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Biden Hails ‘Strong Night’ as Democrats Beat Expectations
(Bloomberg) -- President Joe Biden said fellow Democrats had a “strong night” and exceeded expectations in Tuesday’s midterm elections, but acknowledged voters’ frustration with the country’s direction.
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“While the press and the pundits were predicting a giant red wave, it didn’t happen,” Biden said Wednesday afternoon at a White House news conference.
He added, “It was a good day, I think, for democracy. And I think it was a good day for America.”
Democrats delivered a better-than-expected performance in the midterms, defying predictions of a conservative red wave sweeping the nation.
Republicans are inching toward control of the House, albeit with far narrower margins than many predicted, and Democrats have a path to keeping their Senate majority. “We still have a possibility of keeping the house, but it’s gonna be close,” Biden said.
The outcome was surprising because voter concerns about inflation and crime dominated the political landscape before Election Day, and Biden’s low approval ratings threatened to be a drag on Democrats. It signaled Biden’s efforts to frame the contests as a choice between his party and the GOP, rather than a referendum on his presidency, paid dividends.
The president said he would invite congressional leaders to the White House to discuss a shared agenda. He later spoke with House Republican leader Kevin McCarthy, according to a White House statement on Wednesday night.
Biden signaled Wednesday that he understood Americans’ economic fears, but said he did not see a need to “change anything in any fundamental way” despite their dissatisfaction.
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“Voters spoke clearly about their concerns about raising costs for and the need to get inflation down,” Biden said Wednesday. “There’s still a lot of people hurting.”
Biden said that parts of his agenda “are just starting to kick in” and predicted they would bring relief to Americans.
Polls before the election failed to capture broader voter sentiment that went beyond the economy and high gasoline prices. The Democrats’ message on abortion rights resonated with Americans who backed candidates and initiatives in support of them.
Voters also offered a rebuke to former President Donald Trump’s brand of political extremism. Candidates he endorsed in key races, most notably Pennsylvania’s Senate contest, lost.
Biden nonetheless could face a rocky road in the next two years with a Republican majority in the House. Gridlock in Washington is almost certain to stymie his agenda, and he could face an intensely partisan standoff with the Republican Party over funding the government and raising the debt limit. Biden and his administration are certain to face an onslaught of Republican-led investigations.
The president indicated he believes the investigations could backfire on Republicans, saying, “the American public wants us to move on and get things done for them.”
“I think the American people will look at all of that for what it is. It’s almost comedy,” he added.
Even with his approval ratings under water, Biden is poised to avoid the fate that typically befalls American presidents: significant losses in their first midterm elections. Barack Obama saw Democrats lose 63 House seats and six Senate seats in 2010, while Trump’s Republicans lost 40 House seats, but gained two Senate seats, in 2018. Democrats lost 52 House seats and eight Senate seats in 1994 under Bill Clinton.
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The one modern exception was George W. Bush, whose party gained eight House seats and two Senate seats in the aftermath of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
“We lost fewer seats in the House of Representatives than the Democratic presidents’ first midterm election in the last 40 years and we had the best midterm for governors since 1986,” Biden pointed out.
--With assistance from Nancy Cook, Justin Sink and Jennifer Jacobs.
(Updates with Biden speaking to McCarthy, in seventh paragraph.)
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