More Indiana Republicans are reacting to major losses for the GOP party on election day. Indiana U.S. Senator Todd Young said Republicans should reflect on the results.
Like many Republicans in Indiana, Young believes the lesson from election day is that lawmakers should stay focused on what's most important to Hoosiers, with affordability the top issue.
“It's also a time to emphasize as we begin recruiting new candidates for the election two years in front of us, that we choose talented people who are prepared to actually do the work of improving people's kitchen table circumstances,” Young told WFYI.
That’s a theme that party leaders across the state have been hammering after last Tuesday. Gov. Mike Braun and House Speaker-elect Rep. Ben Smaltz (R-Auburn) both said they plan to focus the party on affordability following the election results.
U.S. Senator Jim Banks made similar comments on social media about the need for Republicans to focus on bringing down prices.
“But Democrats don’t have a plan to do that,” Banks wrote. “They’re already focused on DEI, impeaching President Trump and defunding ICE. They want to reopen our borders and raise taxes. That’s not what voters want, and I will do everything I can to stop them.”
On Monday, Banks called for a pause on determining Republican leadership in the U.S. Senate.
“Our conference needs to sit down and have a frank conversation about where we fell short, what we stand for, and what we’re going to do for the working families who sent us here,” Banks said in a statement. “Let’s have that discussion first.”
Republican Sen. John Thune of South Dakota was expected to seek another term as head of the caucus.
Sen. Young said he was not aware of any Senate Republicans planning to run against Thune.
Young also said some lawmakers need to get off social media so they can better collaborate with incoming Democrats to work across the aisle and improve people’s lives.
“Be nice to the new guys and ladies that were just elected. Get to know them a little bit, and then when you need their vote or their cooperation on a matter you've already built up a measure of trust,” he said. “You certainly don't earn the cooperation if you spend most of your time on social media casting aspersions at people on the other side.”
Congress was back in Washington D.C. Monday for a lame duck session following election day.
Contact Government Reporter Benjamin Thorp at bthorp@wfyi.org
