Washington, Nov 5 (EFE). - U.S. President Donald Trump acknowledged Wednesday that Republicans have 'learned a lot' following the Democratic victories in Tuesday's state and local elections, a defeat he attributed to the government shutdown, which has already become the longest in the country's history. 'Last night, as you know, a victory was not expected. In fact, I don't think it was good for anyone,' he said at a meeting with senators of his party at the White House. Trump referred to the races for governor of Virginia and New Jersey, where Democrats Abigail Spanberger and Mikie Sherrill won by a wide margin; and the historic victory of Zohran Mamdani, who became the first Muslim and the youngest person ever elected mayor of New York. This is in addition to the overwhelming support for the Democratic proposal to redraw California's electoral map in search of more legislative seats for the blue party, a measure that seeks to counter similar initiatives in states dominated by Republicans, who want to give an advantage to their party. These Democratic victories took place despite Trump's persistent calls not to cede the ground he won from his opponents in last year's presidential and legislative elections, when he was re-elected to the presidency. The president, who had already acknowledged the Republican defeat the day before by insisting his name was not on the ballot, said he would analyze with his colleagues what 'the night represented, what they should do about it, and also about the government shutdown and its relation to what happened.' 'I think if you look at the polls, the government shutdown was a very important negative factor for Republicans, and they say that the fact that I was not on the ballot was the most decisive factor,' reiterated Trump, who once again blamed the Democrats for the federal paralysis. Trump called the opposition 'kamikazes' and stated that, although 'it is totally their fault,' he does not believe they 'are being blamed as they deserve.' 'This is officially the longest shutdown in U.S. history. The radical Democrats in the Senate have shown no interest in reopening the government, and I don't think they will act soon,' he said about the paralysis, which today marks 36 days with no signs of agreement in the Senate. The Republican majority in the upper chamber needs at least seven votes from the opposition to pass a proposal that would temporarily fund the government as negotiations continue. Democrats, for their part, make the extension of subsidies for the Obamacare health program a condition for offering their support for new funds that would end the federal shutdown, which threatens to cause severe air traffic disruptions due to a lack of staff and worsen the lack of funding for key social programs.
