Experts on both sides of the political aisle say that Democrats will be lucky to maintain their current numbers in the House of Representatives and the Senate. This is quite a prediction. In 2018, every single seat in the House will be up for election. What experts mean is that in a fair fight, the country will swing conservative, all else being equal.
Experts also agree that the mid term elections will not stand on their own merit. The midterms are always somewhat of a referendum on the president that the country has elected two years earlier. This year is no exception, and may reflect on President Trump more directly than normal. The very public persona of our current president coupled with the fact that media has been more active than ever in his presidency will cause people to react more, like it or not. Local communities are bracing for a higher turnout than typical midterm elections.
It is true that a Democratic majority in either the House of Representatives or in the Senate would put a huge damper on the plans that President Trump laid out in his State of the Union address. There is also a bigger possibility of impeachment if Democrats take hold of either legislative branch. Beyond these immediate issues, however, a changeover also means that liberals would have control over legislative committees. This could affect policy for many years after Trump is constitutionally forced to leave the White House.
President Trump has suffered a slight decline in his overall approval ratings, depending on who you ask. This will not necessarily translate into a good performance for the Democrats in the mid terms. The overall map of the country favors the Republican Party, especially in the Senate.
33 Senate seats are up for grabs. Only eight of them are currently in Republican hands. However, 10 of those seats are in places that Trump carried in 2016. Specifically, seats that Republicans should target include North Dakota, Ohio, Wisconsin and West Virginia, among others. Heidi Heitkamp, Sherrod Brown, Tammy Baldwin and Joe Manchin are all fairly vulnerable candidates who can be overturned with the right campaign against them.
West Virginia may be the big shocker in the examples mentioned above. Manchin is a liberal moderate in a state that voted for Trump overwhelmingly – to the tune of 70% of the vote. Manchin only won his seat by separating himself from Democrats, something that the voters should not fall for this time around. In states such as Wisconsin, which are still conservative but not 70% so, Democrats may have more of a chance of keeping the seat if they energize the base there. It will be up to Republicans to ensure this does not happen.
Republicans also need to protect territory that they have gained in places like Arizona and Nevada. This is probably where Trump could do his best work, should the party call on him to get out on the campaign trail a bit. Energizing the base in these conservative yet still battleground states will do a great deal for the morale of the party and for legislative initiatives moving forward. The president also protects his own interests with this strong political move.
It also behooves the President to unite the party by getting behind the public figure of Ted Cruz during the Texas election. Cruz was decimated by the president during the election (like all of Trump’s competition), and it would do wonders for conservatives for Trump to offer the olive branch of sorts by protecting this very important seat. Cruz faces a potential challenge in Beto O’Rourke – Texas may be a bit more culturally diverse than conservatives think.
Trump has more of an opportunity to affect the midterms than any president before him. He is, after all, a master of media. Let’s hope that conservatives have finally learned how to use the incredible resource that is Donald Trump, and let’s hope that he himself is driven enough to lend a hand to his legislative partners.
~ Conservative Zone
If Mitch McConnell caves to Dim demands, the conservative base WILL rebel! We are fed up with us having the majority in the House AND the Senate, yet McConnell allows the Dims to run things. It’s ridiculous. I hope that next time he’s up for re-election that his constituents vote him OUT! Along with McCain.
Agreed!!! McConnell, McCain, Ryan are ALL traitors to the party, RINO’S!!! Closet DemocRATS.
“Trump has more of an opportunity to affect the midterms than any president before him. He is, after all, a master of media. Let’s hope that conservatives have finally learned how to use the incredible resource that is Donald Trump, and let’s hope that he himself is driven enough to lend a hand to his legislative partners.”
This is what MUST happen in the midterms!!! MUST keep the reversing of all the Obama damage going!!!
Gutting Medicare and social programs for low income and elderly, but then having a 20 million dollar military parade. (Like France)… How is that going to be blamed on the Democrats? The optics on this deal is BAD.
I agree Greg. The Tax break for the rich, this ridiculous military parade….that’s the kind of fuel that could even turn the conservative base. It’s pissing me off, that’s for sure. Trump needs to wake up. If he continues to focus on raising our deficit like he has been, he’s going to lose those of us who have supported him from the beginning. I am also having a hard time wrapping this Russia ties things, and his philandering ways into something that’s acceptable in my mind. Will God judge me for supporting this man? All of this will be used against our candidates. I am worried, we all should be worried.
Agree with you but the last thing you want to do is NOT vote for a Republican no matter how much you need to hold your nose! A roaring economy can help the deficit and the continuation of getting rid of all of the waste within Agencies! You think the Deficit is bad now………………what do you think the Dems will do to it? Don’t turn blue coat!
It is too soon for predictions. But it would appear at this time the mid-terms are up for grabs. Too bad that we are not likely to dump many (if any) of the incumbents in the primaries. If we did perhaps we could get a fresh start. I for one am tired of politics as usual.
Deporting good doctors and other medical professionals, hard working business owners who have been here for 20, 30, 40 years, deporting individuals and thereby causing pain, suffering, the splitting of families . . . How is that going to be blamed on the Democrats? It’s in the news every day where I live. And children who have grown up here and know no other home, friends, schools, etc., and whose parents were given jobs and these are the people whose work was valued and needed enough to be paid by American companies (and my daughter found a teaching job, because these kids needed schools and teachers – so that was good for us, but now, just tell me, while they were needed, paid and valued, they were not given permits by a broken system . . . and now torn from their children, can you explain how that is going to be blamed on the Democrats? Please, as I would like to understand how my party of so called “family values” can justify these “anti family” positions. Instead of placing so much blame – why not work to resolve things? We have control of congress. Right now. Let’s think about the families. I mean, come on.
Oh, you ok with them breaking the law? How about the immigrants that come here LEGALLY, only to see all the illegals getting all these benefits, that even our vets & elderly can’t get? How about them killing Americans while drunk driving? Or raping little girls? When a person is breaking the law, & they KNOW it, who cares about the pain & suffering? Deport the whole clan!! What part of ILLEGAL do you bleeding heart liberals NOT understand? Are you really THAT stupid??
How come all the polls show the opposite; i.e., that the Democrats will pick up seats in both houses. Your “experts” seem to be the authors’s personal opinion.
Well, people are fed up with BOTH parties, & their shenanigans. It seems like the Republicans give the Dims whatever they want, without even a fight. It makes me sick. The people of Mitch McConnell’s state need to vote him out the next time he’s up for re-election. And, the same for Paul Ryan. Both of them need to go. They try to act like they’re trying to get the President’s agenda passed, when all the time, they’re doing whatever they can to sabotage it. I’ve even stopped renewing my membership in the RNC, I’m so fed up with them. They are a disgrace! And, God forbid that Romney wins the Senate seat from Utah.