GOP 'pressing the panic button' as MAGA senator warns 'we may lose'

President Donald Trump often dismisses his low approval ratings as "fake news," continuing to insist that Republicans are in a strong position as the midterms draw closer and closer. But according to HuffPost reporters Arthur Delaney and Kevin Robillard, more and more Republicans are sounding the alarm about the midterms — including Sen. Jim Justice (R-West Virginia).

"Just a few weeks out from Election Day," Delaney and Robillard report in HuffPost, "Republicans are pressing the panic button. Candidates in states and districts President Donald Trump easily won are starting to attempt dramatic reinventions. Super PACs are pouring huge sums into safely red territory. But post-Labor Day polling increasingly favors Democrats, and consultants are worrying the party's massive money advantage won't save their candidates. In short: The GOP is staring down a blue wave, with its control of both chambers of Congress at risk."

Justice is serving in the U.S. Senate via a state that Trump won by 41 percent in 2024: West Virginia, where he formerly served as governor. And he is warning fellow Republicans that the midterms, which are set for Tuesday, November 3, could go really well for Democrats.

Justice told HuffPost, "You've got real momentum on the Democrat side, and if we don't watch out, you know, everybody all of a sudden now is just awakened to the fact that we may lose in the midterm."

According to the former West Virginia governor, "You've got to be living in a cave to not see that Toby and Edith — I call the voters Toby and Edith — are out there, and they're hurting. They can't hold their nose and go vote for the Democrats, but they can stay home, and that will be the big challenge."

Justice isn't the only worried Republican quoted in Delaney and Robillard's article.

A GOP consultant, interviewed on condition of anonymity, noted that although incumbent Republican Gov. Greg Abbott is leading Democratic challenger Gina Hinojosa in Texas' gubernatorial battle, the race is closer than it should be in light of how much Abbott is outspending her.

The consultant told HuffPost, "If money can't turn some of these races around, things are going to get ugly."

Delaney and Robillard observe, "Similarly, Democratic candidates for governor in both Ohio and Nevada have been badly outspent by their GOP opponents to little apparent effect: $40 million in Republican spending in Nevada has led to a toss-up race, while $70 million in spending from Ohio Republican Vivek Ramaswamy has led to a race where Democrat Amy Acton has a narrow lead."

Meanwhile, right-wing culture warriors the American Principles Project are warning, "Republicans must also make the case to families on what they plan to do to help improve their economic standing. The Republican sales pitch to voters on the economy is at best unclear."