Hamza Adam 
“Read the writing on the wall,” is the advice the Republican Party is getting from former RNC chair Michael Steele who advised a course correction if they don’t want to experience a blowout in the 2026 midterms.
In a column for MSNBC, “The Weekend” co-host claimed the tighter-than-normal election in Florida to fill two Republican-held House seats as well as the wipe-out in Wisconsin for a far-right state Supreme Court nominee should send a chill down the backs of the GOP leadership.
As he explained, Donald Trump and his alliance with billionaire Elon Musk is crippling the GOP’s plans to hold onto both chambers of Congress, with Steele suggesting, “Trump and Musk’s DOGE tactics are toxic in the minds of voters. While GOP candidates won both special elections for two House seats in Florida, Democrats cut into the margin of victory in each race by double digits. By sticking with Trumpism and enabling an unelected billionaire, the Republican Party has exposed itself to a possible bloodbath during the 2026 midterms.”
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According to the former high-ranking RNC exec, he learned a thing or two when he served in his former job in 2010 when the “Republican wave” came about due to “a concerted effort to take advantage of an incumbent president’s missteps.”
As Steele sees it, history is repeating itself.
“Voters are already sick and tired of all the chaos Musk has unleashed across America. Trump will be left to clean up the mess that Musk leaves behind on every aisle. Voters will blame the Trump administration and Republican lawmakers who didn’t stand up to Musk. The Republican Party needs to understand this reality,” he predicted before lecturing, “Republican candidates are stuck with the Trump brand if they don’t offer the electorate an alternative path.”
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The ex-RNC chair suggested Democrats have an opening if they play their cards right.
“Tuesday’s elections underscored the weaknesses inside the Republican Party and how that weakness shows up at the ballot box. It’s now up to Democrats to exploit those weaknesses and return power to the American people,” he wrote.
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