merely commenting on what happened, and the reaction to it.

It appears you haven't been following the midterms at all and the forecast that predicted a Republican blow-out.  That clearly didn't happen.  The GOP will have a slim majority in the House and the Dems will probably retain the Senate.  Not only that, the Dems won nearly all the Governor races in battleground states.  This has huge implications for the 2024 Presidential election.  I'm talking Michigan, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Minnesota, and possibly Arizona.  Dems also took over the state legislature in Michigan and Pennsylvania.  Kemp won in Georgia, but he's already demonstrated that he will not cheat for Trump.

 

So the fear that MAGA types would somehow help Trump in 2024 ain't going to happen.  That's a rather significant win for democracy.  Trump may even reconsider whether to run in 2024 if he knows he can't cheat.  

[Credo]

It's a very loud commentary on the state of the Republican Party when the country is facing the problems it is, and they couldn't massively sweep to victory.  We are in the worst inflation in most people's lifetime.   We are facing an energy crisis of epic proportions.  We are facing an existential climate crisis and severe water shortages in the west and southwest.  We have a President that is nearly 80 years old.   It's unbelievable that the right wing couldn't come up with a coherent set of policies to destroy the Democrats in the election.  Why?  Because they have nothing.  

 

Their policy, or non-policy, is that the 2020 election was stolen.  That's it and a whole lot of people are tired of this untruth.   

 

Inflation is, in large part, caused by supply chain issues.   The Republicans never addressed the issue.  They just blamed Biden.   

 

Climate Change, the water crisis in the West and SW were never addressed because CC isn't real.  

 

Crime wasn't addressed either, but again if we just get rid of the Democrats, it will go away. 

 

The Border was never really addressed either.  It's a problem and if they just get rid of the Democrats, it will be OK.  That doesn't quite work.   

 

And then there was a big one that made up the minds of a lot people a long time ago -- abortion.  I know a number of Republican women who do not agree with the overturning of Row v. Wade.  The ease with which the Republicans embraced a denial of a right was scary to many.   

 

Republicans might want to think more about what they want for the country and less about hating and settling petty differences they have with Democrats.

 

 

[Jingthing]

I have a prediction that I am very  confident about.

You're seeing DeSantis at a very high point in his career.

He does not face a cake walk to the presidency.

There is much to be revealed and publicized that won't smell as nice.

Also to note if it's clear that Trump won't  be nominated early enough Biden probably won't even run. Biden would beat Trump again but probably nobody else.

To those that think the democrats don't have a bench you are very wrong.

Edited November 10, 2022 by Jingthing

[swm59nj]

The GOP probably would have done better if Trump wasn’t in the picture.  Even some republicans switched sides.  Both candidates and voters. 
The people hanging on to Trump think he is going to save them.  Maybe make them millionaires.  The only thing he is interested in is publicity, ego, and his own gain.  

[Lacessit]

39 minutes ago, HappyExpat57 said:

I'm an Independent and feel disgust any time I have the misfortune to accidentally watch Tucker, but the hour before (Bret Baire) was refreshing. They were looking objectively at what went wrong with what SHOULD have been a sweeping victory.

IMO p##sing off all women voters except the religious ratbags was a gift to the Democrats

from the Supreme Court, when it turned down Roe vs. Wade. Trump then made it worse for Republicans by endorsing the decision.

[LomSak27]

7 hours ago, thaibeachlovers said:

Democrats breathing sigh of relief, but despite the closeness of the race, their conspiracy theories about the death of democracy etc didn't give them a decisive win either.

 

A lot of lessons will be learned for the next election. Hopefully the GOP will do better next time.

Is that what they are saying down in New Zealand today?! Rather surprising New Zealanders are not concerned with North Shore teens terror plot, but feverishly watching US midterm elections. You just never know what Kiwis are up to. 

 

 

Edited November 10, 2022 by LomSak27

[placeholder]

18 minutes ago, Eric Loh said:

Biden surprised many pundits even with so much headwinds and yet emerged in much better shape than either of his Democratic predecessors, Barrack Obama and Bill Clinton, both took a hammering at the midterm. This midterm election will be remembered more about the Republican Party not able to seize the moment for a landslide victory and the Trump's gamble that didn't pay off. Trump now has the dishonour of presiding over 2 disastrous midterm elections. He should take the cue and stay out of politics. 

Typically, when the economy is doing poorly, the party in power gets pummeled during midterms. But under Trump, the economy was doing well at the midterms, and still he managed to lead the party to electoral disaster. That was a truly remarkable achievement.

[thaibeachlovers]

5 minutes ago, LomSak27 said:

Is that what they are saying down in New Zealand today?! Rather surprising New Zealanders are not concerned with North Shore teens terror plot, but feverishly watching US midterm elections. You just never know what Kiwis are up to. 

 

 

I'm hardly typical of NZers. No idea what they are interested in as the ones I know are not on line all the time and don't care about who runs the world. They care about domestic issues and politics. I haven't heard about any terror plot, but wouldn't surprise me at all. Child criminals are out of control, gangs are out of control etc.

Horrid times are coming this way, IMO.

[thaibeachlovers]

18 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

I have a prediction that I am very  confident about.

You're seeing DeSantis at a very high point in his career.

He does not face a cake walk to the presidency.

There is much to be revealed and publicized that won't smell as nice.

Also to note if it's clear that Trump won't  be nominated early enough Biden probably won't even run. Biden would beat Trump again but probably nobody else.

To those that think the democrats don't have a bench you are very wrong.

I think the Dems have nothing and have everything to fear from a not Trump candidate. Roll on 24.

I very much doubt Trump would succeed in the primaries, so he should take a long holiday in his resort and enjoy family life with his young son.

[marin]

59 minutes ago, Sparktrader said:

Yes and a sad reflection of US voters.

I wish you knew more about the history of mid term elections in the US.  Google is your friend.

[Hanaguma]

It is clear that Trump tainted all the normally important points that dictate a mid term election. An intensely unpopular sitting President, poor economy, large majority of the country thinking they are on the wrong track. All paled due to a large orange shadow.   Trump gives the Democrats some easy cards to play. 

 

Look at Kemp, DeSantis, and Abbot to see the path forward. At least the GOP has a strong bench looking forward to 2024, the Democrats have nothing. 

[thaibeachlovers]

27 minutes ago, Credo said:

And then there was a big one that made up the minds of a lot people a long time ago -- abortion.  I know a number of Republican women who do not agree with the overturning of Row v. Wade.  The ease with which the Republicans embraced a denial of a right was scary to many.   

Whether one believes abortion is murder or not, is it not concerning that people think it's the same as birth control, which it isn't?

There never was a constitutional right to abortion, so it was returned to the individual states where it should always have been. Want abortion- vote in state politicians that will pass laws to allow it.

Are American women unable to access birth control that doesn't involve killing a foetus?

 

[HappyExpat57]

26 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

I have a prediction that I am very  confident about.

You're seeing DeSantis at a very high point in his career.

He does not face a cake walk to the presidency.

There is much to be revealed and publicized that won't smell as nice.

Also to note if it's clear that Trump won't  be nominated early enough Biden probably won't even run. Biden would beat Trump again but probably nobody else.

To those that think the democrats don't have a bench you are very wrong.

The Dems have no one at this point, and unless Biden quickly says "Yeah, not again in 2024" and they find someone talented and charismatic (which VP Harris is NOT), then Republicans could run a spoiled ham sandwich as the Republican presidential candidate and win.

[RPCVguy]

2 hours ago, JonnyF said:

Seems to me like the Democrats are trying to spin this into some kind of victory.

 

So the senate race is going down to the wire and it looks like they will lose control of the House of Representatives, allowing Republicans to block Biden's agenda.

 

If that is hailed as a victory, they must have set the bar pretty low.

 

35 minutes ago, Eric Loh said:

Biden surprised many pundits even with so much headwinds and yet emerged in much better shape than either of his Democratic predecessors, Barrack Obama and Bill Clinton, both took a hammering at the midterm. This midterm election will be remembered more about the Republican Party not able to seize the moment for a landslide victory and the Trump's gamble that didn't pay off. Trump now has the dishonour of presiding over 2 disastrous midterm elections. He should take the cue and stay out of politics. 

The Democrats definitely outperformed expectations since the gerrymandering of new redistricting was expected to net a 20 seat boost to the Republicans.
Several people have mentioned the trends. Below is a snapshot of the history showing how only GW Bush's first mid-term (aided by post 9/11 fervor) showed a bigger deviation from the typical mid-term drubbing of the president's party.

[thaibeachlovers]

2 minutes ago, HappyExpat57 said:

The Dems have no one at this point, and unless Biden quickly says "Yeah, not again in 2024" and they find someone talented and charismatic (which VP Harris is NOT), then Republicans could run a spoiled ham sandwich as the Republican presidential candidate and win.

Agree. I really, really hope they wheel Hillary out again, or failing her, Harris IMO would be as big a turn off as Hillary was.

From this point on I reckon the next POTUS ( not Trump ) is going to be GOP unless they blow it big time.

[ThailandRyan]

2 hours ago, JonnyF said:

Seems to me like the Democrats are trying to spin this into some kind of victory.

 

So the senate race is going down to the wire and it looks like they will lose control of the House of Representatives, allowing Republicans to block Biden's agenda.

 

If that is hailed as a victory, they must have set the bar pretty low.

The bar was set by the polls indicating a big red wave was coming, not by the Democrats, but then neither side took into consideration the Independent voters, which are tired of Trumps rhetoric and the Trumps BS propaganda that the election was stolen.  People want the country to heal and stop being truly divided.  The Trump legion is likened to the followers of the kool-aid cult led by Jim Jones.......

Edited November 10, 2022 by ThailandRyan

[thaibeachlovers]

52 minutes ago, sqwakvfr said:

Brett Baer is about the only objective and honest person on at Fox News.  Many will not know this name but I really miss Charles Krauthammer.  For 2024 I see DeSantis and possibly a Tim Scott or even a Niki Haley on the ticket.  I think the Trump Train has run out of steam.  Dr.  Oz couldn’t even beat an obviously impaired guy with a bad goatee who was wearing a hoodie.   The person who gave Dr. Oz his show, Oprah, endorsed Fetterman.  Trump endorsed Oz.  

You appear to confuse disliking Trump with being objective. I watched a lot of Fox and IMO he's no more honest/ dishonest that any other talking head on Fox, but he certainly never disguised that he didn't like Trump.

[thaibeachlovers]

Just now, ThailandRyan said:

People want the country to heal and stop being truly divided.  The Trump legion is likened to the followers of the kool-aid cult led by Jim Jones.......

They probably do, but as long as Dem politicians talk like you do that ain't going to happen, IMO. Healing happens when one side reaches out to the other to co operate, not when they are attacking those they disagree with.

[thaibeachlovers]

1 hour ago, Fat is a type of crazy said:

Kamala is deciding senate vote so worth her weight in gold

?????? ONLY if it's 50/ 50. If either party has even only a one seat majority she has no place in the senate.

Perhaps you hadn't noticed but senate hasn't been decided yet.

[marin]

21 minutes ago, HappyExpat57 said:

The Dems have no one at this point, and unless Biden quickly says "Yeah, not again in 2024" and they find someone talented and charismatic (which VP Harris is NOT), then Republicans could run a spoiled ham sandwich as the Republican presidential candidate and win.

The polls sure dont back up your statement at all. 

[sqwakvfr]

12 minutes ago, thaibeachlovers said:

You appear to confuse disliking Trump with being objective. I watched a lot of Fox and IMO he's no more honest/ dishonest that any other talking head on Fox, but he certainly never disguised that he didn't like Trump.

I’m not confused.  Brett Baer is not Hannity or Carlson or Ingraham or the three clowns in the morning show.  Based upon this comparison he is honest and objective.  

[bendejo]

49 minutes ago, Credo said:

[ . . . ]   We are facing an energy crisis of epic proportions.  We are facing an existential climate crisis and severe water shortages in the west and southwest.  [ . . . ]

Very much like the recession of 50 years ago.  And no new episodes of "Sanford and Son" this time.  For me living through it is the re-run.

It began with the price of gasoline, which was around 30 cents per gallon in 1970, and had been that much for years, the prices were painted on the signs.  By 1980 the price went above $1 and has never gone back.  But also as is being claimed now there is an everything shortage: supply is down for (item name here) because (insert excuse here) and when it re-appears the price has doubled.  Certain pharmaceuticals are in short supply this time, which I find suspicious.

 

 

[placeholder]

14 minutes ago, thaibeachlovers said:

?????? ONLY if it's 50/ 50. If either party has even only a one seat majority she has no place in the senate.

Perhaps you hadn't noticed but senate hasn't been decided yet.

False. If any vote is 50/50 then you will find that she does have a place.

[thaibeachlovers]

2 minutes ago, sqwakvfr said:

I’m not confused.  Brett Baer is not Hannity or Carlson or Ingraham or the three clowns in the morning show.  Based upon this comparison he is honest and objective.  

Can't be honest and objective based on comparison. Either one is or one isn't. You may prefer his viewpoint to the others, but that doesn't make him any more of either than them. I get that you hate Trump, but that doesn't mean Bret is better or worse than them.

Anyway, Trump is probably over, so what's the point of going on about him any more?

[bendejo]

6 minutes ago, sqwakvfr said:

I’m not confused.  Brett Baer is not Hannity or Carlson or Ingraham or the three clowns in the morning show.  Based upon this comparison he is honest and objective.  

Baer likes to depict himself as one who does not drink the Fox kool-aid (in not as many words), and yeah, he may not be a screaming nutter but don't lose sight of what team he's on.  There is plenty of leaning rightward in his reporting. 

 

 

[thaibeachlovers]

1 hour ago, Credo said:

We are in the worst inflation in most people's lifetime.   We are facing an energy crisis of epic proportions. 

Inflation wasn't a thing 2 years ago so can't blame him for it.

 

Energy crisis? There was no such crisis 2 years ago and fracking made the US energy independent of imports- they even started exporting oil. So, who stopped the fracking?

 

1 hour ago, Credo said:

Inflation is, in large part, caused by supply chain issues.   The Republicans never addressed the issue.  They just blamed Biden.   

No supply chain issues 2 years ago, so what changed? The Republicans were not in charge when they became a problem.

[thaibeachlovers]

3 minutes ago, bendejo said:

Baer likes to depict himself as one who does not drink the Fox kool-aid (in not as many words), and yeah, he may not be a screaming nutter but don't lose sight of what team he's on.  There is plenty of leaning rightward in his reporting. 

 

 

IMO there is no difference in his political bias- he just doesn't like Trump.

[HappyExpat57]

24 minutes ago, marin said:

The polls sure dont back up your statement at all. 

Yeah, polls. Like this midterm was supposed to be a Red Tsunami?

Pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeze.

If you buy into polls then you are lost.