President Donald Trump privately told Senate Republicans at a White House gathering on Wednesday that the party's stance on the federal government shutdown likely played a big role in the losses Republicans saw up and down the ballot in this week's elections.
Democrats saw massive overperformances across the country, winning or holding key races in Virginia, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Georgia, making gains in state legislatures, and generally turning back Trump-endorsed opponents at the local level in several states.
Publicly, Trump has disavowed any blame for the issue, saying the main problem for Republicans was that he wasn't on the ballot to boost their numbers. But according to CNN's Alayna Treene, Trump had a more nuanced tone for key lawmakers in his party in the White House State Dining Room.
"I thought we'd have a discussion after the press leaves about what last night represented, and what we should do about it. And also about the shutdown, how that relates to last night. I think if you read the pollsters, the shutdown was a big factor, negative for the Republicans," said Trump.
This could be a massive turning point in the standoff, noted Punchbowl News' Jake Sherman on X, because congressional Republican leaders "have been big proponents of not negotiating with Democrats while the government is shut. After the romping last night, it sounds like Trump may want to change course."
The shutdown has dragged on for weeks, leaving millions of federal workers unpaid and causing key functions like air traffic control to start breaking down across the country. Democrats continue to demand Republicans negotiate on extending Affordable Care Act subsidies as a condition of providing votes to reopen the government.
Republicans went into the standoff largely confident the public would blame Democrats for any ill effects of the shutdown, but in poll after poll, the opposite has happened, leaving the GOP frustrated and unsure of an exit strategy.
