U.S. Representative Michael McCaul (R-Texas) predicts that Republicans will regain the majority in the House during November’s midterm elections.
McCaul, the chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee and its top Republican, told Fox News on April 24 that he “feels very confident” about his party’s chances in the next elections.
“I think the polling shows this,” McCaul said. “Historically, as well, the party out of power in the first term in the White House, we will pick up seats.”
McCaul argued that President Joe Biden’s unpopularity has grown due to inflation, gas prices, and foreign policy failures.
“All we need is five [seats],” McCaul continued. “I predict we’re going to get probably at least 40 seats because this president has been so unpopular.”
McCaul added that voters see Biden “as a weak president.”
If Republicans manage to retake control of both the House and the Senate, McCaul said they would prioritize restoring former President Donald Trump’s border policies, which were put on hold by the Biden administration.
One of these policies would be reinstating the “Remain in Mexico” policy, in which migrants requesting entry into the country would remain in Mexico while awaiting their date to appear before an immigration judge in the United States.
“I don’t think Mexico, though, will agree to do this again,” McCaul said. “They did under Trump, and it was working. I’m not sure it’s going to work under this administration.”
In a New York Times op-ed, McCaul’s prediction aligns with Senator Elizabeth Warren’s (D-Mass.) warning to Democrats. She wrote that her party would suffer in the upcoming midterm elections if the president did not address persistent supply shortages and record inflation.
“Democrats win elections when we show we understand the painful economic realities facing American families and convince voters we will deliver meaningful change. To put it bluntly: if we fail to use the months remaining before the elections to deliver on more of our agenda, Democrats are headed toward big losses in the midterms,” Warren wrote.
However, during a recent event for “Pod Save America,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki suggested that Biden can help Democrats avoid significant midterm losses by evoking one phrase – “don’t compare me to the Almighty, compare me to the alternative.”
Biden frequently used the phrase while campaigning for the presidency in 2020.
“Really, if you look at the other side, they have nothing in the cupboard. They have no plan,” Psaki said. “We could be saying that more.”
Several polls, however, are showing that Democrats will face a steep challenge in the midterms. Biden’s approval rating is 41.3% among American adults, according to a poll published on April 22 by Gallup.
Pollsters J. Miles Coleman and Kyle Kondik with the University of Virginia Center for Politics predict that Republicans could pick up between 25 and 35 seats.