President Trump doesn’t seem to care that much about winning the midterms. He’s more unpopular at this point in his second term than basically any of his modern predecessors. Democrats seem poised to retake the House and have a real chance of retaking the Senate. You might expect a president in that position to pivot to the center, to focus on voters’ top concerns and try to boost the strongest Republicans in key races.
Trump isn’t doing any of that. Instead, he announced a $1.8 billion slush fund to pay out “victims of lawfare,” he threatened to re-escalate the Iran war, and he intervened in Republican primaries in ways that are gifts to Democrats, like endorsing the scandal-plagued Ken Paxton over the incumbent, John Cornyn, in Texas’ Senate race.
Why doesn’t Trump seem to care more about winning?
Liam Donovan is a Republican strategist and a president at Targeted Victory, a Washington public affairs and digital marketing firm. He has worked on the National Republican Senatorial Committee and for Cornyn. In this conversation, we discuss the moves Trump is making, the rough political environment for Republicans and what the paths to Democratic victories look like.
Mentioned:
“<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/05/16/magazine/graham-platner-interview.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Graham Platner Thinks a Political Revolution Is Coming</a>” by The Interview
<a href="https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/1881868/rep-massies-theory-voters-who-voted-for-libertarians-and-then-trump-were-always-just-seeking-the-craziest-son-of-a-bitch-in-the-race/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Thomas Massie interview in The Washington Examiner</a>
Book Recommendations:
<a href="https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/matthew-continetti/the-right/9781541600522/?lens=basic-books" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The Right</a> by Matthew Continetti
<a href="https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Apple-in-China/Patrick-McGee/9781668053386" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Apple in China</a> by Patrick McGee
<a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/314332/the-frackers-by-gregory-zuckerman/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The Frackers</a> by Gregory Zuckerman
Thoughts? Guest suggestions? Email us at ezrakleinshow@nytimes.com.
You can find transcripts (posted midday) and more episodes of “The Ezra Klein Show” at <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/column/ezra-klein-podcast" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">nytimes.com/ezra-klein-podcast</a>, and you can find Ezra on Twitter @ezraklein. Book recommendations from all our guests are listed at <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/article/ezra-klein-show-book-recs.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://www.nytimes.com/article/ezra-klein-show-book-recs</a>.
This episode of “The Ezra Klein Show” was produced by Jack McCordick. Fact-checking by Michelle Harris with Julie Beer and Mary Marge Locker. Our senior engineer is Jeff Geld. Our recording engineer is Johnny Simon. Our executive producer is Claire Gordon. The show’s production team also includes Marie Cascione, Annie Galvin, Rollin Hu, Kristin Lin, Emma Kehlbeck, Marina King and Jan Kobal. Original music by Pat McCusker. Audience strategy by Shannon Busta. The director of New York Times Opinion Shows is Annie-Rose Strasser.
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