☀️ AM: THE HOUSE REPUBLICAN PANIC HAS SET IN Inside the House Republican Conference, there’s panic, anger and resignation. The political environment is “certainly toxic for Republicans,” said Rep. Dave Joyce (R-Ohio), a 13-year veteran of Congress. Voters “were promised things in ‘24, and none of those things are really coming to fruition,” Joyce added. “My thing has always been, just be truthful with folks. Don’t go out there and tell them that it’s rosier than what it is.” Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.), locked in one of the toughest races in the country, is puzzled by one dynamic: why did his leadership pretend this election would be good for Republicans when history says otherwise? “It’s an historical precedent that is rarely defied,” Fitzpatrick said of losing the majority in the midterms. “Moreover, a second midterm is historically more challenging than the first … Look at when history has been defied. After 9/11 — a major, major event that completely changed our country. In order to buck history, there has to be a reason history is bucked. Those factors are not present.”