WTAS: Voters ‘Punish’ Democrats as the ‘Party Panics’

New York Times: Democratic Panic Rises as Virginia Loss Exposes the Party’s Failures

Republicans argue that Democrats and Mr. McAuliffe’s campaign failed to address what is behind that sense of decline: increased costs of groceries and gas caused by inflation; continued frustration with schools; supply chain challenges; and crime.

CNN: Democrats are in need of a reckoning after misjudging the nation’s mood

CNN political commentator and former Obama administration official Van Jones declared a “five alarm fire” for Democrats and said the party needs to consider a change of course.

Washington Post: Reeling Democrats See Threat To House And Senate Control As Republicans Crack Their 2020 Coalition

Democrats reeling from the party’s showing on Tuesday night were sharply critical of its direction and agenda — already the subject of months of infighting on Capitol Hill — concluding it threatens to devastate their efforts to hold on to the House and Senate next year much as it dragged down this year’s candidates.

Bloomberg: GOP’s Youngkin Sends Democrats A 2022 Wake-Up Call From Virginia

“This is the real canary in the coal mine for Democrats in Washington,” Reed said. “They over-reached, the country thinks they over-reached, and voters in Virginia punished them through McAuliffe.”

Daily Beast: Democrats Start Knifing Each Other Even Before Virginia Defeat Was Official

That possibility, which would cost Democrats their control of Congress, was enough to kick off a blame game of epic proportions, with targets ranging from McAuliffe and the national party to progressive lawmakers to centrist lawmakers to the White House’s political operation and its failure to secure an infrastructure package after months of negotiations.

Axios: Voters punish Democrats amid left drift

“It’s time for Democrats to stop f****** around,” a senior aide to one House moderate told Axios’ Sarah Mucha. “Show the voters we actually can govern.”

The Atlantic: What The Republican Win In Virginia Means For The Country

But given the very public, ongoing dysfunction among Democratic leaders in Washington, the party’s devastating loss in Virginia looks like a five-alarm fire for its near-term electoral future.

Washington Post: A sobering reality hits Democrats after Tuesday’s elections losses

A year after celebrating victory in the 2020 elections, their slender congressional majorities are now even more at risk than they feared, and it is not clear that President Biden or his party have a workable plan to rebalance a political landscape tilting significantly against them.

Kristen Bennett, America Rising, House Press Secretary: “Last night’s victory in Virginia, and a far closer than expected race in New Jersey, demonstrates that Americans are fed up with Democrats’ full control of Washington. Americans want leaders who care about kitchen table issues. Republicans will continue to prioritize those issues while Democrats continue to bicker between themselves.”