Republicans are spinning like mad to explain how Democrat Conor Lamb’s victory in a House district Donald Trump won by nearly 20 points is not a bad sign for their party. They’re … not being very convincing.
“This is something you’re not going to see repeated,” House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) insisted on Wednesday, moments after he reportedly told his caucus behind closed doors that the flipped seat was a “wakeup call” for Republicans.
Ryan told reporters that Democrat Conor Lamb “ran as a pro-gun, pro-life, anti-Nancy Pelosi conservative.” He did not mention that Lamb also ran a staunchly pro-union, pro-Obamacare and anti-GOP tax bill race, or that Lamb has said publicly that he will not vote for abortion restrictions favored by Republicans.
Ryan also gave Trump credit for boosting state Rep. Rick Saccone to a narrow loss rather than a significant loss, which is hilarious when you consider Trump’s margin in 2016 and his own words in a campaign stop over the weekend:
Ryan’s behind-closed-doors message that this is a “wake-up call” was echoed by National Republican Congressional Committee Chair Steve Stivers, though he wasn’t exactly embracing reality, saying “If you're getting out raised, this is a wake up call.” While Saccone was out raised by Lamb, he benefited from millions in outside spending. Money was not the issue here.
But publicly, Ryan was clearly working from talking points that have been distributed to his members. “This was a one-off,” said Rep. Cris Collins (R-NY), echoing Ryan’s “not going to see repeated” message. “We’ve won five; they’ve won one. I’m feeling pretty good.” Nice try: Democrats have been massively overperforming their 2016 results, and of the 18 special elections for Republican-held seats so far in 2018, Democrats have flipped seven. Other Republicans pushed Ryan’s message that Lamb is so conservative he’s practically a Republican, but that’s a sharp contrast with what their own ads were saying just a couple days ago, as well as with Lamb’s positions on health care, taxes, and unions and his pledge not to jump on board with Republican anti-abortion legislation.
Losing is no fun. But Republicans are on track to do enough of it that they should probably improve their spin. This is pathetic.