on trump. trump has done what he could for the past four years. he's good for the past four years. still he provides for the country. and he thinks about his country. they want to do something real good, how about the house and senate take the first checks they get the first month and donate to that two people in lines trying to get food to provide for the families. if they want to be somebody. host: the house will be gaveling in today later today. they will take up the veto override the national defense authorization bill and also in $2000 check to americans in response to the pandemic. "washington journal" continues. host: adam good men joins us --

aboutn joins us to talk the republican party in a post-trump washington. you predicted president trump would win this past election, why do you think you lost? the tale of the tape in the selection was actually how well republicans did against all expectations. they made a gain of at least half a dozen seats in the united states house where they were expected to lose seats. they will at least be in a tie or maintaine control after the elections in georgia. they made dramatic gains among hispanics, especially hispanic women. , trumps numbers among african-americans were double or triple what they were in 2016 in certain parts of the country.

any women are said to serve 96 congress, or publican women than at any time in history. so against all expectations in the middle of a pandemic, with all the media predicting doom and gloom, the president of the united states just barely apparently lost the selection. yet looking ahead, think about what is ahead. havesentially conservative/republican, we have a good foothold in the united states supreme court, historically the midterm election since world war ii there's been a change of up to -- from the out party to the party which means republicans are in good shape to retake the house in 22 and if they don't hold the majority in the senate, they fall back into a tie if they had bad fortune georgia. they are still in much better position to increase their margins in the senate and maybe

into 2023 with the united states house, the u.s. senate, a very favorable supreme court all giving them tailwinds as they move in to what will be another incredible experience and democracy called the presidential election. host: how did president trump change their publican party? guest: -- the republican party? guest: i remember writing in 2016 he -- they came in as a party of one. they were transforming -- they were transformational figures that decided they would play it a different way. they would go directly to the public as opposed to going through the filter of media, powerbrokers, special interest groups. they decided they would take it to the people. that was a fundamental transformational change in the politics of america continues to this day. how has he changed it, obviously

i think twitter is very happy having seen how much he popularized that social media. has certainly engaged in a conversation about doing things differently. foreign policy which has been relatively unchanged for a half-century has been dramatically changed and i think the fruits of those changes will be seen as we move downstream as we start alliances now with israel's -- israel and some of its arab neighbors. it speaks to some of the transcendent gains he has had. i think ultimately the willingness to stand up toto with china -- toe to toe with china who is been taking america's economic lunch for years was an important first step in trying to ensure free and fair trade across the world and to make sure there isn't the

growth of chinese power as we start moving ahead. in of those will be seen history is dramatically important a compliments of this president. host: what advice would you give to republicans running in the of theabout what parts president strategy or philosophy they should ignore in order to win? guest: the president of the united states had to go up against something you and i have never had to confront in our lifetime which was a pandemic. about what really costs donald trump reelection it was covid. that was a difficult thing for anyone to anticipate, much less handle. in terms of the advice moving forward that i or the president or others would get, it is to be direct. be real, be genuine, the authentic.

america, if nothing else in this last election, which is a real sign not only to republicans but to all americans been america's -- americans voted for moderation. see what has transpired over the last couple of weeks in the u.s. senate in particular over the stimulus package were a group of centrists, some on the and those on the right have started to drive not just the conversation, but policy. i think americans want to move forward, they want to get things done. i think you may be that ultimately will be the legacy of the selection and hopefully will be a sign not just to republicans, but anyone seeking to lead america forward in the realm of public service. strategist asican well who worked for marco rubio

in 2016 wrote in politico i think the take away from the selection is -- this election is whoever wins the suburbs will win the white house for the foreseeable future. inonsistent winning message the suburbs, that the challenges for republicans over the next few years. do you agree and if so, why? guest: i agree to a large extent. where is this swing, the swing vote in america, if we talk about it geographically you're talking about the suburbs. it is driven by one word, the economy. it's two words. and how well it's doing. the pandemic had a tremendous impact on america's economy. i think that was seen in some of the voting that happened in american suburbs. there is something else,

american cities. they say cities are democrats. i think they -- there are opportunities there for the cities not just from the left and the democratic side, but in withng forward and agenda the economy of america that those cities will start to vote that way and understand they have a choice in going one way or the other as opposed to moving in lockstep or by habit or inertia on the political spectrum and voting and supporting democrats and those on the left. host: talking about the republican party and the impact of president trump on it with adam goodman. if you're a republican, a dial in at 202-748-8001, democrats 202-748-8000. an independents 202-748-8002.

you can text us with your first name, city, and state. you wrote in the "new york daily " this. explain. guest: we live in a cancel culture where everyone is afraid of saying anything is not -- for fear of being not just criticized but ostracized. haveo-cortez and others called for blacklisting anyone and everyone who ever served with president trump. theink you are dividing country and trying to command to unite. i take offense to that. this is guilt by association. you may like the president. you may not like the president at all. he was president of the united states. to say that anyone who decided

to serve their country in a trump administration should somehow not only apologize for that but be permanently ostracized from anything of any significance moving forward i think is the very reason we have instability in this country, we have political division in this country, and we are where we are as opposed to where we should be. host: next caller, democratic caller. i have never heard anyone answer this question. he is a stable genius. is not even half of what you asked. thank you. host: adam goodman? guest: i am trying to be as

direct and open as i can with your viewers. i appreciate the call. caller and a lot of people like that feel great distress and distrust that if someone goes on your show or any show and they have any kind of abel, i am categorized as media consultant and republican, that somehow that discolors anything that person will offer or share. you talk about the biggest problem in america, that is it. i hope not to feed into that but to fight it. host: oklahoma, independent. caller: good morning. thank you for c-span. i wanted to know if you had heard the tape secretly made of and howt trump's sister that affects your opinion of president trump.

guest: thank you for the question. i did not personally hear that recording. i think there have been a lot of stories. some true, some half true, some completely not true about the president, his personality, his behavior. there are things the president has done, as with any human being, that i do not support or favor. i think that may have been one of those moments. but i look at the totality of what a person is about. you may say, what value did she or he bring to life? i look at the full resume. based on the resume of service president trump has brought to america over the last four years, i think his time in the white house has been very productive. need a, oklahoma, independent. i am sorry. we just talked to you. let's go to mike, democratic

caller. caller: good morning. thank you for taking my call. had an awfulump future ofe in the republicans will not be good --. concerned. refusing toump accept the election results is very disappointing. crisis, he is-19 concerned with himself and his family. it is unbelievable how the american people can trust republican politicians in this shameful situation. thank you. guest: thank you for the observation and question, the implied question. i really believe we are at a

place right now where we are so distrustful, not just of people , the pew center puts out annual ratings, not only is congress on the bottom of the pile but so are the people who serve us there. but it is also the lack of trust amongst ourselves. we don't trust each other. wheretalk about elections a lot has been written and made thehe results of 2020, cannot after election day, the count after election day. we went into 2020 distrusting the entire process. in 2016, 42% of democrats said they did not believe in the final result in the campaign for president between hillary clinton and donald trump.

they never accepted that as valid. 2020,orward to republicans by over 60% have trouble believing that is the final number. if we have distrust like that in the most fundamental pillar of democracy, which is the power of the vote, the integrity of the vote, if we start questioning that, i'm concerned about anyone's ability to have public in office who serves moving forward because they with one handed behind their back and the other soon to be manacled as well. host: rebecca, republican, good morning. caller: i want to let the republican party know i have been voting since i was 18. i am 65 now. i'm thinking about changing over to democrat.

i am disgusted with this last legislation. i don't care about the american people anymore. i wish the republicans would get on board and do like the democrats. go ahead and sign the bill for these people barely making it. thank you. host: adam goodman? guest: thank you for that question. host: what do you think the follow-up is over the president saying he would not sign this economic aid and government funding bill, and now, last night doing so? guest: i don't think there will be fallout. what the president was protesting in the package is he did not feel americans were getting enough direct assistance. yieldackage was going to $600 checks to americans waiting six months for help.

the president wanted a minimum of $2000 checks. also in this package, there was a push to have major financial donations, funding rather, given american cities and to try to forst liability protection small businesses trying to keep their doors open. there were many things in the package worthy of debate, but long past time we give relief to .ndividual americans struggling that is where the president was coming down on the stimulus package. beingtely, this package passed will help across all fronts. but we still have a ways to go to get all americans back on

their feet and moving forward again. host: louisiana, democratic caller. hi, reggie. caller: good morning, c-span. thank you. host: go ahead with your question or comment. caller: mr. goodman, i would like to make two points and raise two questions. you said the economy