Republicans did better than expected in House of Representatives races because voters are opposed to socialism, Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) said Nov. 7.
“Americans don’t like socialism. They like a party that actually fights for working-class and middle-class people,” he said during a virtual appearance on “Fox & Friends.”
“We’re the party fighting for lower taxes, more freedom, fighting for the values and principles across the heartland of this country, and I think that came through and we picked up seats,” said Jordan, who easily won reelection in Ohio’s 4th Congressional District.
“It was one of the congresswomen, Congresswoman Spanberger, I believe, from Virginia, who said Democrats should never mention the word socialism again, because Americans don’t like that. They like to set goals, they like to work hard, they like to accomplish things. Americans don’t like this socialist attitude that we see from the hard left today.”
A growing number of Democratic lawmakers and voters describe themselves as socialists, including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), a popular figure in the party.
But moderate Democrats blamed the far-left positions the party has increasingly promoted for the worse-than-expected outcome seen so far in the House, while Republicans have flipped seats in multiple states and appear poised to have a sizable minority.
According to a leaked caucus call, Rep. Abigail Spanberger (D-Va.) told fellow Democrats on Nov. 5, “We need to not ever use the word ‘socialist’ or ‘socialism’ ever again.”
“We lost good members because of that,” she added, predicting Democrats would get “torn apart in 2022” if they don’t change course.
Other Democrats considered moderates sounded similar themes, only to be challenged by more radical lawmakers such as Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.), a socialist who accused critics of focusing on white people.
As of Nov. 7, with a few dozen races left to call, Republicans have picked up a net of four seats in the House.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), on the call and during a press conference the same day, downplayed what happened to Democrats.
“We lost a few seats, but as I said, we won those seats in Trump districts. He wasn’t on the ballot, he is now,” she told reporters in Washington. “I have the utmost respect for the members whose districts were almost insurmountable with Trump on the ballot.”
When asked if she sees a need to correct the party’s messaging, she said, “No, I do think that we should always be evaluating and respecting what the people have to say.”
