Jack Royer

One of the things the data analysts on our side obsessed over was "composition"—whether the electorate looked close enough to 2024 for Republicans to win. And despite polls that showed a Democrat blowout, the data kept on telling us the same story: in some states turnout was merely OK, in other states it was downright amazing, and in no state was it catastrophic. There was a genuine sense of optimism on our team: our people were showing up. So, I asked the smartest data guy I know, does that mean we're going to shock the world? "No," he told me. "We might do better than the polls suggest. But the data is telling us that a lot of Trump/Vance 2024 voters are pissed and planning to vote for the other guys. Our voters are turning out, but they may not vote for us." Well, that looks prophetic now. Our voters did show up. In Florida, for example, the electorate was 9 points more Republican than Democrat, just a couple points worse than 2024. Undoubtedly there were places we could have done better on turnout. But the main problem is not turnout. The main problem is that many people who voted for Trump/Vance in 2024 voted for Democrats in 2026. There will be a lot of infighting and arguing over what happened and why that is. One of the pollsters I really respect told me that our economic messaging wasn’t sharp enough down the stretch. I’m sure that’s true. But the real reason we lost is obvious to almost everyone. Another pollster—one of the smartest people I know in politics, told me yesterday we’d lose the generic ballot by 13 points. I felt negative going into Tuesday, but even I was shocked by this. In his polling, he saw that a lot of Trump 2024 voters were angry and planning to vote for Democrats. He asked those voters who had abandoned us what would cause them to come back on our team. The top four answers, accounting for nearly all of the responses were: 1) End the war 2) Focus on cost of living/inflation 3) Put America First 4) Change our relationship to Israel Our voters showed up. And the above four reasons are why many of them voted for Democrats. This is according to a pollster who nailed the results. While many spent Monday attacking Rachel Campos Duffy for calling for a diplomatic resolution to the conflict, it turns out her political advice was sound. (She’s also a great person.) In the next few months, there's going to be a lot of gaslighting. Expect to hear any number of establishment politicians say the solution to our woes is amnesty. I'm open to the idea that we should change enforcement—by focusing more on businesses that hire illegal labor, for instance. But anyone pushing amnesty is lying to you. The reason we lost is the war. The president himself said so last night. If you'd like to argue it was worth it, that losing the Senate for the next 6 years was worth it, then do so. Argue it was a worthwhile cost to pay. Agree or disagree, that's at least honest. But everyone knows why we lost. And any honest conversation about where we go from here must start there. I remain hopeful about our country. To the people who are pissed off and want to say, “I told you so”: you’re right, you did tell us so. Take that energy into electing Republicans who share your worldview. To the people who are just pissed at the results, you should be. Let’s take that anger and get back to the work of saving our country.

Florida Turnout | Noon ET Election Day: 1,060,058 (R+24.8) 🔴 536,985 🔵 274,613 ⚪ 248,460 AB/EV: 5,473,475 (R+2.3) 🔴 2,197,354 🔵 2,068,859 ⚪ 1,207,262 Total: 6,533,533 (R+6.0) 🔴 2,734,339 🔵 2,343,472 ⚪ 1,455,722

Awesome to see @JackRoyer still owning the anchor desk on @fox35orlando in central Florida! #BuiltByBama 🐘#GrindDaily 📺

FLORIDA FRONT! The first actual cool front of the season is coming for this weekend. Temperatures will run 5-15 degrees below average, and humidity 50% or more below average. Dew points will fall quite a bit Saturday and Sunday and it will be very noticeable and more comfortable.

It is with profound sadness that the City of Tuscaloosa shares the passing of City Council President Kip Tyner on Friday, September 18 at age 70. First elected as the District 5 City Councilor in 1997, Councilor Tyner devoted seven consecutive terms to serving the people of Tuscaloosa, including two terms as Council President. Councilor Tyner’s love for the Alberta community guided a lifetime of service. This dedication helped bring to life transformational projects including the Tuscaloosa Tennis Center, major enhancements through the University Boulevard East Improvements Project and the recruitment of SWJ Technology. A steadfast advocate for animal welfare, Councilor Tyner also served with care and commitment as Chair of the Tuscaloosa Metro Animal Shelter Advisory Committee. Mayor Walt Maddox has ordered City flags to be lowered to half‑staff in his honor. Memorial arrangements will be shared soon.

Rest in peace Eliana Moreno & George Marciniw ❤️#NBC #helicopter

Coach Swinney is ready for fall camp 😤

Trump speaking in The Villages: "I don't happen to be a senior. I'm much younger than you. I'm a much younger man than you. Look at you old guys. Wouldn't you like to by my age? Young, vital, vibrant."

Update: not guilty on all charges.

CENTCOM Update TAMPA, Fla. – As of 9:30 am ET, March 1, three U.S. service members have been killed in action and five are seriously wounded as part of Operation Epic Fury. Several others sustained minor shrapnel injuries and concussions — and are in the process of being returned to duty. Major combat operations continue and our response effort is ongoing. The situation is fluid, so out of respect for the families, we will withhold additional information, including the identities of our fallen warriors, until 24 hours after next of kin have been notified.

Great Mr President. Good job. You’re a billionaire and the American people, not the Iranian people, who voted for you are not billionaires. As a matter of fact many of them are flat out broke, in all time high credit card debt, can’t afford health insurance or car insurance for that matter, and most young people can’t afford to buy a house or even their rent payment. Your generation, the baby boomers, your families were able to thrive on single incomes and now that’s practically impossible for the vast majority of American families. Let alone, imagine being a single mother. Most of your baby boomer friends and supporters, I’m sure are cheering you the most. But us younger generations, Gen X (mine), Millennials, and especially Gen Z hate this fucking bullshit. Because we all know that in 10 years when the baby boomers that have been in charge of ALL of America’s disastrous decisions are retired or passed away, us younger generations will be left with no social security checks because it will have gone bankrupt, over $50 Trillion in debt, and a dollar that won’t be worth shit. We, as in YOU and me, campaigned on America First. And this is NOT it.

To anyone still gullible enough to fall for scummy media hoaxes: Trump said warmongering neocons love sending your kids to die for wars they would never fight themselves. Liz Cheney is Kamala’s top advisor. Liz wants to invade the whole Middle East. Kamala = WWIII. Trump = Peace.