President Joe Biden was preparing for a red wave in Tuesday's midterm elections, telling donors last week in Chicago that "it's going to be a horrible two years" if Democrats lose Congress.
"The good news is, I'll have a veto pen," the president jokingly assured at a hotel ballroom where cameras were prohibited, CNN reported.
Biden's worries come as Republicans appeared poised to take the upper and lower chambers. According to a FiveThirtyEight forecast, the GOP has a 59% chance of winning the Senate and an 84% chance of winning the House.
Center-left think tank Third Way said in a memo published Monday that progressives' vocal drum beating has caused the Democratic Party to appear "extreme" and "out of touch" to many voters.
"If Democrats manage to hold on to the House and Senate, it will be in spite of the party brand, not because of it," the group wrote, adding that voters believe Democrats are just as extreme as Republicans and "far less concerned about the issues that most worry them."
"Democrats must face up to the challenge of convincing voters that they are the reasonable, mainstream, and competent party to preserve themselves as a palatable alternative to Republicans' increasing extremism," Third Way said.
Despite this, Biden has frequently framed the midterm elections as a pivotal moment for American democracy. He made that argument again this week while speaking at the historically Black college Bowie State University near Washington, D.C.
"Today, we face an inflection point. We know in our bones that our democracy's at risk, and we know that this is your moment to defend it," Biden said, according to Reuters.
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