US President Donald Trump on Tuesday acknowledged that Democrats’ sweeping electoral gains signalled mounting trouble for Republicans, calling the results “not good” and linking the setbacks to the record-long federal government shutdown, now stretching into its sixth week.
His remarks came hours after Democratic candidates Abigail Spanberger and Mikie Sherrill scored commanding gubernatorial wins in Virginia and New Jersey, while Zohran Mamdani easily defeated Trump-backed Andrew Cuomo in the New York City mayoral race.
In Virginia, Democrat Jay Jones also won the attorney general race, overcoming a scandal from 2022.
Trump made the statement while addressing GOP senators at a White House breakfast on Wednesday morning. Trump reflected on the outcome, saying it had not been a positive night for anyone.
The US president said: “We had an interesting evening, and we learned a lot, and we’re going to talk about that,” CNBC reported.
He attributed the Republican setbacks partly to the prolonged government shutdown, citing pollsters who found it “a big factor, negative for the Republicans”. Trump added that some analysts viewed his absence from the ballot as the biggest factor.
Trump accused Democrats of being prepared to destroy the country as the government shutdown became the longest in history on Wednesday, eclipsing the 35-day record set during the Republican leader’s first term.
Federal agencies have been grinding to a halt since Congress failed to approve funding past September 30, and the pain has been mounting as welfare programs — including aid that helps millions of Americans afford groceries — hang in the balance.
Some 1.4 million federal workers, from air traffic controllers to park wardens, remain on enforced leave or are working without pay. Some courts are using emergency funds to stay open, and warning that operations could slow if the shutdown drags on.
Hours before the shutdown record toppled at midnight, the Trump administration sounded the alarm over turmoil at airports nationwide if the crisis drags further into November, with worsening staff shortages snarling airports and closing down sections of airspace.
Thanksgiving air travel is expected to set a new record this year, the American Automobile Association (AAA) projected — with 5.8 million people set to fly domestically over the November 27 holiday.
More than 60,000 air traffic controllers and Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers are working without pay, and the White House has warned that increased absenteeism could mean chaos at check-in lines.
Airport workers calling in sick rather than working without pay — leading to significant delays — was a major factor in Trump bringing an end to the 2019 shutdown.
Both Democrats and Republicans remain unwavering, however, over the main sticking point in the current stoppage — health care spending.
‘Defiance’
Democrats say they will only provide votes to end the funding lapse after a deal has been struck to extend expiring insurance subsidies that make health care affordable for millions of Americans.
But Republicans insist they will only address health care once Democrats have voted to switch the lights back on in Washington.
While both sides’ leadership have shown little appetite for compromise, there have been signs of life on the back benches, with a handful of moderate Democrats working to find an escape hatch.
A separate bipartisan group of four centrist House members unveiled a compromise framework Monday for lowering health insurance costs.
Democrats believe that millions of Americans seeing skyrocketing premiums as they enroll in health insurance programs for next year will pressure Republicans into seeking compromise.
But Trump has held firm on refusing to negotiate, telling CBS News in an interview broadcast Sunday that he would “not be extorted.”
The president has sought to apply his own pressure to force Democrats to cave by threatening mass layoffs of federal workers and using the shutdown to target progressive priorities.
Trump on Tuesday repeated his administration’s threat to cut off a vital aid programme that helps 42 million Americans pay for groceries for the first time in its more than 60-year history, even though the move was blocked by two courts.
The White House later clarified, however, that it was “fully complying” with its legal obligations and was working to get partial SNAP payments “out the door as much as we can and as quickly as we can.”
