Trump Blames Messaging, Not Policy, for GOP Midterm Losses in Full 60 Minutes Transcript with Douthat

Two days after the midterms, President Trump sat down with Ross Douthat and was asked to explain a Republican defeat that Douthat described, like the 2024 win before it, as potentially historic. Trump's first answer was that he had not been on the ballot. He said the crowds at his rallies were proof of his popularity, and that the problem was moving that enthusiasm to candidates his voters did not like.

Beyond the candidates, he named what he saw as the main causes: the war with Iran, and gasoline prices. He said he had gotten gas down to $1.85 a gallon in Iowa, and that it had climbed to between $3.50 and $4, still lower than under Biden or Obama, but that the war was blamed. He said everyone agrees Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon, and added that there seemed to be a dislike of Israel among voters. He also noted that MAGA voters want to stay out of wars, and said he had settled eight of them, citing India and Pakistan, where he said 11 planes were shot down and Pakistan's prime minister credited him with saving 30 to 50 million lives.

Douthat pressed on the candidates, many of whom Trump had endorsed. He pointed to Ken Paxton in Texas, who had a hard time, and to Darline Graham in South Carolina, who lost a heavily Republican state to a very liberal challenger. Trump said Cornyn would have lost as well, and that he backed Graham in honor of Lindsey, a friend. He said he won South Carolina, Texas and Ohio by record margins, that his endorsees in Florida would not have won without him because of the wave, and that Jon Husted in Ohio had been 15 points down and lost by roughly a point or less.

Why did the support not transfer? Trump said he thought people simply did not vote, and in some cases disliked the candidates. He said he had campaigned harder than in the past, with about 30 rallies in roughly 28 days, and allowed that voters may have disagreed with him.

On the economy, Douthat noted that jobs numbers released after the election were strong and unemployment low, yet polls show Americans unhappy about the cost of living in a way they were not in his first term. Trump said the economy was not the Iran war's problem and that the numbers were phenomenal. He called it bad messaging, perhaps his own, and said the press does not cover good news for Republicans. He cited job growth beating expectations by 125,000 to 130,000, with 165,000 jobs created, the highest stock market in history, and a gain of $25 trillion in value before the election. He said the market lost nearly 2,000 points and $3 trillion the day after, which he blamed on Democrats, pointing to France and Italy. He predicted voters would feel the gains in two to four months, citing trillions invested in factories, and pointed to record 401(k)s. Douthat observed that not everyone has a large 401(k) and that wages and gas prices matter.

Douthat then raised a social media post by Vice President JD Vance saying the war was why Republicans lost, with remarks about Israel. Trump said he did not disagree, that Vance had asked what he thought and he told him to write what he wanted. His one objection was what Vance left out: that the war was won, he said, and he would do it again. Trump said Iran is withering and wants a deal, that one was close just before the election, and that without the election it might have come within days. He said the result gives Iran a little "hope certificate."

The next things to watch are whether the Iran deal Trump describes as near actually materializes, and whether the job and market gains he promises reach voters' sentiment in the coming months.