Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R) laid out the roadmap this weekend for Republicans to dominate politically in the coming years following Republicans&#8217; blowout wins earlier this month in the midterm elections.
DeSantis made the remarks during a 25-minute speech on Saturday at the annual leadership meeting of the Republican Jewish Coalition.
The governor, who numerous recent polls have shown is the top candidate to be the Republican Party&#8217;s presidential nominee in 2024, began by highlighting the success of Republicans in the state of Florida during the midterms.
&#8220;We added four new Republican congressmen to the U.S. House of Representatives from the state of Florida,&#8221; he said. &#8220;We secured super majorities in the Florida legislature, the most Republicans we&#8217;ve ever had in Florida history. We helped elect 26 new conservative school board members all across the state of Florida. And we even won the state House seat that includes Miami Beach, not typically viewed as a Republican stronghold.&#8221;
&#8220;And because of the support of so many of you to our campaign, we delivered the greatest gubernatorial victory in the history of the state of Florida,&#8221; he continued. &#8220;We dominated with independent voters, we secured record margins with Hispanic voters, we swept the suburbs all across the state of Florida. Our margins with rural voters were gravity defying, we won by double digits, Miami Dade County. We won for the first time in almost 40 years, Palm Beach County.&#8221;
DeSantis said that the election results showed that the state should be the &#8220;blueprint for success&#8221; for the party moving forward.
&#8220;And I think some of the things that we do that work are we&#8217;re all about exercising leadership, and delivering results for the people that we represent,&#8221; he said. &#8220;I did not take any polls when I became governor all the way through this entire term. The job of a leader is not to stick your finger in the wind and try to contort yourself to wherever public opinion may be trending on one given moment. No, the job of a leader is to set out a vision, to execute that vision, to show people that it&#8217;s the right vision and to deliver concrete results. And when you do that, the people respond.&#8221;
DeSantis then highlighted numerous policy initiatives that he took on during his first term as governor, including several on the cultural battlefield, like fighting against woke indoctrination and fighting to protect women&#8217;s sports.
&#8220;What we&#8217;ve shown in Florida is you can stand up for truth, you can stand on principle, you can fight the woke elite, and you can win,&#8221; he said. &#8220;And I think this is important because the survival of the American experiment requires a revival of the enduring American principles that make this country unique. And Florida&#8217;s formula is everything we do is rooted in those founding principles of our country, we douse it with a very heavy dose of common sense, which is in very short supply nowadays. And we buttress that, with having the courage to lead on issues where you know, you may get incoming fire, but that&#8217;s the price of leadership nowadays.&#8221;
&#8220;Anything you do that&#8217;s meaningful, you are going to have people that are going to shoot at you, they&#8217;re going to take potshots at you, they&#8217;re going to criticize you, they&#8217;re going to smear you, you got to be willing to stand strong, you got to be willing to take those hits, and keep on going,&#8221; he continued. &#8220;But guess what, when you stand up for what&#8217;s right, when you show people you&#8217;re willing to fight for them, they will walk over broken glass barefoot to come vote for you. And that&#8217;s exactly what they did for me on November 8 in record numbers. But what we&#8217;ve shown is people respond to strong leadership.&#8221;
DeSantis noted that the last couple of years under President Joe Biden&#8217;s (D) leadership have been difficult and that Florida has shown that &#8220;in times like these, there is no substitute for victory.&#8221;
&#8220;We in Florida are the light, freedom will reign supreme with Florida leading the way,&#8221; he added. &#8220;I can tell you this, we&#8217;ve got a lot more to do and I have only begun to fight.&#8221;
<iframe loading="lazy" title="LIVE: DeSantis, Nikki Haley Address Republican Jewish Coalition Meeting in Las Vegas" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/J223nglXql8?start=5592&#038;feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Top GOP Leaders Attend Republican Jewish Coalition Annual Meeting In Las Vegas

‘There Is No Substitute For Victory’: Ron DeSantis Lays Out The Roadmap For Republicans To Dominate

Ron DeSantis Lays Out The Roadmap For Republicans To Dominate

Elections

Florida

Politics

Republican Party

Republicans

Ron DeSantis

Senate Minority Leader <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/mitch-mcconnell" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Mitch McConnell</a> won re-election to lead the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/republican-party" target="_blank" rel="noopener">GOP</a> in the Senate on Wednesday, fending off a challenge from Florida Sen. <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/rick-scott" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Rick Scott</a>.
A group of GOP senators <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2022/11/11/gop-senators-call-for-postponing-leadership-elections-00066532">called</a> to push off the leadership vote until after the Georgia runoff race between incumbent Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock and Republican candidate Herschel Walker, according to a Friday report from Politico.
McConnell responded to the senators on Tuesday, dismissing their arguments and pushing forward with the leadership vote.
“I think the outcome is pretty clear,” McConnell <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2022/11/15/politics/rick-scott-challenges-mitch-mcconnell/index.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a>. “I want to repeat again. I have the votes; I will be elected. The only issue is whether we do it sooner or later.”
McConnell, 80, is on track to <a href="https://www.senate.gov/senators/longest-serving-party-leaders.htm">becoming</a> the longest serving party leader in the Senate. First elected in 1985, McConnell has led Republicans in the Senate for 15 years since 2007. Former Democratic Sen. Michael Mansfield holds the record for longest serving party leader at 16 years from 1961-1977.
Scott, who headed the National Republican Senatorial Committee during midterms, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/rick-scott-announces-bid-to-oust-mcconnell-as-senate-gop-leader">launched</a> his bid to unseat McConnell earlier this week. Scott ran the Senate Republicans’ campaign arm that is chiefly responsible for helping Republicans get elected to the Senate. The Florida senator oversaw an underwhelming performance in the 2022 midterm elections where the GOP lost a slate of close contests and failed to pick up any more seats.
“I’m writing to you today because I believe it’s time for the Senate Republican Conference to be far more bold and resolute than we have been in the past. We must start saying what we are for, not just what we are against,” Scott <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/congress/mcconnell-re-elected-senate-gop-leader-defeating-challenge-rick-scott-rcna57487" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told</a> fellow Republicans in a letter Tuesday. “I do not believe we can simply continue to say the Democrats are radical, which they are. Republican voters expect and deserve to know our plan to promote and advance conservative values.”
McConnell and Scott and their allies traded barbs in the wake of the 2022 midterm elections, pointing fingers and casting blame for the GOP falling short of expectations. Montana Sen. Steve Daines was elected Wednesday to take over the reins at the NRSC heading into 2024.
Scott and the NRSC face questions over their allocation of resources. During a three-hour GOP conference on Tuesday, Sens. Marsha Blackburn (TN) and Thom Tillis (NC) suggested auditing the NRSC’s expenditures during the campaign season in an effort to understand where Republicans may have gone wrong, according to <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2022/11/16/rick-scott-nrsc-00067439">Politico</a>.
Scott appeared to respond to the push for an investigation in his Wednesday letter, emphasizing his push to reform the Senate GOP’s campaign arm. He took over the NRSC in November 2020 for the 2022 midterm cycle.
“When that’s your starting point, you work really hard to make sure there are transparent processes,” Scott said, “[W]e are more than happy to sit down with any member of the caucus to walk them through our spending.”

Mitch McConnell

Mitch McConnell Keeps Hold On Senate GOP, Knocks Back Challenge From Rick Scott

Congress

Rick Scott

U.S. Senate

Washington D.C.

Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) dismissed the notion during an interview over the weekend that the Republican Party has a single leader in former President Donald Trump, noting that the party has a few high-power governors that are stars.
Cotton made the remarks Sunday during an interview on CBS News&#8217;s &#8220;Face the Nation&#8221; with Margaret Brennan when asked if Trump should &#8220;remain the leader of the Republican Party.&#8221;
&#8220;When the party &#8212; when any party is out of power, as Republicans are now, we don&#8217;t have a single leader,&#8221; Cotton said. &#8220;The former president is obviously very popular with many of our voters. But we also have important other leaders as well, like some of those victors I just mentioned earlier, like Brian Kemp in Georgia, Ron DeSantis in Florida.&#8221;
&#8220;Last year, you had Glenn Youngkin have a great victory in a bluish Democratic state like Virginia,&#8221; he continued. &#8220;I hope to remain a leader in the United States Senate as well, in addition to people like some of those I just mentioned who were re-elected, like Tim Scott. So, when you&#8217;re in opposition, you don&#8217;t have a single leader. That won&#8217;t be the case until we&#8217;re through the &#8217;24 nominating season, and we have &#8212; we have a new nominee.&#8221;
WATCH:
<iframe loading="lazy" title="Cotton says he backs McConnell for GOP Senate leader" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/gkhSPGLsmg8?start=113&#038;feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>
TRANSCRIPT:
<blockquote>MARGARET BRENNAN: And we go now to Arkansas Republican Senator Tom Cotton, who was a regular on the 2022 campaign trail boosting GOP candidates. He&#8217;s out with a new book called &#8220;Only the Strong,&#8221; and he joins us this morning from McLean, Virginia. Good morning to you, Senator. And on this Veterans Day weekend, I do want to thank you for your past military service.
SENATOR TOM COTTON: Well, thank you, Margaret. That&#8217;s kind of you, and thanks to all our veterans for their service in all of our nation&#8217;s wars.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Let me get to the story of the moment. Democrats faced historic headwinds. Eight out of 10 Americans said they felt it was out of control. Republicans had issues like economy and crime really break in their favor. President Biden has a low approval rating. How did Republicans end up with this complete disappointment?
SEN. COTTON: Well, Margaret, I wouldn&#8217;t say it was a complete disappointment. On the one hand, we had strong Republican leaders running on positive records of accomplishments who won very big victories. If you look at governors, like Ron DeSantis in Florida, Brian Kemp in Georgia, Mike DeWine in Ohio, Kim Reynolds in Iowa, Greg Abbott in Texas &#8212; we had senators with the same victories, like Marco Rubio in Florida, and Tim Scott in South Carolina, Ron Johnson in Wisconsin. But on the other hand, obviously, we hoped that we would have won more seats. I think the lessons in our victories can be applied to some places where we came up a little bit short. We need to focus on serious substantive accomplishments and issues like crime, like our wide-open border, like addressing runaway inflation. Even in places where we came up a little bit short, like Lee Zeldin&#8217;s race for governor in New York, he performed very well compared to Republicans in recent elections, and he probably helped save the House of Representatives by bringing four new Republican Congressman-elect across the finish line in New York. I think we have lessons in the places we had victories that we can apply to places where we were disappointed.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Sure, but you lost the ballgame in the Senate. Karl Rove blamed candidate quality and specifically put the blame on former President Trump. He said, &#8220;Mr. Trump turned what should have been a referendum on Mr. Biden&#8217;s terrible record into a choice between himself and the current president. As in 2020, lots of voters chose Mr. Biden.&#8221; Should Mr. Trump remain the leader of the Republican Party?
SEN. COTTON: Well, Margaret, when the party &#8212; when any party is out of power, as Republicans are now, we don&#8217;t have a single leader. The former president is obviously very popular with many of our voters–
(CROSSTALK)
MARGARET BRENNAN: He&#8217;s the center of gravity.
SEN. COTTON: But we also have important other leaders as well, like some of those victors I just mentioned earlier, like Brian Kemp in Georgia, Ron DeSantis in Florida. Last year, you had Glen Younkin have a great victory in a bluish democratic state like Virginia. I hope to remain a leader in the United States Senate as well, in addition to people like some of those I just mentioned who were reelected, like Tim Scott. So, when you&#8217;re in opposition, you don&#8217;t have a single leader. That won&#8217;t be the case until we&#8217;re through the &#8217;24 nominating season, and we have- we have a new nominee.
MARGARET BRENNAN: You said you&#8217;re not going to run for president in 2024. The former president says he intends to announce he&#8217;s running on Tuesday. Should he be the automatic nominee, or should he face a primary?
SEN. COTTON: Well, Margaret, since I opted against being a candidate in 2024, I &#8212; I don&#8217;t plan to be a pundit or a strategist–
(CROSSTALK)
MARGARET BRENNAN: Well, you just throw out a whole bunch of names of guys who might be running for president, Senator. Are you endorsing them?
SEN. COTTON: And I know almost &#8212; I know almost all of them personally. And I respect their accomplishments, not just their big victories on Tuesday or last year in Glenn&#8217;s case, but also their accomplishments in office. But you know, I know everyone already wants to focus on 2024. I just want to remind everyone that we&#8217;re still in the middle of the 2022 midterm, because we&#8217;re in overtime in Georgia. And the most important thing we can do is elect Herschel Walker to make sure that we can keep the pressure on Democrats in the Senate not to veer far to the left, as they have over the last two years. That&#8217;s where I think everyone should remain focused for these next three weeks.
MARGARET BRENNAN: Should leadership elections in the Senate be delayed until December, and should Mitch McConnell remain as Republican leader in the Senate?
SEN. COTTON: Well, I don&#8217;t see why we would delay the election, since all five or six of our leadership elections are uncontested. You know, the great wrestling champion Ric Flair used to say, to be the man, you got to beat the man. And so far, no one&#8217;s had the nerve to step forward and challenge Senator McConnell. So, I support Senator McConnell. I support the other slate of candidates for our leadership elections. I think it&#8217;s better that we move forward with these elections, so we can focus again on the Georgia runoff.
MARGARET BRENNAN: All right, I want to ask you as well about what will be a consequential meeting tomorrow between President Biden and President Xi Jinping of China, their first face-to-face of the Biden presidency. Mr. Biden says he wants to talk through red lines to understand critical interests. Can the US avoid conflict with China at this point?
SEN. COTTON: We want to avoid conflict with China most certainly in the military sense. I don&#8217;t think we can avoid conflict and tension in terms of diplomatic and economic and political competition. I would urge the president to be very firm in drawing those red lines. We don&#8217;t want to see a repeat of what happened last summer in Russia when Vladimir Putin walked away from their summit in Europe, tempted to go for the jugular in Ukraine, especially a month later after the collapse in Afghanistan, or a replay of something I write about in my new book, &#8220;Only the Strong,&#8221; of the disastrous Vienna summit in 1961 between John Kennedy and Nikita Khrushchev, which encouraged Russian leaders to rampage all around the world for the next year. So I hope the president is very clear in drawing red lines, for instance, saying that the recent rule against China using American semiconductor technology is only the first step. I hope he&#8217;s very clear about Taiwan, that we will continue to arm Taiwan so it can defend itself, and if China goes for the jugular in Taiwan, then we will come to their aid. That&#8217;s the simplest way to avoid military conflict, is to be clear and firm upfront.
MARGARET BRENNAN: But what would you recommend in terms of China not going for the jugular, but a slow strangulation to take over Taiwan, which I know you know is one of the scenarios national security officials are concerned about?
SEN. COTTON: Well, the simplest thing we can do for Taiwan is what we should have started doing for Ukraine before Russia invaded Ukraine, is to provide them with the weaponry that they need to stop an invasion. It&#8217;s urgent that we do so now because unlike Ukraine, Taiwan is an island, which means China could blockade it, and we might not be able to resupply them once China might start military conflict. So, it&#8217;s urgent that we accelerate arms sales to Taiwan, the kind of anti-ship, anti aircraft, missiles and sea mines that they need to fend off a potential evasion from the Communist Chinese.
MARGARET BRENNAN: With China, it&#8217;s a hard problem set because, as you know, our economies are so interlinked. iPhones are made in China. We learned during the pandemic, how dependent we are on the supply chain. They own an enormous amount of U.S. debt. You&#8217;re arguing to separate the two economies, but people like Hank Paulson of the Bush administration have said that&#8217;ll end up with a less stable world with really dangerous economic forces here. How do you possibly do that?
SEN. COTTON: Well, Margaret, as I write in &#8220;Only the Strong,&#8221; it was a bad mistake by leaders in both parties going back 30 years to allow China to get itself so entangled in the United States and to allow us to become so economically dependent in so many ways, whether it&#8217;s things like high tech, electronic equipment, or low tech, basic pharmaceutical ingredients or medical equipment. What I say in &#8220;Only the Strong&#8221; is that we should try to decouple in a strategic sense so we don&#8217;t harm our own people, but we&#8217;re no longer dependent on those critical sectors that we depend on to keep ourselves safe, safe, healthy and prosperous. It&#8217;s one thing if Americans buy, you know, say, children&#8217;s toys or plastic Christmas trees from China. It&#8217;s another thing if China has the market cornered on things like basic pharmaceutical ingredients or the rare earth elements that are so vital to all modern electronics. We have to do so in a smart way, but we have to be aggressive and quick about it.
MARGARET BRENNAN: We&#8217;ll watch to see if there&#8217;s congressional action on any of that. Senator, thank you for your time today.</blockquote>
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/tom-cotton-makes-decision-on-running-for-president-in-2024-report">Tom Cotton Makes Decision On Running For President In 2024</a>

Sen. Tom Cotton

Tom Cotton: Trump Not GOP’s ‘Single Leader,’ We Have ‘Important Other Leaders’ Like Ron DeSantis, Brian Kemp

Brian Kemp

Donald Trump

Tom Cotton

Democratic incumbent Senator Catherine Cortez Masto has narrowly defeated Republican challenger Adam Laxalt in the race for Nevada Senate, according to <a href="https://results.decisiondeskhq.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Decision Desk</a>. With 98% of the vote counted, Cortez Masto holds 48.7% of the vote to Laxalt’s 48.2%.
Cortez Masto’s Saturday evening victory comes after a lengthy ballot count process in the state.
Laxalt, the former state attorney general and grandson of a one-time Silver State governor, led in polls heading into Election Day as Cortez Masto struggled against headwinds throughout the campaign. President Joe Biden’s sagging popularity, soaring inflation, and crime put the vulnerable senator in a tough race even with the benefit of incumbency.
Cortez Masto jumped on the issue of abortion access following the overturning of Roe v. Wade over the summer. Following the Supreme Court decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women&#8217;s Health Organization, Cortez Masto <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2022/10/17/abortion-is-central-issue-arizona-nevada-senate-races/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">leaned</a> into the abortion issue to draw a contrast with the pro-life Laxalt.
In the final days of the campaign, Cortez Masto and her fellow Nevada Democrat, Governor Steve Sisolak, held a rally with former President Barack Obama in a bid to boost Democratic turnout before the election.
Although the GOP held an apparent advantage in voter enthusiasm heading into the final days of the contest — a <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2022/11/02/politics/cnn-poll-gop-congressional-election/index.html">CNN/SSRS</a> poll had 38% of Republican voters feeling “extremely enthusiastic” compared to just 24% of Democrats — the race came down to just under 5,000 votes.
Laxalt’s grandfather was former Nevada Governor Paul Laxalt, who was an early backer of President Ronald Reagan. Adam Laxalt, widely seen as the frontrunner in his Republican primary race, beat former Army captain Sam Brown to receive the nod to challenge Cortez Masto.
After winning the primary, the GOP pinned its hopes on Laxalt to pull off an upset and flip a Democratic-held seat in the U.S. Senate, which was deadlocked at 50-50. Laxalt ran a competitive campaign and overtook Cortez Masto in the <a href="https://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/2022/senate/nv/nevada_senate_laxalt_vs_cortez_masto-7392.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">RealClearPolitics</a> polling average in the last month of the race. Laxalt’s campaign focused largely on the economy and crime while attempting to tie Cortez Masto to Biden and his record.
“Think how much life has changed for Americans in just the past two years. Families today are seeing the <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/category/us/economy/inflation" target="_blank" rel="noopener">worst inflation in four decades</a>, record prices at the pump, fentanyl flooding across an open border, and violent crime sweeping our nation,” Laxalt wrote in a final pitch <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/adam-laxalt-nevadas-vote-midterm-election" target="_blank" rel="noopener">op-ed</a> for Fox News last week. “This transformation is regrettable but should come as no surprise. It is a direct result of the sweeping liberal agenda imposed on our nation by Joe Biden, and his rubber stamp in <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/category/politics/elections/senate" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the Senate</a>, Catherine Cortez Masto.”
His campaign hit a few bumps, however. In mid-October, 14 members of Laxalt’s family publicly <a href="https://www.rgj.com/story/news/2022/10/12/adam-laxalt-relatives-endorse-catherine-cortez-masto-nevada-senate-race/10480519002/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">endorsed</a> Cortez Masto. The blow was reminiscent of a similar late-stage family split that took place four years ago during Laxalt’s failed gubernatorial campaign. Many of the family members who signed on to the Cortez Masto endorsement are Democrats.

Catherine Cortez Masto/Adam Laxalt

Dem Incumbent Catherine Cortez Masto Wins Nevada Senate Race: Projection

2022 Midterms

Nevada

Decision Desk has <a href="https://results.decisiondeskhq.com/2022/general/states/Nevada" target="_blank" rel="noopener">called</a> the Nevada gubernatorial race for Republican Clark County Sheriff Joe Lombardo, who received 49.24% of the vote to Democrat incumbent Steve Sisolak’s 46.99% as of this reporting.
Although Sisolak faced headwinds — President Joe Biden’s poor approval ratings, high inflation, and a crime wave, which hurt Democrats’ polling numbers throughout the summer and fall — following Tuesday’s initial results, things looked as though they might improve for the Democrat.
After a slow ballot count, however, Sisolak was defeated by a moderate margin.
Additionally, 68-year-old Sisolak faced numerous charges of corruption from Republicans after a ProPublica investigation revealed in May that Sisolak’s administration had fast-tracked a lab license and awarded several COVID testing contracts to Northshore Clinical Labs. Northshore is closely <a href="https://www.rgj.com/story/news/politics/2022/05/25/sisolak-slams-despicable-company-missed-96-covid-cases/9913339002/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">linked</a> with the family of Peter Palivos, a well-known Nevada political contributor who has <a href="https://www.rgj.com/story/news/politics/elections/2022/10/28/nevadas-sisolak-lombardo-clash-bombshell-donor-probe-covid-testing-northshore-clinical-labs/10624241002/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">donated</a> tens of thousands of dollars to Sisolak’s campaigns over more than a decade.
After Northshore was awarded five testing agreements with government entities, their testing kits were found to miss 96% of COVID cases. The revelation set off a series of circular finger-pointing among Sisolak and others involved in the scandal.
“The day the state was made aware of Northshore’s deficiencies in January we ordered them to stop their PCR testing operation, opened an investigation, and worked to correct the testing issues,” Sisolak said in May. “We believe Nevada was the first state where Northshore operations were suspended due to the state’s inquiries into the reported deficiencies.”
Sisolak seized on abortion access after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade earlier this summer. In June, he signed an executive order barring state employees from assisting any other state seeking to prosecute someone for receiving an abortion. He also attempted to paint Lombardo as an extremist on the issue, <a href="https://mynews4.com/news/local/nevada-governor-democrat-steve-sisolak-highlights-abortion-access-in-race-against-pro-life-gop-lombardo" target="_blank" rel="noopener">claiming</a> that the sheriff would try to ban contraceptives, an allegation that Lombardo has denied.
Lombardo, 60, ran a campaign focused largely on economic issues, education, and crime, especially the prevalence of black market fentanyl in the state. The longtime law enforcement officer has portrayed himself as a moderate on other issues, such as abortion, consistently downplaying what he could do to limit abortion as governor.
The Clark County sheriff also shifted on his support for former President Donald Trump during the campaign. During a debate with Sisolak in early October, Lombardo backed off when asked if he considered Trump, who endorsed Lombardo, to have been a “great president.”
“I wouldn’t say great,” Lombardo <a href="https://apnews.com/article/2022-midterm-elections-abortion-health-las-vegas-donald-trump-0e1fcd02b332b05bcc129ee42a0585b1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a>. “I think he was a sound president.”
After the debate, Lombardo’s campaign sent out a statement <a href="https://twitter.com/JoeLombardoNV/status/1576781780849348609" target="_blank" rel="noopener">calling</a> the former president “a great president” and claiming that “his accomplishments are some of the most impactful in American history.” The statement went on to tie Sisolak to Biden and accuse the Nevada governor of weakening the state’s elections through mail ballots, “ballot harvesting,” and opposition to voter ID.

Steve Sisolak/Joe Lombardo

Republican Joe Lombardo Wins Nevada Governorship: Projection

A number of <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/republican-party" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Republican</a> lawmakers are calling for leadership changes in the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/u-s-house-of-representatives" target="_blank" rel="noopener">House of Representatives</a> and the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/u-s-senate" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Senate</a> after a widely forecasted red wave failed to materialize.
Although Republicans are likely to secure a narrow majority in the former chamber after the midterm election, several candidates vying for a spot in the latter chamber succumbed to their Democratic rivals. A number of high-profile lawmakers, including Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI), Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT), and Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL), circulated a <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2022/11/11/gop-senators-call-for-postponing-leadership-elections-00066532" target="_blank" rel="noopener">letter</a> asking their colleagues to postpone leadership elections currently scheduled for next week.
“We need to have serious discussions within our conference as to why and what we can do to improve our chances in 2024,” the lawmakers said in the letter first obtained by Politico. “Holding leadership elections without hearing from the candidates as to how they will perform their leadership duties and before we know whether we will be in the majority or even who all our members are violates the most basic principles of a democratic process. It is certainly not the way leadership elections should be conducted in the world’s greatest deliberative body.”
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) has served in the upper chamber since 1985 and has led the Senate Republican Conference since 2007.
Beyond the authors of the letter, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) <a href="https://twitter.com/marcorubio/status/1591112183945269251" target="_blank" rel="noopener">called</a> for the elections to be postponed, arguing that Republicans “need to make sure that those who want to lead us are genuinely committed” to fighting for working-class Americans who gave conservatives “big wins” in states such as Florida. Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) likewise <a href="https://twitter.com/HawleyMO/status/1591113869925441536" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> that the vote should not occur “before this election is finished.”
At least three Senate contests have not been called by any major news networks as of Friday afternoon, meaning that either party could hold narrow control over the Senate next year. Venture capitalist Blake Masters is trailing incumbent Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ) in the Arizona vote count, while Nevada Attorney General Adam Laxalt is leading incumbent Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV) in the Silver State. The Georgia Senate contest will advance to a runoff in December since neither Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-GA) nor former football star Herschel Walker managed to secure a majority on Tuesday.
Similar opposition has emerged against House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) from members of the House Freedom Caucus. Roughly two dozen members are willing to vote against the lawmaker in his bid for becoming Speaker of the House if he does not offer them concessions, according to a <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2022/11/09/politics/kevin-mccarthy-midterm-results-house-republicans/index.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">report</a> from CNN. In an <a href="https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/courage-strength-optimism/chip-roy-midterms-result-leadership-not-title-an-action" target="_blank" rel="noopener">opinion piece</a> for The Washington Examiner, Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX) criticized leadership within his party for failing to “produce the kind of concrete plan and bold strategy” required under the Biden administration.
“The House ‘leadership’ play, from top to bottom, was to offer an eleventh-hour, tepid, and weak ‘Commitment to America,’ which few people knew about, much less cared about, and which said both everything and nothing,” Roy contended. “Perhaps well-intentioned to involve rank-and-file members through ‘task forces,’ the leadership failed to produce the kind of concrete plan and bold strategy the moment required.”

Screen Shot 2022-06-14 at 3.07.33 PM

Republican Lawmakers Push For Change In Congressional Leadership After Lackluster Midterms

Republican Members Of Congress Push For Change In Leadership

U.S. House of Representatives

Michigan Republicans were hopeful for a repudiation of the state’s current leftist trajectory Tuesday night. They were met with the opposite.
Democrats are projected to win key races and ballot measures across the board in the Great Lakes State, led by Gov. <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/michigan-governor-gretchen-whitmer-hangs-on-despite-late-republican-surge-projection/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Gretchen Whitmer&#8217;s re-election victory</a>. The party is also set to win multiple tight U.S. House races, enshrine a right to abortion in the state’s constitution, and take control of the state legislature for the first time in 40 years.
“We have come a long way, Michigan,” Whitmer <a href="https://www.fox17online.com/news/election-2022/gretchen-whitmer-beats-tudor-dixon-will-serve-4-more-years-as-governor" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told</a> a crowd of her supporters early Wednesday morning. “We are thrilled at the unexpected high turnout, we are thrilled that the three ballot initiatives got passed.”
Michigan <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2022/11/09/us/abortion-rights-ballot-proposals.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">joined</a> California and Vermont in passing ballot initiatives to add a right to abortion in their states’ constitutions. The approved measure now supersedes a 1931 Michigan law that bans all abortions unless the mother’s life is at risk. Whitmer campaigned heavily on the issue of abortion, pointing at her opponent Tudor Dixon as too radical in her opposition to abortion.
The approved amendment recognizes a “right to make and effectuate decisions about all matters relating to pregnancy, including but not limited to prenatal care, childbirth, postpartum care, contraception, sterilization, abortion care, miscarriage management, and infertility care.” Opponents of the proposal <a href="https://www.heritage.org/life/commentary/michigans-radical-proposition-3-ballot-measure-would-go-far-beyond-just-codifying" target="_blank" rel="noopener">argue</a> it goes beyond codifying abortion rights by erasing Michigan’s protections of those born alive after a botched abortion and “pav[ing] the way for eugenic abortions, or abortions based on sex, disability, or race.”
U.S. House results from Michigan were another bright spot for Democrats as the party looks to hold onto more seats than what many expected. In the state’s 7th congressional district toss-up race, Rep. Elissa Slotkin (D-MI) is projected to defeat GOP challenger Tom Barrett. Democrats <a href="https://results.decisiondeskhq.com/2022/general/states/Michigan" target="_blank" rel="noopener">appear poised</a> to flip the state’s 3rd district, with current vote counts showing Democrat Hillary Scholten up by 13 points on Trump-endorsed Republican John Gibbs. Democrats poured hundreds of thousands of dollars into Gibbs’ primary race to boost his run against Rep. Peter Meijer (R-MI). Current results also show incumbent Democrat Dan Kildee holding onto a 5-point lead against Republican Paul Junge in what was considered another toss-up race.
In another show of Democratic dominance in Michigan on Tuesday night, Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson soundly defeated Republican Kristina Karamo, and Attorney General Dana Nessel appears set to win her election against Matthew DePerno, leading by seven points with an estimated 92% of the vote counted.
Democrats are also projected to gain control of the state’s legislature for the first time since 1983. The party said Wednesday morning that they will hold a one-vote majority in the state House and believe they will win a two-seat majority in the Senate. Republicans conceded their control of both chambers, <a href="https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/politics/michigan/2022/11/09/michigan-democrats-poised-to-win-control-of-legislature-for-1st-time-in-decades/69632790007/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according</a> to the Detroit News.

Michigan Democrats

Michigan Moves Left As Dems Celebrate Wins Up And Down The Ballot

Democratic Party

Gretchen Whitmer

Michigan

Former Fox News host Megyn Kelly remained optimistic about the midterm election results despite the disappointment of some Republican voters expecting a red tsunami during an interview on The Daily Wire Backstage.
Kelly reminded viewers that Republican candidates vying for House and Senate seats faced &#8220;absolute devastation&#8221; until September when pollsters saw the gaps closing in many races across the country.
&#8220;This is a big night,&#8221; Kelly said, arguing that GOP victories would obstruct the Democratic agenda. &#8220;There will be no more Inflation Reduction Act nonsense. January 6 distractions are over. Their primetime show is done. Like they needed to be stopped — they were out of control.&#8221;
Democrats have held both the House and Senate for the last two years. But President Joe Biden&#8217;s sagging approval numbers, rising inflation, and and increase in crime could give the GOP the opportunity to flip numerous seats and reclaim Congress.
With projections showing a split majority in the Senate and the GOP winning the House, Kelly argued that a split Congress could help Republicans make a better case for a Republican president in 2024.
&#8220;It is better for the GOP not to be in control of both branches of Congress,&#8221; Kelly said. &#8220;The more they control, the more they&#8217;re gonna get blanked.&#8221;
&#8220;It&#8217;s going to be a lot tougher if they control the Senate and the GOP controls the House,&#8221; she added.
The podcast host said whether or not Republicans control both houses of Congress, they will have to &#8220;get dirty and fight those battles&#8221; with the Democrats pushing deeply ideological issues.

Megyn Kelly

‘I Like A Divided Government’: Megyn Kelly Celebrates GOP Midterm Wins

'I Like A Divided Government': Megyn Kelly Celebrates GOP Midterm Wins

<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/tennessee" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Tennessee</a> Sen. <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/marsha-blackburn" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Marsha Blackburn</a> (R) told The Daily Wire during the Election Night 2022 Preshow on Tuesday that a Republican majority is imperative to preserve faith, family, and freedom in the United States.
Blackburn, who assumed office in 2019, said a bucket of issues like inflation, border crime, and parental rights stemming from the Biden administration has Americans disturbed about how fast their agenda has changed the country.
&#8220;The thing that really disturbs people is the fact that this administration is trying to force us to make changes into the kind of cars that we drive, force us into having the state control what our children see and hear and think and what they learn,&#8221; Blackburn said. &#8220;And people are very unsettled with the way this administration has been so forceful.&#8221;
Senator Blackburn, who serves on the Senate Judiciary Committee, addressed voters concerned with the state of the Department of Justice.
&#8220;Their fears are justified,&#8221; she said, referring to President Biden calling Republican voters idiots, left-wing media pundits downgrading American citizens as cockroaches, and the DOJ deeming parents terrorists.
&#8220;That&#8217;s an environment that people are looking at this and saying, &#8216;wait a minute, how did we get to this and how can they get away with this?’” Blackburn said. &#8220;And don&#8217;t they have to answer to Congress.&#8221;
&#8220;We are to be a government of, by, and for the people,&#8221; she added. &#8220;Not a government that comes in and says you can&#8217;t have these freedoms and we&#8217;ll give you back a little bit of freedom, but a government that protects the individual from the impact of the bureaucracy.&#8221;
If Republicans take back the House and Senate in the 2022 Midterm elections, Blackburn said the first step to change course would be to freeze federal spending, which would hit the pockets of career politicians.
And pending a reformation of the fiscal budget, a Republican majority could bring the nation back to producing energy, restarting the border wall construction, and putting money back into taxpayers’ pockets.
&#8220;[Voters] should want a Republican majority because it is imperative that we preserve faith, family, freedom, hope, and opportunity for all Americans,&#8221; Blackburn said.

Key Speakers At Conservative Political Action Conference

‘People Are Very Unsettled’: Marsha Blackburn Explains Why A Republican Majority Would Preserve Values In The U.S.

Sen. Blackburn Talks Why A Republican Majority Would Preserve Value In The U.S.

Marsha Blackburn

The U.S. territory of Guam has elected its first Republican to represent the island as a non-voting delegate to U.S. Congress for the first time in nearly 30 years.
Pacific Daily News <a href="https://www.guampdn.com/news/moylan-defeats-won-pat-in-delegate-race/article_631ab684-5f76-11ed-94bd-bbbbdb0c4144.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a> that Republican Sen. James Moylan, a senator in the island&#8217;s legislature, beat former Speaker of the Guam Legislature Judith Won Pat.
The local newspaper said that the projection was based on partial, unofficial results that showed Moylan leading Pat 17,075 votes to 15,427 votes.
&#8220;Congratulations to Guam Republican James Moylan for becoming the next delegate to the United States Congress,&#8221; The Republican Party said in a statement. &#8220;Guam hasn’t sent a Republican to Congress since 1993.&#8221;
This is a developing news story; refresh the page for updates.

Jim Moylan

Guam Elects First Republican Delegate To U.S. Congress Since 1993

2022 Election

Tesla and SpaceX CEO <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/elon-musk" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Elon Musk</a> told “independent-minded” voters on the day before the <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/2022-midterms" target="_blank" rel="noopener">midterm elections</a> to cast ballots for <a href="http://dailywire.com/topic/republicans" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Republicans</a>.
Musk cited the fact that President Joe Biden holds the Executive Branch for Democrats, and said a split in Washginton would be better than one-party rule.
“Shared power curbs the worst excesses of both parties,” the world’s richest man and new owner of Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1589639376186724354" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told</a> his nearly 115 million followers on the platform. “Therefore I recommend voting for a Republican Congress, given that the Presidency is Democratic.”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
To independent-minded voters:
Shared power curbs the worst excesses of both parties, therefore I recommend voting for a Republican Congress, given that the Presidency is Democratic.
&mdash; Elon Musk (@elonmusk) <a href="https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1589639376186724354?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 7, 2022</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Musk already announced earlier this year that he <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/elon-musk-celebrates-historic-republican-win-in-deep-blue-south-texas-massive-red-wave-in-2022" target="_blank" rel="noopener">cast an early ballot</a> for Mayra Flores, a Republican who beat Democrat Dan Sanchez in a special House of Representatives election in southern Texas.
“I voted for Mayra Flores — first time I ever voted Republican,” Musk <a href="https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1536973965394157569?lang=en" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said at the time</a>. “Massive red wave in 2022.”
When <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/elon-musk-tips-hat-toward-ron-desantis-to-be-next-president-of-the-united-states" target="_blank" rel="noopener">asked</a> about who he was likely to support in the 2024 presidential election, Musk responded, “DeSantis.”
“I have voted overwhelmingly for Democrats, historically,” Musk also <a href="https://people.com/politics/elon-musk-says-he-will-start-voting-for-republicans-after-having-voted-overwhelmingly-for-democrats/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">acknowledged</a>. “Like I’m not sure, I might never have voted for a Republican, just to be clear. Now this election, I will.”
Musk began what appears to be a political epiphany during the government lockdowns that gripped the nation two years ago. He grew increasingly frustrated as California officials prevented a major Tesla factory from reopening, prompting the entrepreneur to <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/elon-musk-says-tesla-moving-headquarters-from-california-to-texas" target="_blank" rel="noopener">move</a> the company’s headquarters to Texas. He <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/elon-musk-take-the-red-pill" target="_blank" rel="noopener">encouraged</a> other Americans to “take the red pill” and <a href="https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1287818109651431427?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1287818109651431427%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.dailywire.com%2Fnews%2Felon-musk-announces-hes-switching-to-vote-republican" target="_blank" rel="noopener">noticed</a> that leftists are “losing the middle” of the political spectrum.
Top Democratic commentators and lawmakers have noticed a similar reality. Third Way, a center-left think tank, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/top-democrats-admit-party-is-too-extreme-out-of-touch-with-what-voters-care-about" target="_blank" rel="noopener">warned</a> on Monday that the Democratic Party is radical and out-of-touch with the issues driving voters to the polls. Republicans maintain double-digit advantages over their rivals on the economy and immigration, with roughly 56% saying that Democrats “are not focused enough on the economy” and only 36% expressing the same about their opponents.
“The results indicate that Democrats are underwater on issues voters name as their highest priorities,” a memo published by the group stated, “including the economy, immigration, and crime, they are perceived as distant from the electorate ideologically, and voters question whether the party shares essential values like patriotism and the importance of hard work.”
Beyond a general unease with the direction of the Democratic Party, Musk has repeatedly condemned the policy agenda enacted by Biden. While the White House has frequently praised the efforts of Ford and GM to expand their electric vehicle offerings, Tesla, the world’s largest electric vehicle manufacturer, has often been omitted. The <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/joe-bidens-electric-vehicle-summit-excludes-tesla" target="_blank" rel="noopener">snubbing</a> may be attributable to the reality that Tesla is not unionized, as former White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki hinted last year when she was pressed on why Tesla was not invited to an electric vehicle summit in which the other two companies participated.
When the Biden administration introduced the Build Back Better Act, an omnibus bill containing the entirety of the commander-in-chief’s domestic agenda, Musk actively rebuked the legislation.
“I would say can this bill, don’t pass it. That’s my recommendation,” he <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/elon-musk-trashes-bidens-build-back-better-plan-can-this-bill-dont-pass-it" target="_blank" rel="noopener">argued</a> during The Wall Street Journal’s CEO Council Summit. “If this bill happens or doesn’t happen, we don’t think about it at all really. Honestly it might be better if the bill doesn’t pass.”
Musk, in line with his nod toward “shared power,” is presently attempting to run Twitter with an even-handed approach toward fact-checking. He <a href="https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1585619322239561728" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told</a> advertisers that he acquired the social media company in order to “have a common digital town square, where a wide range of beliefs can be debated in a healthy manner, without resorting to violence,” expressing concern that “social media will splinter into far right wing and far left wing echo chambers that generate more hate and divide our society.”

Tesla Motors Inc. CEO Elon Musk and Nvidia Corp. Chief Executive Officer Jen-Hsun Huang Speak At GPU Technology Conference

Elon Musk Issues Blanket Endorsement Of GOP In House, Senate Races, Cites Benefits Of ‘Shared Power’

Elon Musk Tells America To Vote Republican

Elon Musk

<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/indiana">Indiana</a> election officials removed a Democrat poll worker last week for allegedly pre-selecting Democratic candidates and pressuring citizens to vote for specific candidates.
Beth Sheller, an election administrator for Hamilton County, told <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/politics/democrat-poll-worker-ejected-pre-selecting-straight-dem-ticket-voting-machines-report">Fox News Digital</a> that an inspector report allegedly identified two separate incidents at a polling location in Carmel, Indiana. The incidents may constitute electioneering and election interference by a poll worker named James Zheng.
Zheng has been accused of telling black voters &#8220;… not to vote for the racist candidates outside,&#8221; according to Chalkboard Review, where officials first identified the accused poll worker.
According to the report, the first incident happened on Thursday evening after the poll worker told a pair of black voters not to vote for pro-parent school board candidates, alleging they were &#8220;racist&#8221; after encountering a group of education activists outside the polling station.
After casting their ballots, the pair of voters explained their interaction with the poll worker to the activists, who then approached the worker about the issue.
The second incident involved potential election interference, according to the inspector report.
Chalkboard Review <a href="https://chalkboardreview.com/breaking-democrat-poll-worker-ejected-after-caught-electioneering-preselecting-straight-dem-ticket/">reports</a> Sheller confirmed that Zheng allegedly pre-selected a straight-Democrat ticket for a voter under the guise of &#8220;explaining the voting machines.&#8221;
Several voters accused Zheng to their local election judges of using the same tactic on their ballots, some of whom &#8220;didn&#8217;t know how to change it back.&#8221;
In a press release obtained by Chalkboard Review, Mario Massillamany, GOP chairman in Hamilton County, said that the election administrator removed Zheng from working at the early voting site and prevented him from returning to the station on Friday and Monday.
&#8220;This should serve as a cautionary reminder that those desperate to hold onto power or gain power will do anything – including breaking the law – to thwart the efforts of parents and taxpayers to replace our school boards with officials who more accurately reflect the values of our community,&#8221; Massillamany said. &#8220;If you see something suspicious, please report such activity immediately to a poll worker or other election official immediately.&#8221;
Fox News reports Dayna Colbert, Hamilton County Democrats chair, was contacted to provide a replacement poll worker.
Hamilton County Sheriff&#8217;s Office has reportedly begun investigating the accusations.
Sheller told Chalkboard Review that she hopes to see Zheng prosecuted for both aspects of misconduct and would ensure with a bipartisan team of judges and election officials that sure &#8220;no electioneering&#8221; signs and limits were posted at that location before polls opened.
&#8220;I have never seen anything like this,&#8221; she said.

Voters Cast Ballots During Midterm Elections

Dem Poll Worker Accused Of Pre-Selecting Democratic Candidates, Pressuring Voters To Cast Ballots For Specific Candidates

Polls

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