The predicted Red Wave of 2022 never reached the shore. While all the votes have not yet been counted four days after the election, it looks like the Republicans will eke out a slim majority in the House. Unbelievably, though, with about 30 races still undetermined, there is still a possibility that the Democrats could actually hold onto their House majority.[1] 

On the Senate side, the odds of the Democrats maintaining control are much more in their favor. With two races still undecided, the blue team needs to win just one of them. The Nevada senate contest is tightening, and which party will prevail is anyone’s guess.[2] If Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) pulls out a victory there, then the Democrats will have held onto their tiny majority. If she does not, then all eyes will be on the Georgia senate runoff on December 6^th.  And I cannot believe that Georgia voters would elect the incompetent Republican Herschel Walker over the much worthier Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock.[3]

Overall, however, the real winner in this year’s midterm election was the democratic process. Voters turned out in near record numbers because they understood that our democracy as well as a woman’s right to choose was on the ballot. It was the second highest turnout for a midterm since 1970.[4] A recent poll found that the future of democracy was very important to 80% of Democrats and 70% of Republicans in their voting decisions.[5]

At the same time, the “loser-in-chief” in this election was Donald Trump. Many Republicans are blaming him for the party’s poor results.[6] Even the conservative Wall Street Journal denounced Trump, calling him the Republican Party’s “biggest loser.”[7] In a number of high-profile races, the candidates he endorsed lost, most notably in Arizona, Maryland, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, Virginia and quite possibly in Georgia and Nevada as well.[8]

But Trump’s losses Tuesday night will have even bigger consequences as he prepares to run for president in 2024. Already at least one Republican megadonor stated he won’t support Trump’s pending run for the presidential nomination.[9] Some Republican officeholders are also suggesting Trump shouldn’t be their presidential nominee.[10]

The right-leaning New York Post said it best on the cover of its Thursday edition:

“Don (who couldn’t build a wall) had a great fall — can all the GOP’s men put the party back together again?” The large cover text read: “Trumpty Dumpty.”[11]

See: https://nypost.com/cover/november-10-2022/

Yet, Trump’s biggest loss is still to come. As I predicted in my October 15th blog, “Donald J. Trump will be indicted before the spring of next year.”[12] When that happens, he will be fighting for his freedom more than for the 2024 Republican nomination. Many Republicans will see him as unelectable. His dream of returning triumphantly to the White House will be shattered. And, finally, America will be rid of this despicable egomaniac.

Bruce Berlin

A retired, public sector ethics attorney, Berlin is the author of Breaking Big Money’s Grip on America (See breakingbigmoneysgrip.com.), the founder of New Mexicans for Money Out of Politics, a former U.S. Institute of Peace fellow, and the founder and former executive director of The Trinity Forum for International Security and Conflict Resolution. He can be reached at breakingbigmoneysgrip@gmail.com.

Subscribe to this blog at https://breakingbigmoneysgrip.com/my-blog-3/. Join the movement to revive our democracy. Together we can save the soul of America.

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[1] https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2022/11/10/23451445/house-election-results-democrats-majority

[2] https://thehill.com/homenews/3730786-cortez-masto-draws-closer-to-laxalt-in-nevada-senate-race/

[3] https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/runoffs-are-sort-of-georgias-thing-now/

[4] https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/interactive/2022/voter-turnout-2022-by-state/

[5] https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2022/11/03/key-facts-about-u-s-voter-priorities-ahead-of-the-2022-midterm-elections/

[6] https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/elections/2022/11/11/election-results-live-updates/10662035002/

[7] https://www.wsj.com/articles/donald-trump-is-the-gops-biggest-loser-midterm-elections-senate-house-congress-republicans-11668034869

[8] https://www.politico.com/news/2022/11/09/trump-endorsed-candidates-2022-election-results

[9] https://news.yahoo.com/billionaire-gop-donor-ken-griffin-073015070.html

[10] https://www.nytimes.com/2022/11/09/us/politics/trump-republicans-midterms.html

[11] https://nypost.com/cover/november-10-2022/

[12] https://breakingbigmoneysgrip.com/my-blog/