Silver linings playbook: does it exist after Tuesday’s carnage?
asserted
it → exist → carnage
Losing Congress does not strip President Trump of the presidency's most potent tools.
asserted
Losing → lose → tools
And because he cannot seek another term, he faces little political cost in pressing his agenda through executive orders, regulatory actions and foreign policy moves that need no congressional sign-off.
asserted
that → seek → off
Republicans suffered sweeping losses in Tuesday's midterm elections, surrendering control of both chambers of Congress, but a handful of results across the map offered the party some footing as President Donald Trump heads into the final two years of his term.
asserted
Trump → suffer → term
Democrats got three seats – and more – from Republicans to win control of the House.
asserted
Democrats → get → House
And they now have 54 Senate seats, having taken six away from the GOP – in Iowa, Kansas, Ohio, North Carolina, South Carolina and Texas, with Alaska and Mississippi still undecided as of Wednesday night.
asserted
Alaska → have → night
Voters went to the polls with Trump's approval rating at 38%, with 89% of voters saying the cost of living was a major factor in their vote.
asserted
cost → go → vote
Tuesday's GOP carnage is undeniable, but there are a few holes in the storm cloud cover that could offer some solace for the party.
uncertain
that → be → party
Vermont sticks with its Republican governor
Republican Gov. Phil Scott won a historic sixth term Tuesday, a sign that voters in one of the nation's most liberal states still value a check on one-party control.
asserted
voters → stick → control
Scott took 52.5% of the vote to 45.9% for Democrat Amanda Janoo.
asserted
Scott → take → Janoo
The result stood out in a state where Democrats otherwise ran strong.
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Democrats → stand → state
Vermonters reelected Democratic Rep. Becca Balint, chose Democrats for attorney general, auditor, secretary of state and treasurer, and elected Democrat Molly Gray as lieutenant governor over Republican incumbent John Rodgers.
asserted
Vermonters → reelect → Rodgers
A moderate first elected in 2016, he was ranked as the most popular governor in the country by Morning Consult as recently as February and won each of his previous three races by more than 40 points.
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he → elect → points
This year's contest was tighter, reflecting the national climate.
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contest → reflect → climate
VTDigger reported the race proved more competitive than most voters expected.
asserted
voters → report → ?
Still, on a night when Republicans lost governor's races in Georgia, Ohio, Iowa, Nevada and Texas, Vermonters chose to keep a Republican in the governor's office.
asserted
Vermonters → lose → office
Florida remains ruby red
Florida delivered the GOP's clearest statewide wins of the night.
asserted
Florida → remain → night
GOP Rep. Byron Donalds defeated Democrat David Jolly to become the state's first black governor and the first black Republican elected governor in U.S. history.
asserted
Donalds → defeat → history
Donalds took 50.1% of the vote to Jolly's 48.7%, with about 99% counted, according to the Associated Press.
uncertain
% → take → Press
He also held a lopsided financial edge, raising nearly $174 million compared to less than $28 million for Jolly.
asserted
He → hold → Jolly
Donalds, a close Trump ally, said he told the president that Floridians "are still red."
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Floridians → say → president
The win extends a Republican hold on the governor's office that dates to 1998.
asserted
that → extend → 1998
GOP Sen. Ashley Moody, appointed after Marco Rubio became secretary of state, won a special election to finish his term, defeating Democratic state Rep. Angie Nixon.
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Rubio → appoint → Nixon
The sweep came in a state once considered a quintessential swing state.
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sweep → come → state
GOP holds the line in its heartland
Beyond Florida, Republicans kept a firm grip on much of the interior West and the South.
asserted
Republicans → hold → West
In Wyoming, Rep. Harriet Hageman cruised to an open Senate seat win, taking 64.5% of the vote to Democrat James Byrd's 35.5% with 90% counted.
asserted
% → cruise → %
She will succeed retiring Sen. Cynthia Lummis.
asserted
She → succeed → Lummis
In Montana, former U.S. Attorney Kurt Alme won the seat held by retiring GOP Sen. Steve Daines, with Daines and Trump backing him.
asserted
Daines → win → him
Alme led with 48.8% of the vote to 37.4% for independent Seth Bodnar and 12% for Democrat Alani Bankhead.
asserted
Alme → lead → Bankhead
Trump carried Montana by nearly 20 points in 2024.
asserted
Trump → carry → 2024
In Oklahoma, Republican Kevin Hern won the Senate race to fill the seat now-Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin left in March.
asserted
Mullin → win → March
Republicans also notched victories in Idaho, Arkansas, Louisiana, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kentucky and West Virginia, among other states.
asserted
Republicans → notch → states
Those holds leave the party with a dependable bloc of Senate seats to build on as it looks toward 2028.
asserted
it → leave → 2028
History offers a path back
Republicans have rebounded from defeats this lopsided before.
asserted
Republicans → offer → defeats
After the 1992 election, the GOP held just 176 House seats to 258 for Democrats, then won both chambers in 1994.
asserted
GOP → hold → 1994
After 2008 left the GOP with 178 seats, the party recaptured the House two years later.
asserted
party → leave → House
CNN commentator Scott Jennings pointed to 2010 as the model, when voters handed President Barack Obama a sharp midterm rebuke.
asserted
voters → point → rebuke
"To pick out a silver lining, look back at 2010," Jennings said.
asserted
Jennings → pick → 2010
Republicans gained 63 House seats that year, and Obama went on to win a second term.
asserted
Obama → gain → term
Democrats now must govern without a clear plan to deliver on their affordability promises, and their divisions could blunt Tuesday's momentum.
uncertain
divisions → govern → momentum
…and 15 more, not listed.
The Aporia
