Curtis Says GOP Abandoned Conservative Principles Before Midterm Losses
Curtis blamed Republicans’ midterm losses on a decade-long drift from principles he said once defined the party. In a newsletter post and a message on X, the Utah senator called on Republicans to return to conservative values after Democrats won control of the House and Senate.
Curtis cited limited government, fiscal responsibility, free trade and diplomacy as principles he associated with the party’s past. He said voters had sought an economy that worked for them after the Biden administration, but instead faced a quickly assembled conflict that rattled oil markets, scandals, unpredictable tariffs and public debt exceeding $40 trillion.
He also faulted President Donald Trump for aligning with Russia’s leader, Vladimir Putin, against Ukraine, which Curtis described as a strategic ally. Curtis said populism had brought millions of people into the Republican Party, including voters who felt overlooked by Washington, but argued that winning elections should have enabled Republicans to govern according to their principles.
Curtis said Republican lawmakers who lost their races deserved better than to be caught up in the party’s broader failures. He warned against blaming the media, polls or voters, urging Republicans to examine their own choices and speak with the people they represent. He said many lawmakers still wanted to work in good faith.
Curtis Says GOP’s Trump-Era Choices Cost It the Midterms
Republicans lost control of both chambers, and Sen. John Curtis’s diagnosis cuts to the party’s choices: it abandoned the principles it once invoked while asking voters to trust its leadership. In a newsletter and on X, the Utah Republican urged his party to return to its conservative values.
Curtis said voters wanted an economy that worked for them after the Biden administration. Instead, he said, they got a quickly assembled conflict that rattled oil markets, unpredictable tariffs, a string of scandals and public debt above $40 trillion. He also faulted President Donald Trump for aligning with Russia’s leader, Vladimir Putin, against Ukraine, a strategic ally.
Curtis argued that the party’s populist expansion brought in millions of people who felt forgotten by Washington, but that political victories were supposed to lead to principled governing—not replace it. He warned that blaming voters, polls or the media would evade responsibility for the defeats.
His message is a rebuke to a party that, in his view, sacrificed fiscal restraint, diplomacy and integrity in pursuit of electoral wins. Curtis urged Republicans to look inward and reconnect with the people they represent.
Curtis Urges GOP to Rebuild Around Conservative Principles
Republicans’ midterm defeats are a warning that the party cannot win lasting support by chasing elections while neglecting the principles it was elected to uphold. Sen. John Curtis of Utah called for a return to conservative values after Democrats took control of the House and Senate.
Curtis pointed to limited government, free trade, fiscal responsibility and strong diplomacy as hallmarks of the party’s past. He said Americans wanted an economy that worked after the Biden years, but faced a quickly assembled conflict that rattled oil markets, unpredictable tariffs, scandals and a national debt above $40 trillion. He also criticized President Donald Trump’s stance toward Russian President Vladimir Putin over Ukraine.
Curtis welcomed the millions of voters brought into the party by the populist movement, saying they deserved more than political promises. But he argued that winning elections was meant to give Republicans the chance to govern by conservative principles, not to become an end in itself.
The senator said Republicans should not blame the media, polls or voters for the losses. His call is for the party to take responsibility, return to fiscal discipline and principled leadership, and listen directly to the people it represents.
Reported by Deseret News, Breitbart.
