A Republican strategist burst out laughing Wednesday when CNN anchor Jake Tapper asked him to name GOP candidates who are successfully navigating a difficult midterm environment.
“What Republicans out there do you see doing it right?” Tapper asked GOP strategist Shermichael Singleton on “The Lead.”
Singleton paused, then burst out laughing.
“You’re going to put me on the spot,” Singleton replied with a laugh.
The awkward moment came after Republican pollster Kristen Soltis Anderson warned that GOP candidates do not have “the wind at their back” and must give voters concrete reasons to keep them in office.
“For many Republicans, their big problem is going to be reminding their own voters: What is it that you sent us to Washington to do?” Anderson said.
She argued that voters were not focused on symbolic moves such as renaming the Gulf of Mexico or the Kennedy Center.
“That is not what voters are looking for,” Anderson said Wednesday. “They’re looking for things that they can feel.”
Singleton eventually pointed to Michigan Senate candidate Mike Rogers, citing the Republican’s efforts to reach Jewish voters, Black churchgoers, and Black men.
“This is a candidate who has endorsed the president, but he’s really been focused on statewide issues,” Singleton said. “He’s been hyper-focused on statewide issues and trying to draw a contrast between himself and El-Sayed.”
