What happened to the Republican red wave?

MYRNA BROWN, HOST: It’s Thursday the 10th of November, 2022.

Glad to have you along for today’s edition of The World and Everything in It. Good morning, I’m Mary Reichard.

And I’m Myrna Brown.

Up next, the red wave that wasn’t.

Republicans predicted a red wave that would easily sweep the GOP to a majority in the House and most likely deliver at least a narrow majority in the Senate. But when the sun rose the next day, neither of those things had yet occurred.

So, what happened? Joining us now to break down the midterm election results is Matt Klink. He is a political strategist of 30 years and President of Klink Campaigns.

REICHARD: Matt, good morning!

KLINK: Good morning.

REICHARD: Well, what’s your reaction to the results, and what surprised you?

KLINK: Well, it was the red wave that wasn't. You know, I think that the pollsters in many senses got it wrong. That they predicted that there was a lot more angst against the Democratic Party in general and Joe Biden in specific than really existed. Independents determine  elections. And what it looks like to date is that the Republicans actually lost independence by two points 49 to 47.

REICHARD: You know, Democrats campaigned really heavily on abortion. And polls show that that issue really paled in comparison to inflation, though, in the minds of voters. Matt, do you think Democrats succeeded in turning out their based by emphasizing abortion?

KLINK: I certainly think that it did help that the Dobbs decision when it came out over the summer was a key pin in the map, so to speak, that the Democrats were able to say, look, unless we get engaged and get motivated, we're going to see a lot more of this type of decision. And so it really started to increase the enthusiasm among Democrats over the summer. Now, ultimately, that waned into the fall as the economy and gas prices and crime became more, you know, top priority issues. However, I don't think it was the factor, but it was certainly a factor for many of these races.

REICHARD: There's been a lot of talk today about Donald Trump. He played a significant role in boosting many candidates who didn't really come through in a big way. So some analysts are saying this was a really bad night for Trump. What's your take?

KLINK: Donald Trump did not come out of this strong at all. I mean, yes, he can claim some credit for JD Vance in Ohio. But look, that was a seat that the Republicans should have won easily. They had to pour big money into that race, which meant that they couldn't pour money into other races and other states that were likely turnovers for the Republicans. I mean, look, Donald Trump-backed the gubernatorial challenger in Pennsylvania, who got his clock cleaned by Shapiro, that certainly hurt. You know, Dr. Oz in Pennsylvania, and even look, even Dr. Oz, he just didn't excite people. And that was a Trump backed candidate there. I mean, that was a seat we needed to held if the Republicans were to gain the majority in the United States Senate, and we gave it away. So now, Donald Trump got his wings clipped significantly. He's hinted at a big announcement next week. Well, remember Georgia in 2020, he had the strategy of telling people not to vote because you couldn't trust that the votes would be counted. That's not a good strategy for a democracy. So if he were to make an announcement that you know, in mid November, it will certainly have a negative impact on the December 6 runoff in Georgia.

REICHARD:  I guess the brightest spot for Republicans was in Florida, where they saw huge wins. Do you think they've turned the corner and is Florida no longer a purple state? What do you think?

KLINK: Well, if 2020 and 2022 are indications, Florida is a solid red state. The Republicans picked up four House seats, which is a big number. And Ron DeSantis absolutely crushed Charlie Crist. Ron DeSantis came out of this looking strong. On Wednesday morning, he's on the cover of The New York Post with his family, you know, a very attractive wife and young kids talking about the future of the Republican Party. I mean, things are being set up very nicely for him, should he decide to run for president to be the front runner, but there's someone named Donald Trump in the background that is not going to go quietly into the night.

REICHARD: So do you think we're seeing a primary battle taking shape between these two men?

KLINK: Oh, there will almost certainly be a primary battle between Donald Trump and Ron DeSantis. But there are others waiting in the wings. You know, Ambassador Nikki Haley, former governor of South Carolina, Tim Scott, senator from South Carolina. The other Senator Scott from Florida. Mike Pompeo, former Secretary of State. The line will be long and deep for Republicans who want the nomination. Although, you know, I, in flipping the script, I got to believe that, you know, the the doom and gloom that was predicted for the Biden administration, I got to believe that this has got to make him feel pretty good, which probably increases the likelihood that he will run for reelection, as President, you know, and I still go back to what I've been saying for months. We don't need any more 80 year old men running for president, we need some 50 year olds, male or female, just younger running for president, the 80 year olds have had their time. It's now time for the 50 year olds to step up and lead this country.

REICHARD: Okay, final question. Nuts and bolts. What do Republicans need to do going forward?

KLINK: Republicans going forward have tremendous opportunity, that they have to offer a reasonable and measured solution to what the Democrats are pushing. I think they'll have the advantage that the Republicans will likely control the House, but it's going to be a slim majority. So the reality is I think we're likely headed for gridlock over the next two years and two competing agendas, which means that the Republicans will need to offer a solution for the future because elections are not about the past; elections are about the future. And we have to express a compelling vision about why the American voter should vote red versus vote blue.

REICHARD:Matt clink has been a political strategist for 30 years and he's president of Klink Campaigns. Matt, thanks so much.

KLINK: My pleasure. Thank you.

REICHARD: All right, well, he makes a great point that elections are about the future. Question is, what kind of future is in the offing after this election? Tonight, our WORLD Opinions team will attempt to sketch out some answers. Our first-ever WORLD Opinions video livestream tonight: the Meaning of the Midterms.

BROWN: So join moderator Albert Mohler with panelists Andrew Walker, Allie Beth Stuckey, Erick Erickson, and Hunter Baker. They’ll consider the question: What do the 2022 elections mean? It’s a special WORLD Opinions video livestream at wng.org/live. 9pm Eastern / 6 Pacific.

WORLD Radio transcripts are created on a rush deadline. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of WORLD Radio programming is the audio record.