Senior advisers to US President Donald Trump have joked about seeking asylum in Israel during a private meeting days before Republicans suffered a sweeping defeat in the midterm elections, The New York Times reported on Wednesday.
More than two dozens of Trump’s top political strategists joined a private video call six days before the November 3 midterm elections, the newspaper reported, citing four people familiar with the discussion. As participants weighed the party’s prospects, they traded jokes about funeral arrangements, prison food, and presidential pardons.
“At least Bibi won. He’ll protect us,” said James Blair, who had left the White House to oversee Trump’s midterm strategy. The newspaper described his reference to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as sarcastic.
“Maybe we could get asylum in Israel,” Trump’s chief pollster Tony Fabrizio replied.
The call took place a day after Israel’s election, in which Netanyahu's bloc failed to secure a parliamentary majority. His party later claimed the election had been stolen, according to the report.
During the call, Fabrizio and Republican data consultant Tim Saler outlined two possible electoral scenarios, including one that projected a devastating Republican defeat.
The concerns materialised when Democrats secured control of both the House of Representatives and the Senate, winning key races in traditionally Republican states, including Kansas, South Carolina, and Texas.
Iran war, cost of living
The war with Iran eroded Republican support as the closure of the Strait of Hormuz pushed US petrol prices above $4 per gallon, the newspaper reported.
An internal presentation circulated among White House officials over the summer showed that Democratic support increased during active hostilities, declined during diplomatic negotiations, and rose again following the collapse of a ceasefire.
By late July, Democrats had established a 10-percentage-point advantage on the congressional ballot.
The presentation warned that Republicans' chances of retaining the House depended on an extended ceasefire, the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, and falling gasoline prices.
The conflict also undermined Trump’s promises to keep the US out of new wars and bring down living costs, the newspaper reported. Republican polling two weeks before the election found that voters who did not plan to back the party cited ending the war and tackling inflation as their top concerns.
Democrats focused their campaign on household costs and accused the administration of favouring the wealthy. House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries said the Iran war helped “supercharge” the contrast between the parties.
The newspaper also cited Trump’s trade policies and his administration’s handling of the economy as factors in the Republican defeat. Democratic control of Congress is expected to make it harder for Trump to advance his legislative agenda in the final two years of his presidency.
