President Donald Trump has pledged to veto "insane" legislation proposed by Democrats following their victories in the midterm elections, which saw the party regain control of both chambers of Congress. Trump also acknowledged that increased gasoline prices, influenced by the conflict with Iran, likely played a role in the Republican party's losses.
Speaking to Fox News Channel on Election Night, Trump expressed surprise at the GOP's performance but confidence in his ability to negotiate with Democrats. "They'll send over things that are insane and I'll veto them," Trump said. "And after a couple of months of vetoes, they'll go out and they'll say, ‘How do we get this stuff done?’ And we'll work together."
Democrats secured control of the Senate and made significant gains in the House, impacting Trump's ability to advance his legislative agenda and potentially leading to investigations into his administration.
Trump indicated that he has already been contacted by several Democratic lawmakers. "You know, I have a lot of friends that are Democrats, believe it or not. I've already spoken to some of them," he stated.
Regarding the Republican performance, Trump pointed to rising gas prices rather than the military actions against Iran as a primary cause. "I don't think it's the war, Bret, I think it's the gasoline price," he told Fox News. "People agree with what I'm doing on Iran, but they really probably weren't willing to do the short-term consequence of paying more for gasoline."
He defended the administration's actions concerning Iran, emphasizing their long-term national security importance. "I think historically it's going to be much more important than this evening, because you can't let the number one state sponsor of terror have a nuclear weapon," Trump said.
Trump also suggested that some Republican candidates failed to adequately energize his base or alienated potential supporters. "I'm a little bit surprised. I thought they'd do better," he commented. "We had tremendous rallies. We had about 30 of them."
He noted that some candidates had previously opposed him, and others did not connect with voters. "They didn't like the candidates and some of the candidates that I endorsed fought me, and they didn't like that they fought me," Trump said, adding, "And I wasn't on the ballot. If I was on the ballot, they would have gotten out."
Despite his disappointment over the results, Trump commended Democrats for their efforts. "I think the Democrats did a good job, I really do. I think they did a good job. They fought hard," he said, while also stating, "I don't like to consider it a defeat. If you're on the ballot, it's different than if you're not on the ballot."