Blue wave sweeps across America: 'In 1974, we had Watergate babies, now we have Iran War babies'

Well, I'm joined here on set now by geopolitical analyst Hind Ziaan. Good to have you with us, Hind. And also, it's nice to have you with us, Philip Terrell. Hind, I'm going to start with you. You came on set with us for the first perspective of the season, beginning of September. I remember very much you saying, I double checked because I watched it back yesterday. At the start, you said you thought Donald Trump's strategy of saying to voters to pretend it was his name on the ballot could well backfire. I assume you stand by that now. Absolutely. And I think they actually listened to the president. He said, pretend I'm on the ballot. And they did. And the thing is, it backfired because a lot of people are unhappy with the president, are also unhappy with his policies. And I think this is pretty much the reckoning that we've been talking about for weeks now. In the Republican Party, in the Democratic Party, everybody was like, something is coming up. Something is going to happen. Because when we looked at data in some... Counties and some states that lean red, ruby red. Can you imagine that today we're not able to call quickly Mississippi, Mississippi, Georgia, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Texas? This year is a historic year for Democrats, but also for Republicans. And I think in many ways what we're seeing is actually the birth. Of the Iran war babies in 1974. We had the Watergate babies. Now we have the Iran war babies. These are the elected officials who came in power because the public is fed up with this war and fed up with the high prices. So this is a terrible reckoning for Republicans. And I think this is going to be really food for thought for a lot of Republicans starting today. Yeah, just looking at the latest figures, in fact, 96% of the votes counted in Mississippi and they're still at a complete dead heat, 48.9 for both of them. Yeah, it's very close. Mississippi is red ruby. The Democrats may actually flip eight seats in the Senate, which would be even more incredible, wouldn't it? From what Hind was saying there, Philip, I mean, the next thing, of course, is going to be how Donald Trump reacts to all of this now. I mean, he's already come out and said if it had been his name on the ballot, he would have. One in a tsunami, hasn't he? I think there must be many people in the United States today who are, I think, relieved about the Democrats winning such huge amounts of so many seats and also wondering when Donald Trump is going to actually take a look in the mirror because he's been... Very quick to hand out blame to everybody apart from himself. He's been blaming some of the GOP, the Republican candidates, for not being up to standard. He's been blaming the media. He's been blaming his advisers. Everybody else is guilty about the fact that these elections have not gone as well as he was hoping. But he's also been saying that he would be willing to work with Democrats. He's also said something else which is quite curious, He said several Democrats have already reached out to him about working together, although he has not given the names of any of those Democrats and no one's come forward to say they have contacted President Trump to say they would like to work with him from now onwards. But I think there's one question that everybody is unsure about right now, and that is, will Donald Trump accept this result? Will he then say, okay. I lost. The Republicans have lost. It didn't work out. We will just move on together. Or will he do what he did or what he's done in the past? And that is gradually turn against this result and say, well, this was all a rigged election and I did win it. But of course, it was taken away from me. And that will start another huge problem for people in the United States where you have a president who won't accept the results of an election. So we don't know. President Trump for the moment saying he would accept the result of this election. I think the most important thing here is that if this had been a very close call with the Republicans and the Democrats almost neck and neck in many states around the U.S., this would have given more of an argument to Donald Trump to contest some of those results. Because there are so many states that have flipped from being Republican. To Democrat, this is going to make it much harder for Donald Trump to contest those elections all the way around the United States and say in every state there was something wrong. I should have won. I have won. But of course, this is this is a fake election. It's going to be very hard for him to do that. So I think that the question facing Donald Trump now is, do I accept the result and just move on the best I can? Or do I try to contest the results in some states, which, of course, is something that he is totally capable of doing? It's going to be very difficult for the Democrats and for the Republicans now, isn't it, to work out how they're going to govern over the next two years. I mean, there are two issues, I suppose. What happens in the next two years and then what happens as we head towards the presidentials? Yeah, absolutely. And I think the results actually set up the tone for 2028 that we're talking about Texas being a purple state for 2028, maybe about Florida being a purple state for 2028. This is massive. And I think if you had told somebody this thing like a few months ago, they would have laughed because it was just, of course, Texas is red. Of course, Florida is red. But yes, I do not believe even if this is a tsunami, this is like I do not believe that this is like a full mandate for Democrats. I don't think voters are saying we love Democrats. We think the Democratic brand is great. I think this is actually a rejection, a sheer rejection of the president's policies of the Iran war that has had a terrible economic impact on many communities, including in states that are Republican and states that have voted for the president and that support the president. So the Iran war, the tariffs. And so I think. I think Democrats now have to perform well, because otherwise, those that flipped this cycle are going to flip back. They've got to work out where they are, haven't they? They've got to work out whether they're a progressive party or whether they're more towards the center. And they absolutely do. That's the crazy thing about this election is that actually midterms are often like that. Midterms are often very consequential elections. People think that presidential elections are the only important election, but midterms are very important. 1934 determined the future of the Democratic Party as a liberal party. Liberal New Deal, 2010-2014 made Trump possible and made MAGA movement as a political force possible. 2018 made the progressive movement as a political force possible. So I think 2026 is actually the year that we see more progressives winning and the question of the future of the party. Is the party still liberal in the middle, in the center, or is it to the left and progressive? And that's a legitimate question when you have people that are winning, for example, Thank you. When you have progressives that are winning all over the country, that's a real question. So I think that this is a reckoning for both parties, and it's also a lesson for Democrats. And hey, be careful. Make sure you don't mess things up. Make sure the economy is good. Make sure you do your best. And I think at the end of the day, that's what the president also said. They are going to have to work together to make sure that actually voters are happy and And the economy is better and they can put an end to this war that has. How do the Democrats do that then, Philip, assuming what Hind is saying is right there? They've got to turn, haven't they, the American people to wanting to vote for the Democrats rather than just wanting to vote against Donald Trump. Well, I think the best way to sum it up is that they're not voting for the Democrats because they love the Democrats. They're voting for the Democrats because they don't like Donald Trump. And the big problem for the Democrats is that they picked up loads of swing voters around the country. And those swing voters, they could also swing back again if they're dissatisfied with the way that the Democrats are running things between now and the next presidential elections. So they have a lot to do between now and then to secure this win that they've had today and make sure it is a win that resonates in the long term. And I think you're absolutely right that they have a choice to make between. whether they're going to stay in the center or whether they're going to move more towards a progressive uh left-wing agenda to give you the example of uh um Muhammad Al-Sayed um in uh uh and his win and then also James Talarico and here's when you have two fundamentally different points of view about the way the Democrats should move forward. Are they going to be able to come together? Are they going to be able to work together? Thank you very much. Will, for example, the left-wing move more towards Thank Bernie Sanders and the way that he stands and his outlook on the Democrats or will they stay more towards the centre because they know they can pick up more votes if they stay in the centre. So I think that's going to be the major challenge facing the Democrats in the next few months as they try to take control of the situation you. and profit from this huge election win they've had today. Just really, really briefly, Hind, 30 seconds. Can the Republicans recover? I think if they are rational, pragmatic, they can. But the problem, and I think a lot of Republicans have lost, including in Texas, in red ruby states, because they lost their independence. They think it's more important to please the president than to please voters. And this is going to be extremely costly because if you have Republicans who are only following the president, even when he makes mistakes, then I don't think they will recover. Good to have you both with us. Hinze, a geopolitical analyst, and Philip Taylor, international affairs editor of France 24.