"The only thing that needs to be retooled is the legacy media that consistently and intentionally reports falsehoods about the Republican Party or ignores our wins," Rep. Derrick Van Orden (R-WI) told Raw Story. "That's what needs to be retooled. They're terrible. Really."
While this Congress has achieved new lows, many Republicans say the public's dissatisfied with the unpopular institution, not them personally (even if their party currently controls the House of Representatives, Senate and White House).
"You mean public opinion? Buddy, we've been lower than whale [expletive] for decades," Rep. Troy Nehls (R-TX) told Raw Story.
The GOP's plummeting popularity is doing little to change the party's all-out embrace of its influencer-in-chief.
If anything, the more MAGA wing of the GOP argues congressional Republican leaders need to embrace Trump even more by ramming his agenda — from the SAVE Act's new voter ID requirements to the president's demand for a blank check in his war against Iran — through the narrowly divided Senate.
"I would retool [our agenda] to follow the leader of our party, Donald J. Trump," Nehls said. "That's what we should do."
That has Democrats scoffing that the GOP has become insular and out of touch.
"They're still largely avoiding town halls," Rep. Mark Pocan (D-WI) told Raw Story. "This is a complete disconnect with what's going on on the ground."
And this fall's midterms will be won or lost by the all-important ground games each party's able to muster in divided districts from coast to coast.
"Democrats have always been cheats"
While tax day's in the rearview, most congressional Republicans won't stop talking about it.
"On average, the American public — individually and by family — got back thousands and thousands of dollars," Van Orden of Wisconsin claimed. "You know why? Because of the One Big Beautiful Bill."
Democrats decry the GOP-only measure, arguing it cuts taxes for the wealthiest Americans while boosting ICE's budget by some $75 billion. Most Republicans say the "Big, Beautiful Bill" ought to be the party's rallying cry.
"Look, I just think we need to be talking about the stuff we've done, and I think we need to talk about the things Democrats are blocking," Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX) told Raw Story. "It's pretty simple. I mean, we've delivered a number of very important reforms."
Roy's proud to have helped usher Trump's agenda through the Capitol, and now he's painting Democrats as obstructionists.
"We've passed a lot of them, but some of them have been blocked by Democrats, including funding for DHS, ICE and Border Patrol," Roy said. "So I don't think it's that complex. You've just gotta message what we've done."
Still, many House Republicans get the unrest, because they, too, are upset at the slow pace of the Senate.
"You got to look at when you say 'Congress,' it's both chambers," Nehls maintained. "But it's not really the House. We're not the ones that are screwing around with the football. It's the Senate, because of that damn thing called the filibuster — there's no mention of the filibuster in the Constitution. Nuke the filibuster!"
Nehls is a part of the record-breaking 58 House members — 37 Republicans and 21 Democrats, according to the Associated Press — who've announced they're retiring from Congress.
"They just screwed it up in Virginia. The Democrats have always been cheats. They like to cheat," Nehls said.
"It's funny because the dishonest media is talking about, you know, the redistricting and the victory, but they seem to leave out that they took it from six [Democrats], five [Republicans] to 10[Dems], one [Republican]. Because the average American would say 10 to one, that's a little extreme, but that's what the Democrats do. They're far left. They're controlled by the far left nut jobs."
"Dishonest media" aside, even some of Nehls' Republican colleagues are starting to see the light.
"Resist, resist, resist"
The remaining moderate Republicans in Congress are humming a different tune than the MAGA faithful like Nehls.
"Look, I think the American people want to see Congress function," Rep. Mike Lawler (R-NY) told Raw Story. "They want to see it work."
It's lonely in the middle of today's more tribalistic Congress, as Lawler knows more than most.
"What we've seen is there's only a handful of seats that are actually competitive, which means that both parties are getting more and more polarized," Lawler said. "Which obviously makes it a challenge."
From his perch in the moderate middle, Lawler said Democrats are unified, but they also risk being painted as unserious obstructionists.
"The Democrats refuse to negotiate on hardly anything," Lawler said. "Their whole objective is just resist, resist, resist. That's not a winning strategy either. I think the American people are tired of that approach. You know, from my vantage point, there are a lot of things we should be focused on and trying to find bipartisan solutions on whether it's housing, energy, health care or immigration."
Solutions are a hard sell in the contemporary political environment where both parties have all but perfected the art of the attack.
With America now engaged in a war with Iran, Republicans say not to put too much stock in polls right now.
"We're in the middle of a war," Rep. Ralph Norman (R-SC) told Raw Story. "People are frustrated when it affects them in gas prices. That's what's affected them more."
"So you're not worried yet?" Raw Story asked the Palmetto State gubernatorial candidate.
"No. Not yet," Norman said. "And about the prices, they're going to come down with the war."
Other Republicans point to their party's ever-shrinking House majority — which currently sits at 217 Republicans to 212 Democrats — in this 119th Congress, which they say also shares much of the blame.
"I understand. Hey, and particularly when you have a one or two vote majority, it's going to give an appearance of confusion," Rep. Joe Wilson (R-SC) told Raw Story. "I'm not saying I fully understand people saying or thinking that, but it's gridlock — well, it's close to a gridlock, but it's not because of the members. It's the numbers."
For many Democrats, especially those on the more progressive end of the spectrum, their GOP counterparts are delusional these days.
They say there's little to nothing in today's GOP to latch onto, especially as Trump and his Republican allies demonize the neediest in their communities.
"It's very hyper-partisan, but also, it's attacking working-class people and the poor. They're constantly attacking them," Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) — a member of AOC's so-called Squad — told Raw Story. "And many of them are supporters, voters of theirs."
Without a presidential contest this year, political analysts expect millions of Americans to sit out this year's elections, as they do every midterm election. But Tlaib senses even more electoral discontent than usual.
"And that's why I think a lot of people are not going to come out because they're not inspired," Tlaib said. "Because nothing's changed."
And nothing's changing, for now at least.
"I get why people are leaving"
And that includes the mass exodus of elected Republicans.
"Like, I get why people are leaving, right? Because what's the point?" Pocan of Wisconsin told Raw Story. "If you went through all the work to be in the majority and you're not able to govern, what is the advantage of being here? Frequent flyer miles aren't worth it."
Pocan accused the GOP of losing touch with average Americans.
That's been on display nationwide, Pocan argued, as Democrats keep racking up special election wins in blue, purple and even red districts, as the party did yet again in Virginia's redistricting referendum earlier this week.
The record-tying dissatisfaction mirrors the unprecedented levels of unrest that have taken root in the electorate, which is why progressives have said they had to relearn the art of shutting up and listening to their disgruntled neighbors.
While Pocan and his party have promised voters change if they win in November, the six-term congressman has also enjoyed watching Trump and his MAGA-spray-painted GOP implode on their own.
"That's why we're doing so well in all these special elections, why we did well in Virginia the other day," Pocan said. "But hey, as far as I'm concerned, keep it up!"
