House Republican Says GOP Lost Big on Tuesday Because Its Voters ‘Are Happy With What’s Happening’

Rep. Lisa McClain (R-MI) offered a novel explanation for why her party was roundly defeated in races across the country on Tuesday: Republican voters were simply too happy with the status quo to be bothered to vote.

On Tuesday, Democrats flipped the Virginia governor’s mansion and expanded their majority in the state’s House of Delegates. They also maintained control of New Jersey’s governorship and held the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. In California, voters approved a ballot measure that would allow the state legislature to redraw congressional districts in a way more favorable to Democrats after Texas enacted a similar initiative for Republicans. And in New York, voters elected a democratic socialist who will be the first Muslim mayor of the city.

Appearing on Wednesday’s edition of The Lead on CNN, McClain was asked by Jake Tapper about the election results.

“[I]f you look at what happened last night, it is hard to say that there is anything in the election results – and I’m looking at not just, I get it, New Jersey’s a Democratic state, but looking at Republican counties, looking at Republican sheriffs that lost their jobs, it’s hard to see anything last night that was an endorsement of what the Republican party is doing right now,” he said.

McClain then submitted that Republicans lost on Tuesday because they are doing a good job:

Yeah, well, let me give you the other side of that story, is voter turnout from Republicans was not high. Not high at all. But I think part of that reason is because Republicans, for the most part, are happy with what’s happening. The border’s closed, crime is down, inflation under Biden used to be nine percent. It’s now down to three percent. Interest rates are down, mortgages down…

I shop at the same grocery stores everybody else does. Is there more work that needs to be done? Absolutely, there is. That’s why in the working families tax cut, we did just that. We voted not to raise everybody’s taxes. Very different than what the Democrats did. So, I think there’s two sides of the coin that you have to take a look at. What is incumbent on us is we must make sure that we get our voters to turn out like they did in the election year. No question.

Tapper appeared unimpressed with the explanation.

“I mean, using that argument, your voters could be so happy, that the Democrats take control of the House of Representatives next year,” he said.

“Right,” McClain responded. “And I’m very confident that we will not only hold the majority, but I am optimistic that we will actually gain the majority.”

Watch above via CNN.