Economic anxiety—encompassing inflation, the stock market, declining retirement-account balances—now seems to be at a once-a-generation level. President Trump’s stewardship of the economy, particularly his tariff policies, could hardly be more important as we look to the midterm elections.
Any Republican on the ballot in the next year and a half in a state or district with a Partisan Voting Index (PVI) score of R+5 or less, as measured by The Cook Political Report with Amy Walter, or a state or district that Trump carried by 5 points or less, should already be reaching for the Xanax. There are 39 GOP House members in such districts and four Senate seats at R+5 or less. Even GOP candidates representing states and districts with PVIs in single digits would be well advised to move at least to DEFCON 2 before their constituents’ 401(k) plans are reclassified as 200.5(k) plans.
Having said that, Democrats should not hold their collective breath for Trump to drop another 10 points in approval on top of the half-dozen points he had already lost.
In the old days, a
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The Cook Political Report is an independent, non-partisan newsletter that analyzes elections and campaigns for the US House of Representatives, US Senate, Governors and President as well as American political trends.
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