ballots dropped off on election
day, Jim.
>> All right.
Kyung lah.
Let's bring in some
commentators.
Joe, every vote trickling in
here matters.
Rest in peace to all of those
folks out there who thought
their vote doesn't matter.
That claim doesn't hold up
anymore.
We're down to potentially single
digits in some of the races
outstanding.
How are Democrats feeling at the
moment right now, that they have
got in Arizona, and potentially
closing the gap here in Nevada?
What do you think?
>> I think Democrats are feeling
pretty confident right now.
Jim, as we talked about leading
up to the election, this was an
impossible election to model.
We didn't know who was going to
turn out.
And that's why a lot of the
narrative I think was wrong,
about predicting this red wave.
The reason Democrats are
confident is the voters it seems
have taken the longer-term
protecting my rights, protecting
democracy, protecting the right
to abortion, versus the shorter
term economic issues like
inflation.
As you look forward, that is
very good news for Democrats and
bad news for Republicans because
these issues are going to
remain.
The supreme court has ruled in
the Dobbs decision.
And as long as trump is around,
we're going to have
conversations about democracy.
That's good news, right now,
today, as they count the votes.
It is trending well for
Democrats.
I think even more important,
long-term, it's good news for
Democrats.
>> What do you think of that?
Let me ask you, there's a new
CNN report that according to
Republican sources, talking to
CNN, former president trump is
calling up allies in the senate
suggesting that Mitch Mcconnell,
the minority leader is to blame
for the Republicans' midterm
performance.
I was talking to trump advisers
earlier this week about this.
One adviser said he was livid
andscreaming at everybody.
That's been reported by folks,
the same thing.
He's been on a tantrum all week
long.
What is going on?
>> He is fuming because he knows
he is responsible for a lot of
the losses.
He doesn't like to be attached
to failure and losses.
And he is.
He thought it would go a lot
better.
And he wants to place blame
elsewhere because, you know, as
we know on Tuesday, he wants to
announce, he might be running
for president.
And he doesn't want the stink,
sort of fuming up the room.
But the stink isn't washing off.
He ows these midterm failures.
He knows it.
>> Joe, do you think that would
help?
Democrats, we were covering the
final hours, the final days of
the midterm race, these races
across the country, last
weekend, and there was Donald
Trump, out on the campaign trail
and talking to various folks and
talking more about himself than
the candidates he was out there,
supposedly supporting.
I wonder if at the end of this,
the folks look at that and said,
no, I don't want the country to
go in that direction?
Been there, done that, it didn't
work out.
>> There's no mistake that trump
being out there, energizes
Democrats.
How much did it energize
Republicans in turning out?
The energy it provided for
Democrats outweighed any benefit
that trump provided.
I will say as a note of caution
on trump, that Republicans
oppose him and ignore him at
their own peril.
We had trump is down at so many
times.
And when he goes one-on-one with
his fellow Republicans, he
always wins.
I think he always wins because
there is a trump voter out there
that is not a Republican vote.
And one of the really interest
questions, and I don't know if
we have any data on it, is how
many people stayed home because
trump wasn't on the ballot, as
opposed to trump injecting
himself in the campaign.
The overnight narrative that
trump is going to lose the
party, I think it's way too soon
and premature to come to that
conclusion.
>> I agree.
Yes, there's been consternation,
some hand wringing, some
distances from trump.
Give that five more minutes and
you will see the Republican
party move steadily back to
trump.
And that's because they have so
intentionally identified
themselves with him.
It's not as easy as quitting
trump.
You have to be willing to quit
all of his voters.
And a good number of his voters
are qanon, proud boys,
anti-semites, racists.
Not all his voters, but a chunk
of them are really some terrible
strains of hate and bigotry.
And Republicans have been
all-too willing to let those
folks creep into the party
because they were voting
Republican.
If you're not willing to say we
don't want your votes, we
disavow you and in congress,
either, you're going to get
trumpism on repeat.
It might be packaged a little
differently, it might look a
little different, but trumpism
isn't gone and I don't see it
going away anytime soon.
>> Let me ask you about -- let's
not talk about the former
president.
Let's talk about what Democrats
in your view did right.
Gen Z showed up.
Women voters showed up, outraged
over the Dobbs decision.
People showed up because they
were worried about democracy.
I talked to voters who were
worried about the future of
American democracy.
Voters of color.
There was quite a broad
coalition that the Democrats put
together.
>> I think so.
As I said before, this really
was a forward-looking election
and a result, as opposed to a
snapshot of where we are right
now.
And I think that turned out
young people.
That turned out women.
That turned out minority
communities because these rights
are so important to them and
they see rights that are being
taken away from them.
And that's much more important.
I think there was a lot of back
and forth on whether president
Biden's speeches about democracy
were helpful to Democrats and
there was some skepticism.
I think it helped frame this
election.
It helped make the Dobbs
decision more relevant.
It helped make the election
denialism more relevant.
And again, these are all things
moving forward that worked to
the Democrats' favor.
>> Do you think Kevin Mccarthy
is going to be the next speaker
of the house?
We have to get to the races and
the votes have to be counted.
The Republicans have the best
path forward.
But is Kevin Mccarthy going to
be the next speaker?
Do you buy into the stories that
it's uncertain for him?
>> I think he is going to be
speaker.
But I think he will be speaker
for a very short time.
The Republican house is a messy
place.
All it takes is a minority, a
slim minority to come against
him.
And he has nowhere to go.
I went through this, you know --
I didn't personally, but I
covered when John Boehner went
through this and the elements
and his party came after him,
and Paul Ryan, too.
That was in the good old days.
I think Kevin Mccarthy might be
careful what he wishes for with
this Republican house.
>> We've seen this movie before
with John Boehner, Paul Ryan.
>> That's right.
>> And, Joe, let me ask you
about president Biden.
This past week has been a good
week for democracy, decency and
dark Brandon, I think.
Forgive me if that reference is
going over your head.
Maybe we're too old to get some
of these things from the young
voters.
The speculation about whether or
not the president will run again
in 2024, I suppose that will
continue.
And he gives the same answer
about that.
Let me get your comment on the
other side.
>> Look, my intentions, I said
in the beginning, is that I
would run again.
But it's just an intention.
I have not made a formal
decision.
But it's my intention.
My intention to run again.
My intention is I will run
again.
But I'm a great respecter of
fate.
>> What do you think, Joe?
He's routinely underestimated.
And now, can boast one of the
best performances during
midterms that a Democrat has
seen in a very long time.
>> Yeah, Jim.
That reference to my age or his
age, this was a very good week
for president Biden.
>> I'm sorry.
I should not have said it that
way.
>> So much of, I think the
resistance he was getting was
this narrative that he was
underperforming and couldn't
deliver.
In fact, he delivered some very
big things.
And I think, you know, politics
is often about headwinds versus
tailwinds.
And he has some wind behind his
back.
I hope the Democrats are willing
to take advantage, even in the
lame duck and beyond that.
It does.
And I think you're right.
He is underestimated at every
turn and he tends to overdeliver
on that.
And overdelivering and
underpromising is a formula in
politics that is gold.
>> I can see the memes of Joe
Lockhart with the laser beams
coming out of his eyes.
>> Dark Joe.
What do you think?
>> Biden should run in he wants.
He has every right.
Although, I think he was always
going to be a transitional
president, not a
transformational one.
He did the job.
He got trump out.
It would be fine if Democrats
wanted to move on.
The problem is, Joe Biden cannot
wait much longer because every
day that passes is another
opportunity for folks like you
to go to capitol hill and
interview a Democrat and say, do
you think Joe Biden should run
and they say, well, I don't
know.
Maybe not.
That's bad.
That's bad for Joe.
It's bad for Democrats.
I would get there.
Make the announcement, whether
you're run organize not.