Republicans are riding high about their prospects for retaking both chambers of Congress in the upcoming midterms, thanks to the abundant campaign fodder they believe Democrats and the Biden administration have handed them in recent weeks.
Conservatives pointed to the surge of migrants at the southern border; difficulties getting kids back in school for in-person learning amid the pandemic; massive spending from the White House and Democratic-controlled Congress; the inclusion of progressive priorities in infrastructure and economic relief bills; and most recently a push among some Democrats to expand the Supreme Court as actions that will offer campaign fodder for Republicans in the months to come.
Some GOP lawmakers are gloating over their prospects even though the 2022 midterms are still 19 months away.
“This is going to be like 2010, 2012, 2014 where we pick up seats because of Obama’s agenda,” Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.), head of the Republican Senate’s campaign arm, said on Hugh Hewitt’s radio show Friday.
“Now what I talk about every day is do we want open borders? No. Do we want to shut down our schools? No. Do we want men playing in women’s sports? No. Do we want to shut down the Keystone Pipeline? No. Do we want voter ID? Yes,” he continued. “And the Democrats are on the opposite side of all those issues, and I’m going to make sure every American knows about it.”
The party in power traditionally loses seats during midterm elections, putting Democrats on defense at a time when they already are protecting razor-thin majorities in both chambers of Congress. The Senate is split 50-50 with Democrats up for reelection in Arizona, Georgia, New Hampshire and elsewhere, while Republicans would need to pick up just a handful of House seats to take the majority.
With Democrats already on the ropes based on history, Republicans feel they have a full complement of issues to attack the other party over, including policy matters and cultural issues that will motivate their voters and potential swing voters.
