Trump Downplays GOP Losses, Urges Senate to End Filibuster

By Newsmax Wires | Wednesday, 05 November 2025 10:01 AM EST
President Donald Trump on Wednesday dismissed Republican losses in Tuesday night’s elections, telling GOP senators the results were “not expected to be a victory” and emphasizing the need for the party to focus on reopening the government and advancing a conservative agenda.
The president spoke hours after Democratic victories in the Virginia and New Jersey governor races and following democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani’s win in New York City’s mayoral race.
“Last night, it was a very Democrat area,” Trump said at a White House breakfast with GOP senators and Vice President JD Vance.
“I don’t think it was good for Republicans. I’m not sure it was good for anybody. But we had an interesting evening, and we learned a lot.”
Trump used the meeting to push for ending the Senate filibuster, calling it the only way to break Democrat obstruction. “It’s time for Republicans to do what they have to do, and that’s terminate the filibuster,” he said. “If you don’t, you’ll be in bad shape. We won’t pass any legislation.”
The president accused Democrats of acting like “kamikaze pilots” by prolonging what he called a “Democrat-created shutdown,” warning that millions of Americans were being hurt as the government remained closed. He stressed the urgency for Republican lawmakers to unite.
“This is now officially the longest shutdown in American history,” Trump said. “The radical left in the Senate has shown zero interest in reopening the government. They’ll take down the country if they have to.”
Trump also criticized what he described as excessive welfare spending and an influx of illegal migrants under former President Joe Biden, claiming the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program had surged in cost. “When I was president [first term], we had $7 billion worth,” Trump said. “Now it’s many times that — $47 billion. They gave it to anybody that wanted it. No country can sustain that.”
On the economy, Trump highlighted his record of cutting taxes, ending foreign wars, and reviving U.S. manufacturing. “We have car companies coming in,” he said, citing a $10 billion Toyota investment in new U.S. plants. “There’s a construction boom right now, but it’s going to be an economic boom once the government reopens.”
He concluded by urging Republicans to pursue election integrity reforms — including voter ID and limits on mail-in voting — and to act decisively before Democrats “pack the courts” and “make D.C. and Puerto Rico states.”
“If we do this right, we’ll have the most successful Congress in history,” Trump said. “If not, we’ll just sit around arguing with radical left subversives all day long.”