Former Rep. Mick Mulvaney, R-S.C., told Newsmax Monday the Republicans are "in the right place on crime" heading into Tuesday’s midterm elections, and that the Democrats' efforts to make races about abortion and LGBTQ issues are "just not resonating."
"I've happened to be in New York City ... and was talking to Lee Zeldin, who actually has a chance to be the first Republican governor of New York City in more than two decades," Mulvaney said during an appearance on "The Chris Salcedo Show."
"One of the reasons that he's competitive is because he's talking about crime and the Democrats are not," said Mulvaney.
When asked about the southern border crisis and how the Biden administration's failure to secure the border will factor into Tuesday's races, Mulvaney said it's part of a larger problem for the Democrats.
"There's no question that the lawlessness on the border plays into the larger narrative about the difficulties Democrats have on crime and law and order generally," said Mulvaney. "The border is going to be a really, really big deal in the border states – there might be some California seats that go the Republican way because of it. It's going to play large in the Arizona and the Nevada Senate races, and then some House races in Texas.
"But probably not going to move the needle much in Ohio, except that it speaks to that larger issue of crime where the Democrats are extraordinarily weak," added Mulvaney.
Reacting to a recent clip of President Joe Biden talking about shutting down fossil fuel energy plants, Mulvaney said, "If you let politicians talk long enough, sooner or later, they'll tell you the truth, and that's what Joe Biden did."
Mulvaney, a former Trump White House chief of staff, continued: "Over the course of the last generation, Democrat policies have not allowed fracking here in New York.
"They've not allowed new pipelines, they're still insisting on old union rules and how you move gasoline around and, for that reason, you're looking at an energy crisis in Massachusetts in New York, the likes of which we've not seen in my adult lifetime," said Mulvaney.
Bloomberg News reports that Americans are set to spend the most on heating in at least 25 years this winter.
According to the Energy Information Administration, a typical northeast family is expected to pay $1,094 to keep warm with natural gas this winter – 23% more than last year.
Homes that rely on oil for heat — mainly in New England and the Mid-Atlantic — will be hit even harder, with an average bill of $2,354. Northeast households using propane will spend about $1,970.
"These policies have real world implications, and I think people are starting to realize that," Mulvaney said. "Lee Zeldin, running for governor here in New York, is talking about fracking, and that's a very popular thing with people because they know it not only lowers the cost of heating their homes, it lowers the cost of driving their cars and also creates really good jobs."
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