by: Liam Edgar
Republicans in congressional elections pulled the shocker of the season.
GOP candidates ousted at least 10 Democratic incumbents and, in resisting a supposed blue wave, whittled Democratic Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s majority down to four.
One GOP candidate responsible for that was Rep.-elect Byron Donalds in Florida’s 19th Congressional District, which includes Naples and Fort Myers. Donalds kept the seat previously held by GOP Rep. Francis Rooney, who opted to not run for re-election.
In mid-November, Donalds, who is black, said President Donald Trump’s “swagger” helped Republicans prevail in down-ballot elections and drew in black voters, especially men. He also said he was headed to Washington to battle the influence of The Squad, the team of radical Democrats led by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
On Monday, Donalds appeared on “Fox & Friends” to discuss how he will be part of the GOP’s new “Freedom Force” within Congress.
Donalds predicted The Squad’s influence would dissipate in the new Congress, even though its ranks reportedly will grow with more progressives elected in November.
“Their policies have failed,” he said. “If you were going to try socialism in America, you had your chance in COVID-19, and look at what we’ve seen.
“We’ve seen business owners not be able to operate. We’ve seen governors act with impunity. We’ve seen voters actually go against candidates who are trying to defund the police. We’ve seen a situation where Republicans have won more seats in state legislatures and in Congress.”
“And so even though they might have more members of their Squad or Justice Democrats or whatever you want to call it, their power is going to be diminished because the American people don’t want what they’re selling.”
Instead, he added, “People want freedom. They want opportunity. They want a stable rule of law. They want a growing economy. That’s what I support, that’s what members of the Freedom Force support, and frankly that’s what the Republican Party supports.”
Donalds said the Freedom Force would counteract progressives in Congress by advocating a conservative agenda, driven by promoting lower taxes and less regulation.
“If you look at what President Trump did over the last four years, what he’s done is lower taxes, he lowered regulation – he allowed people to actually operate in commerce. He allowed businesses to thrive and flourish,” Donalds said.
“We want to support our Constitution,” he continued. “We want to make sure we uphold it. We don’t want to grow the federal government any more than it already is. It’s too big already. It needs to shrink so people can thrive.”
“It’s pushing forward that kind of an agenda,” he added, “that’s how you battle the left, that’s how you battle The Squad.”
While GOP newcomers like Donalds, Kat Cammack of Gainesville and Scott Franklin of Lakeland kept Republican-held seats in GOP hands, candidates like Carlos Gimenez and Maria Elvira Salazar, both from South Florida, helped shrink Pelosi’s majority by defeating incumbent Democrats.