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Trump Begins Midterm Election Day Bracing for Grim Political News, Aides Say Trump Prepares for G.O.P. Loss of House, but Perhaps Gains in the Senate
(about 4 hours later)
Get live election analysis and real-time results. WASHINGTON — President Trump braced on Tuesday night for the bad news that he could face a Democratic-controlled House even as his mood was brightened by Republican victories that could expand his party’s majority in the Senate.
President Trump began Election Day bracing for grim political news as people across the country voted in midterm contests that will deliver the first nationwide referendum on his presidency. Mr. Trump appeared to become happier, aides said, during a White House election night party as Democratic hopes of an overwhelming “blue wave” receded across the United States.
The mood inside the White House was gloomy, according to aides and people in contact with the president. Mr. Trump, who had no public events on his schedule, waited to see whether his dark closing message about the dangers of illegal immigration could once again help him defy the polls — this time showing that Democrats are likely to win control of the House and many governorships. The day began with White House aides expecting a brutal evening. But as the results began coming in, it became clear that Republicans were likely to hold the Senate, and Mr. Trump and his aides relaxed.
For days, Mr. Trump’s advisers have warned him that the losses could be brutal, even as they have said that the Senate should be a bright spot. Advisers acknowledge that Mr. Trump has a problem with women voters as he begins his own re-election effort. The president strode into his party in the White House residence around 8:30 p.m., according to people present at the party, where television sets were placed around the room so people could monitor results.
Mr. Trump knows that his rhetoric may have gone too far at times, people close to him said, a sentiment which was reflected in an interview Mr. Trump had with an ABC affiliate owned by the Trump-friendly Sinclair Broadcasting. Mr. Trump moved around a room filled with family and friends, among them Richard LeFrak, Howard Lorber, Thomas J. Barrack Jr., Ike Perlmutter, Steve Witkoff, Sheldon G. Adelson, and cabinet secretaries like Steven Mnuchin and Wilbur Ross.
[Read more about what voter intimidation looks like and what you can do about it.] Mr. Trump, who had no public events on his schedule throughout the day on Tuesday, had been focused on whether his dark closing message about the dangers of illegal immigration could once again help him defy the polls — this time showing that Democrats were likely to win control of the House and many governorships.
For days, Mr. Trump’s advisers had been warning him that the losses could be deep, even as they were saying that the Senate should be a bright spot. Advisers acknowledged that Mr. Trump has a problem with women voters as he engineers his own re-election effort.
Mr. Trump knew his messaging may have gone too far, people close to him said, a sentiment reflected in his interview with an ABC affiliate owned by the Trump-friendly Sinclair Broadcasting.
“I would like to have a much softer tone. I feel, to a certain extent, I have no choice. But maybe I do,” Mr. Trump told the affiliate when asked about his regrets from his first two years in office. “And maybe I could’ve been softer from that standpoint.”“I would like to have a much softer tone. I feel, to a certain extent, I have no choice. But maybe I do,” Mr. Trump told the affiliate when asked about his regrets from his first two years in office. “And maybe I could’ve been softer from that standpoint.”
The president returned to the White House at 2:43 a.m. Tuesday from the last of 11 fiery campaign rallies over the last six days. Several people in contact with the president said he watched television coverage late into the night before finally falling asleep. For days, Mr. Trump had begun to change his public messaging to allow for a House loss by claiming that he himself was personally focused on the Senate contests in his campaign appearances.
Mr. Trump arrived at the Oval Office late Tuesday morning, and was working the phones to touch base with allies and friends. In conversations, he made clear to people that he was not on the ballot, despite saying repeatedly at his rallies that the midterms were a referendum on him. Even with the Senate likely to hold, the White House was preparing for a Democratic House that would leave Mr. Trump’s administration vulnerable to a series of investigations with subpoena power. Mr. Trump told people that he assumed the House was going to change hands, and that it might mean more work, but that he was ready for it.
The president had fixated on immigration as a closing message, and stepped up his divisive rhetoric on the issue even after two incidents of domestic terrorism jolted Republican campaigns across the country. The loss of the House could lead to changes inside the West Wing, according to a number of people, the most significant being that the chief of staff, John F. Kelly, might leave, according to four people close to the president.
There were already other departures expected, such as Bill Stepien, the political director, and Justin Clark, the head of the office of public liaison, both of whom are expected to work on the re-election effort. Mr. Stepien’s deputy, Brian Jack, is likely to fill the political director job.
The president had returned to the White House at 2:43 a.m. Tuesday after the last of 11 fiery campaign rallies over six days. Several people in contact with the president said he watched television coverage late into the night before finally falling asleep.
In the last days of the campaign, Mr. Trump’s campaign manager, Brad Parscale, debuted a gauzy ad on television that focused on an economic message and was meant to appeal to women voters in suburban areas who have been repelled by Mr. Trump’s tone and rhetoric.In the last days of the campaign, Mr. Trump’s campaign manager, Brad Parscale, debuted a gauzy ad on television that focused on an economic message and was meant to appeal to women voters in suburban areas who have been repelled by Mr. Trump’s tone and rhetoric.
But the president did not like the ad, seeing it as visually off, aides said. Mr. Trump wanted to focus on immigration, so the campaign’s final video depicted an illegal immigrant who had killed police officers. The video was deemed racist by a number of networks, one of them Fox News, and was either pulled or didn’t run at all — a highly unusual move for the campaign of a sitting president.But the president did not like the ad, seeing it as visually off, aides said. Mr. Trump wanted to focus on immigration, so the campaign’s final video depicted an illegal immigrant who had killed police officers. The video was deemed racist by a number of networks, one of them Fox News, and was either pulled or didn’t run at all — a highly unusual move for the campaign of a sitting president.
[Here are answers to some of the most common Election Day questions.] Mr. Trump remained largely silent throughout the day on Tuesday. One of his few public comments came early Tuesday in a late-morning, conspiratorial tweet about Democrats.
Sarah Huckabee Sanders, the White House press secretary, said Mr. Trump intended to spend the day “making phone calls, monitoring Congressional, Senate and Gubernatorial races across the country and meeting with his political team for real-time updates.” After campaigning for a Republican Senate candidate, Josh Hawley, in Cape Girardeau, Mo., late Monday, Mr. Trump accused Democrats of spreading a rumor that Mr. Hawley had left the rally early.
White House advisers were expected to begin to gather in the residence by late afternoon on Tuesday to discuss what comes next. Mr. Trump planned to have a dinner with his children and their spouses, and then host a small reception with friends and allies to watch election returns. In fact, there is no evidence that Democrats suggested that Mr. Hawley left the rally early. The president appears to have been reacting to a statement — offered with no evidence or context — by Brian Kilmeade, a Fox & Friends host early Tuesday morning.
Multiple aides to Mr. Trump said they were bracing for a staff shake-up, particularly if the losses were massive. Some White House aides were already planning to take on roles with the Trump campaign.
Mr. Trump’s first public statement on Tuesday came in a late-morning, conspiratorial tweet about Democrats.
After campaigning for a Republican Senate candidate, Josh Hawley, during the last of 11 campaign rallies, in Cape Girardeau, Mo., late Monday, Mr. Trump on Tuesday accused Democrats of spreading a rumor that Mr. Hawley had left the rally early.
In fact, there is no evidence that Democrats suggested that Mr. Hawley left the rally early. The president appears to have been reacting to a statement — offered with no evidence or context — by Brian Kilmeade, a “Fox & Friends” host, early Tuesday morning.
At just after 6 a.m., Mr. Kilmeade said: “Why Josh Hawley didn’t stay last night for the Missouri rally is beyond me. What could he have been doing that was so important?”At just after 6 a.m., Mr. Kilmeade said: “Why Josh Hawley didn’t stay last night for the Missouri rally is beyond me. What could he have been doing that was so important?”
Where Mr. Kilmeade got the impression that Mr. Hawley left the rally early is unclear. Many people on Twitter noted Tuesday morning that they saw Mr. Hawley on television as the rally was ending.Where Mr. Kilmeade got the impression that Mr. Hawley left the rally early is unclear. Many people on Twitter noted Tuesday morning that they saw Mr. Hawley on television as the rally was ending.