Insight

“All that we call human history … [is] the long terrible story of man trying to find something other than God which will make him happy.” —C. S. Lewis (1898-1963)

Upright

“Let’s not forget, we’re all winners when D.C. is mired in gridlock; not only is it the most accurate representation of the national electorate’s mood but it means the system is working. … People who confuse and conflate the word ‘democracy’ with getting their way all the time are either frauds or fools.” —David Harsanyi

For the Record

“In 2018, 38 percent of voters said that they cast ballots to oppose Donald Trump. They broke 94 percent to 4 percent for the Democrats, helping the party gain 41 House seats. A third of the electorate said Trump didn’t figure into their votes. These voters went for Republicans, but only slightly — 52 percent to 44 percent. In 2022, by contrast, only 32 percent of voters in the national exit poll said that they cast ballots to oppose Biden. This group broke for Republicans 95 percent to 4 percent. But an even greater number of voters — almost half of the electorate — said that Biden was not a factor in their votes. They went for Democrats 60 percent to 37 percent.” —Matthew Continetti

“Donald Trump was an unpopular president who polarized the national electorate. Joe Biden is an unpopular president who makes the electorate yawn. Four years ago, the electorate was obsessed with Trump. In 2022 the electorate is thinking about other things. It is thinking of things like abortion. If you read the polls in the runup to Election Day, you would have thought that abortion rights were fading from voters’ minds. That was not the case. True, 31 percent of voters named inflation the most important issue in the exit poll. But abortion was close behind at 27 percent. And these voters went for Democrats by a greater margin, 76 percent to 23 percent, than inflation hawks went for Republicans, 71 percent to 28 percent.” —Matthew Continetti

“If Republicans haven’t noticed it already, their underperformance in the midterms offers yet another opportunity to realize what matters most to Donald Trump. What goal of the GOP was advanced by having candidates devoted to Trump’s ‘Stop the Steal’ gospel? How did it contribute to the party to have Trump attacking one of its candidates, Colorado Republican Joe O'Dea, who was trying to make a blue state competitive? Or insulting the Senate minority leader and his wife? Who did it help to have Trump teasing his potential presidential bid in the days before the election? In what world was it helpful or appropriate for Trump to come up with a derisive nickname for a rising star in the party, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, immediately before the election and then threaten him with damaging revelations? In all these instances, of course, Trump was thinking only of himself.” —Rich Lowry

“Of the $100 million Trump had, he only spent $15 million and saddled the GOP with a lot of clunker candidates. Part of the base, however, would rather blame conspiracies than ever cast doubt on Trump.” —Erick Erickson

“Republicans have followed Donald Trump off the side of a cliff.” —longtime Trump advisor David Urban

Political Futures

“In retrospect, the 2016 election should be viewed less as a victory for Donald Trump than a loss for Hillary Clinton. Years spent overinterpreting the strength of both Trump and the ‘America First’ agenda is one reason so many people, including me, are so surprised at this year’s outcome. Since Donald Trump became president, Republicans have lost the House, the White House, and the Senate. If they win these institutions back in 2022 and 2024, it will not be thanks to his influence but despite it. The national GOP needs to recognize Biden’s irrelevance, settle on an economic message and agenda that wins public support, take lessons in how to talk about the right to life, and reconnect with independents, suburban voters, and moderates. Maybe the governor of Florida, who just won reelection by 20 points without Trump’s ‘help,’ can teach them how to do it.” —Matthew Continetti

“It’s passing strange to become … devoted to a political figure who barely won a fluky presidential election, then lost a winnable reelection bid, before dragging the country through a bonkers attempt to overturn the result, with the episode ending in futility and bloodshed. … The choice has come into clearer focus, though. There is the kind of Republicanism that [Brian] Kemp and [Ron] DeSantis represent, which has a demonstrated record of success, and then there’s Trump’s, which fell short again. Nominating Trump in 2024 when only 35% of people have a favorable view of him would be a risk comparable to nominating Mehmet Oz or Don Bolduc for the Senate. And how has that turned out?” —Rich Lowry

“The positive and negative results of the midterms prove that Republicans can — and should — move forward without Trump. Trump’s great work for the party is done. … Trump is a liability for the GOP and it should now look to its younger generation of all-star governors for leadership. … The blindly loyal Democrat voters of Pennsylvania proved they don’t care how unqualified or unhealthy or leftwing their candidates are by electing poor John Fetterman to the U.S. Senate. But smarter, less tribal voters in Georgia, New York, Texas and elsewhere showed us on Tuesday they are tired of both political extremes. That’s why the Senate is 50-50. Normal Americans just want the economy fixed, the border fixed and the crime wave fixed so they can live in peace and prosperity. [Ron] DeSantis, [Brian] Kemp, [Greg] Abbot and other governors like them make the best presidential candidates for Republicans.” —Michael Reagan

“Trump is making a big mistake going after DeSantis, and he’s making a big mistake by running. He will lose.” —Marc Thiessen

From the Emotional Incontinence Files

“To the other side, reality doesn’t mean anything. They are only interested in power … and they’ll do anything to get the power. They’re willing to kill, literally kill, to get the power.” —actor Rob Reiner

Dumb & Dumber

“Please tell me what I’m missing here. What are we doing next? Putting patients in charge of their own surgeries? Clients in charge of their own trials? When did we stop trusting experts. This is so stupid.” —Congressman Eric Swalwell regarding Senator Tim Scott’s proclamation, “We are putting parents back in charge of their kids’ education.”

“On the one hand you have a party that tries … to save healthcare, that tries to save your right to vote, that tries to preserve a woman’s right, that tries to save the planet, and we still don’t have a supermajority? There is still half of this country [that] is not paying attention to their own needs.” —"The View" co-host Joy Behar

“Yes I do [think Joe should run again]. President Biden has been a great president for our country. … He has just done so many things that are so great.” —House Speaker Nancy Pelosi