The atmosphere in the White House is “challenging” despite the Democrats’ gains

A White House official confirmed that the atmosphere in the US presidential headquarters is characterized by "challenging", despite the Democrats achieving early victories on Tuesday in the midterm elections, in a result that represents a blow to President Donald Trump.

The American official said, according to the American Press Agency: “The atmosphere in the White House is challenging,” indicating that Trump will stop the “extremist left,” regardless of the results, and warned, “Prepare for what is coming.”

On Tuesday, US President Donald Trump launched an attack on the conservative Fox News channel, in light of his mounting frustration with the start of the results of the midterm elections, which he is following from the White House.

Trump posted three angry messages on his platform, “Truth Social,” in which he held the channel responsible for the decline in viewership, attributing this to what he described as its weak loyalty to him.

Trump said in one of his messages: “Fox is witnessing a significant decline, not because of me, but because it stands against me!”

In another post, he described one of the channel’s program presenters as “very stupid,” while in a third post he attacked an election poll conducted by the channel, describing it as “the worst.”

He also wrote: “Fox’s viewership ratings are declining sharply (27%) because it spends too much time covering Democrats who are obsessed with Trump!”

The midterm elections are of crucial importance for the remainder of Trump's second presidential term, as Republicans face the possibility of losing their majority in Congress to Democrats, which could lead to restricting the president's powers.

Trump's statements came shortly before he hosted an evening to follow up on the election results, in the presence of members of his government and officials in his administration, in the East Hall of the White House.

A White House official told Agence France-Presse: “The president did everything he could on the ground and did whatever was necessary,” stressing that the Republicans are now “in a better position than they were four weeks ago.”

Trump had organized almost daily election rallies during the month leading up to the elections, calling on Republicans to “act as if his name was on the ballot,” despite his approval ratings falling to record low levels.

But opinion polls indicate that Democrats have a good chance of regaining control of the House of Representatives, and perhaps the Senate as well, in light of voters’ dissatisfaction with the high costs of living and the war on Iran.

Trump hinted, in a phone interview with CBS on Tuesday, that he would become “Mr. Veto,” pledging to block any legislation put forward by the Democrats if they won the majority.

US federal authorities have brought charges against a man from Oklahoma City, after he sent hundreds of emails containing white powder, and containing warnings about treason, to government officials, ahead of the 2024 and 2026 elections.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation explained, in a judicial document revealed on Tuesday, that initial tests showed that the powdered substance was not dangerous, as it turned out to be flour or yeast, noting at the same time that tests had not yet been completed on all the seized letters.

The accused, Robin Martin (67 years old), faces two charges: “fabricating a false report and causing panic,” and “sending threats by mail.”

The authorities arrested him on Monday, and he appeared on Tuesday before the federal court in Oklahoma, before the court decided to detain him pending a hearing to consider his detention scheduled for next week.

For its part, the office of the federal defense attorney in charge of defending Martin announced that it would refrain from commenting on the accusations, and his daughter, Ava Martin, also refused to make any statement, according to the Associated Press (AP).