The key facts

  • Trump is surprised by the Republicans' result but does not consider it his own defeat
  • He is ready to cooperate with the Democrats and threatens to veto 'foolish' bills
  • He believes voters did not see a strong economy because of gasoline prices

The president's comment after the election

US President Donald Trump gave an interview to Fox News after the midterm elections, the main points of which are presented Kun.uz in the form of an abridged and generalized retelling that preserves the meaning of what was said. According to Trump, he was 'a little surprised' by the Republicans' result, as he had expected stronger numbers. At the same time, he emphasized that he does not view the outcome of the vote as his own defeat: 'my name wasn't on the ballot.' He blamed the candidates for his party's failure — in his words, some of them ran against him, and it was because of them that voters did not vote for the Republicans.

Willingness to cooperate and the veto power

Trump said he is ready to work with the Democrats if the Republicans want to cooperate with him. At the same time, he recalled the veto as one of the president's strongest tools: if they send him, in his words, 'some foolish thing' to sign, he will veto it, and after several such cases, he believes, they will come to him themselves asking what to do — and then they will work together. He assessed the Democrats as good partners to work with, noting that they 'fought very long and hard.'

The economy and gasoline prices

Touching on the results of the vote, the president said that the country's economy is strong, but people do not see it because of gasoline prices. According to him, voters like what he is doing regarding Iran, but they do not like the short-term consequences of these actions, and he understands that. Trump also generalized: whether the president is good or bad, a Democrat or a Republican, a man or a woman — in the midterm elections, the president's party loses anyway.

Limitations of the material

The publication is based on a retelling of the Fox News interview prepared by Kun.uz: the outlet explicitly states that the text is not an exact compilation of quotes, and that the president's words have been abridged and generalized while preserving their meaning. The interview video itself is posted on the Fox News website, and a full verbatim record of the statements is not provided in the available materials, so the wording presented should be treated as a retelling rather than exact quotes.