Republicans saw the Kavanaugh fight as an electoral lifeline. It wasn't.
In the weeks before the 2018 midterms and right afterward, Republicans were arguing that the contentious, narrow confirmation of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh had finally awoken the Republican base, giving the party a shot of adrenaline before the election. And Republicans did unseat a handful of Democratic senators who had voted against Kavanaugh, in states like Missouri, North Dakota, and Indiana, while the lone Democrat who voted for Kavanaugh, Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), won re-election. But after the election, Democrats are the ones citing the Kavanaugh fight as an electoral booster.
"Kavanaugh's nomination hurt the Republicans significantly in the election, harming them greatly in the House and doing very little damage in the Senate," said Senator Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.). "That they have to claim victories they won in Missouri, Indiana, and North Dakota shows how weak they really are."
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"Nationally, exit polls showed that more voters opposed Judge Kavanaugh's nomination than supported it, and that women were far more likely than men to be against his confirmation," notes Carl Hulse at The New York Times. And some Democrats argue that for Trump and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), "the political repercussions of that high court push will be playing out for years to come as well."
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