President Donald Trump is clearly conscious of the fact that, at least when it comes to the U.S. House, Republicans running in the midterms this year do not have the upper hand. Saturday, he offered an endorsement of Pennsylvania’s Keith Rothfus on Twitter.
He wrote:
‘Highly respected Congressman Keith Rothfus (R) of Pennsylvania is in the fight of his life because the Dems changed the District Map. He must win. Strong on crime, borders, big tax & reg cuts, Military & Vets. Opponent Lamb a Pelosi puppet-weak on crime. BIG ENDORSEMENT FOR KEITH’
First of all, the situation heading into November in Pennsylvania isn’t that “Dems changed the District Map,” although that line — random capitalization and all — is no doubt going to be eaten up by his followers. In fact, the state Supreme Court ruled that the state’s Congressional District map was unconstitutional because of the way Republicans had drawn it to favor their own party. There’s an important distinction there.
Rothfus, as Trump accurately notes, is running against Democrat Conor Lamb, who despite the president’s best efforts won an election earlier this year in a district Trump won by some 20 percent in 2016. That district no longer exists, and the shuffling has now put incumbents Lamb and Rothfus against each other in November as the lines change. The new district is dramatically in Lamb’s favor, with the at this point still rather fresh face in Congress leading his opponent by 12 percent, according to a recent poll. Rothfus has been described as a “dead man walking,” facing the National Republican Congressional Committee withdrawing its campaign ad buys on his behalf just last month.
Trump still thinks he’s got a magic touch, though — or something.
Check out Twitter’s response below.
Featured Image via YouTube screenshot
