--- title: "The GOP Establishment FAILURE That Led to Midterm Wipeout transcript | Megyn Kelly | Reclip.Me" description: "Full transcript of \"The GOP Establishment FAILURE That Led…\" from Megyn Kelly, November 5, 2026. 10 min, 2,032 words, timestamped. 8 notable quotes and 25…" canonical: https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript --- Transcript # The GOP Establishment FAILURE That Led to Midterm Wipeout From [Megyn Kelly](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly) · [Episode page](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout) · [Watch on YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fT4xYdsMnus) November 5, 2026 · 10 min · 2,032 words · 19 timestamped sections This is the full, timestamped transcript of "The GOP Establishment FAILURE That Led to Midterm Wipeout", an episode of Megyn Kelly published November 5, 2026 (10 min, about 2,032 words). It mentions 25 people, works and ideas, including Republican Party, Donald Trump, Megan Kelly, Iran war (2026), 2026 Midterm Elections. ## What this episode is about The piece argues that a Republican establishment collapse led to a sweeping midterm loss, framing it as a bipartisan punishment election driven by disillusionment with Trump-era policies, poor economic messaging, and perceived missteps in national leadership. It highlights widespread voter anger across states like Texas, Kansas, Iowa, and South Carolina as the core cause of the GOP wipeout. ## Key takeaways - Voters punished GOP for Trump-era misfires while coalescing around bread-and-butter concerns, not identity wars. - Texas flipping blue punctured the red-state myth; demographics plus turnout reshaped federal mirrors across battlegrounds. - The 'studs' metaphor nails it: teardown is prerequisite to rebuilding—without honest reckoning, echoes of disaster persist. - Polls aside, the midterm mood hinged on price pressures and perceived competence, not slogans or theater. - Fragmented messaging hurt: focus shifted from real policy gains (deportations, border control) to spectacle and feints. ## Who speaks in this episode? - [Jesse](https://reclip.me/speaker/jesse) (Guest) · 7 min speaking - [Megyn Kelly](https://reclip.me/speaker/megyn-kelly) (Guest) · 3 min speaking ## What is discussed, and when 1. [0:00](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=0) – 3:00: [Republican Party](https://reclip.me/concept/republican-party), [Democrats](https://reclip.me/company/democrats), [Donald Trump](https://reclip.me/person/donald-trump-8), [Megan Kelly](https://reclip.me/person/megan-kelly) 2. [3:00](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=180) – 6:00: [Republican Party](https://reclip.me/concept/republican-party), [Maria Salazar](https://reclip.me/person/maria-salazar), [Minneapolis](https://reclip.me/location/minneapolis), [Megan Kelly](https://reclip.me/person/megan-kelly) 3. [6:00](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=360) – 9:00: [Iran war (2026)](https://reclip.me/event/iran-war-2026), [Iran](https://reclip.me/location/iran), [Donald Trump](https://reclip.me/person/donald-trump-8), [J.D. Vance](https://reclip.me/person/j-d-vance) 4. [9:00](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=540) – 10:24: [Donald Trump](https://reclip.me/person/donald-trump-8), [Republican Party](https://reclip.me/concept/republican-party), [J.D. Vance](https://reclip.me/person/j-d-vance), [2028 Republican presidential nomination](https://reclip.me/event/2028-republican-presidential-nomination) ## Notable quotes from "The GOP Establishment FAILURE That Led to Midterm Wipeout" - > Democrats are not popular. Everyone still knows they're sick, evil, and insane, but they were very, very angry that the man they elected to lower prices instead raised them and… *about [Republican Party](https://reclip.me/concept/republican-party) · at [0:32](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=32)* - > We are making real progress and decides to just drop bombs on Iran because Lindsey Graham told him to. I don't know what to say, Megan. If I sound frustrated, it's because I am. *about [Iran](https://reclip.me/location/iran) · at [1:32](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=92)* - > What, we're about as torn down to the foundation as you could possibly be at this point in time. I think there's a chance it makes rebuilding the GOP into something that it has not been a lot better. *about [Megan Kelly](https://reclip.me/person/megan-kelly) · at [3:05](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=185)* - > Under Biden. They were on board with shutting down the border and so on. And then he just lost his way. He launched a new Middle East war which spiked prices in an economy that… *about [Lindsey Graham](https://reclip.me/person/lindsey-graham-3) · at [5:04](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=304)* - > Free silver. Text MK to the number 989898. That's MK to 989898 today. And so, what we have now instead of an honest accounting on the disastrous launch of the Iran war is the… *about [Iran war (2026)](https://reclip.me/event/iran-war-2026) · at [6:28](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=388)* - > He used J.D. Vance to negotiate it, but you see, this is their chance to hit Vance. They want him to bear the burden of their decision that they pressured Trump into making in launching the war. *about [J.D. Vance](https://reclip.me/person/j-d-vance) · at [7:17](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=437)* - > More than a decade, Megan. Donald Trump has been a leading voice in the Republican Party for more than a decade, no question about it. He's been the unquestioned leader of the Republican. *about [Donald Trump](https://reclip.me/person/donald-trump-8) · at [8:13](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=493)* - > Thanks for watching this clip. If you're new here, subscribe. We got a whole lot more goodness where that came from. *about [The Megyn Kelly Show](https://reclip.me/media/the-megyn-kelly-show) · at [9:53](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=593)* ## Who and what is mentioned in this episode? ### People - [Donald Trump](https://reclip.me/person/donald-trump-8) — Person · Referenced political leader · 5 mentions · first at [0:22](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=22) Central figure whose decisions (war with Iran, economic messaging) are argued to have led to GOP losses and intra-party succession dynamics - [Megan Kelly](https://reclip.me/person/megan-kelly) — Person · Host · 3 mentions · first at [0:00](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=0) Interviewer and host of the episode guiding the conversation about GOP failures and strategy - [Jesse Kelly](https://reclip.me/person/jesse-kelly) — Person · Main guest · 1 mention · first at [0:00](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=0) Guest commentator offering analysis of GOP midterm losses, causes, and intra-party succession fights Well, it's about as bad as you could possibly imagine. I do There are some good things that might come of it, but it's about as bad as you could possibly imagine. It's to get wiped out in places like Kansas, Iowa, Texas, South. - [J.D. Vance](https://reclip.me/person/j-d-vance) — Person · Referenced political actor / scapegoat in discussion · 3 mentions · first at [7:17](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=437) Mentioned as the person who negotiated the ceasefire memorandum and as a focal point in intra-party fights over responsibility - [Lindsey Graham](https://reclip.me/person/lindsey-graham-3) — Person · Referenced Republican hawk · 1 mention · first at [1:38](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=98) Mentioned as someone who advised or pressured the president toward military action - [Maria Salazar](https://reclip.me/person/maria-salazar) — Person · Referenced former GOP lawmaker · 3 mentions · first at [2:40](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=160) Referenced in relation to an amnesty bill and as an example of 'bad Republicans' who lost or were cleaned out Blown off from state houses to the Senate to the house I'm not saying it's good. However, remember those 15 loser Republicans who sponsored that amnesty bill with Maria… - [Ari Fleischer](https://reclip.me/person/ari-fleischer) — Person · Referenced commentator · 1 mention · first at [7:00](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=420) Named as one of the establishment voices framing the post-midterm narrative (arguing ceasefire, not war, caused losses) Got us into this about why this happened. That across the board now, you're hearing from, all of the usual suspects. Ari Fleischer put it in writing on X, but he was by far not the only one talking about it. ### Companies & orgs - [Democrats](https://reclip.me/company/democrats) — Company · Opposition party referenced · 3 mentions · first at [0:30](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=30) Referenced as electoral opponents; mentioned as unpopular yet beneficiaries of Republican losses as voters punished GOP Democrats are not popular. Everyone still knows they're sick, evil, and insane, but they were very, very angry that the man they elected to lower prices instead raised them and… - [SiriusXM](https://reclip.me/company/siriusxm) — Company · Distribution partner · 3 mentions · first at [0:00](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=0) Platform where The Megyn Kelly Show also airs live, noted in episode context ### Concepts & topics - [Republican Party](https://reclip.me/concept/republican-party) — Concept · Core topic · 7 mentions · first at [0:24](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=24) Subject of critique: discussed as having been repudiated in midterms and needing rebuilding - [Trump administration](https://reclip.me/concept/trump-administration) — Concept · Contextual political actor · 1 mention · first at [0:22](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=22) Referenced as the governing authority whose decisions are under scrutiny for leading to GOP losses Imagine. It's to get wiped out in places like Kansas, Iowa, Texas, South Carolina. It's such an unbelievable repudiation on the Trump administration and Republicans in general.… ### Places & events - [Iran war (2026)](https://reclip.me/event/iran-war-2026) — Event · Core topic / Causal factor · 4 mentions · first at [1:32](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=92) Discussed as a major policy decision that spiked prices and angered voters, contributing to Republican electoral losses - [2026 Midterm Elections](https://reclip.me/event/2026-midterm-elections) — Event · Contextual event · 1 mention · first at [0:00](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=0) The electoral losses (midterms) are the primary event being analyzed as a repudiation of GOP leadership and policy choices Good things that might come of it, but it's about as bad as you could possibly imagine. It's to get wiped out in places like Kansas, Iowa, Texas, South Carolina. It's such an… - [Ceasefire agreement with Iran](https://reclip.me/event/ceasefire-agreement-with-iran) — Event · Key argument element · 6 mentions · first at [7:12](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=432) Raised as an alternative explanation by some for GOP losses; discussed here as being framed by establishment actors to shift blame Vance to say, Get this thing off my back. It's a monkey that I got to get rid of. And Vance came up with a paper-thin agreement called a memorandum of understanding with the… - [Iran](https://reclip.me/location/iran) — Place · Geopolitical actor · 4 mentions · first at [1:32](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=92) Party to the ceasefire/military conflict discussed as the foreign actor central to the war/ceasefire debate - [2028 Republican presidential nomination](https://reclip.me/event/2028-republican-presidential-nomination) — Event · Future contention topic · 2 mentions · first at [8:49](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=529) Framing device: current disputes cast as proxy battles for the 2028 Republican nomination That. About 99% of the political arguments you see from political people online now are simply a proxy war for the 2028 Republican nomination. They're a proxy war for that… - [Texas](https://reclip.me/location/texas) — Place · Electoral example/location · 1 mention · first at [0:51](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=51) Cited as one of the states where Republicans were swept out, used to demonstrate scale of losses The state Texas The state of Texas is now blue. I have so many Texas friends texting me saying what How did this I don't even know what to do now. - [Kansas](https://reclip.me/location/kansas) — Place · Electoral example/location · 2 mentions · first at [0:16](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=16) Named as one of the states where Republicans were wiped out in the midterms Good things that might come of it, but it's about as bad as you could possibly imagine. It's to get wiped out in places like Kansas, Iowa, Texas, South Carolina. It's such an… - [South Carolina](https://reclip.me/entity/111700) — Place · Electoral example/location · 1 mention · first at [0:16](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=16) Cited as another state where GOP suffered electoral defeats used to emphasize scale of losses Administration and Republicans in general. There's no other way to look at it. People can try to wash their hands of it, but this was a punishment election. All the polls show… - [Iowa](https://reclip.me/location/iowa) — Place · Electoral example/location · 1 mention · first at [0:19](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=19) Listed among states where Republicans suffered losses in the midterms Good things that might come of it, but it's about as bad as you could possibly imagine. It's to get wiped out in places like Kansas, Iowa, Texas, South Carolina. It's such an… - [Kennedy Center](https://reclip.me/location/kennedy-center) — Place · Referenced cultural institution · 2 mentions · first at [5:18](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=318) Mentioned as an example of the administration focusing on symbolic/elite issues rather than voters' everyday concerns Prices in an economy that was already suffering to some extent from tariffs and so on. He talked all about the ballroom and renaming the Kennedy Center and the reflecting pool… - [Minneapolis](https://reclip.me/location/minneapolis) — Place · Referenced locality · 2 mentions · first at [4:14](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=254) Mentioned regarding perceptions of excesses in deportation/enforcement actions (context of voter reception to policies) Maybe not the excesses that they saw in Minneapolis, but they were on board with getting rid of the illegals who came in under Biden. They were on board with shutting down the border and so on. And. - [Jersey Shore](https://reclip.me/location/jersey-shore) — Place · Personal anecdote setting · 1 mention · first at [4:14](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=254) Referenced by Megyn Kelly about her house experience (mold) as a metaphor for GOP needing to be taken down to the studs We did. It was our house in Jersey at the shore and it was a nightmare, but it was and I can walk you through offline exactly what you should do and you should handle it early as. ### Media & podcasts - [The Megyn Kelly Show](https://reclip.me/media/the-megyn-kelly-show) — Media · Program / Podcast · 4 mentions · first at [0:00](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=0) The program hosting the interview and conversation ### Sponsors - [Birch Gold](https://reclip.me/sponsor/birch-gold) — Sponsor · Sponsor · 2 mentions · first at [5:39](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=339) Episode sponsor; provided an ad read offering silver coins and IRA services Text MK to the number 989898 today and speak with a Birch Gold precious metals specialist. They will help you convert an existing IRA or 401K into an IRA in gold and silver, and then you will. ## Full transcript with timestamps [0:00](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=0) Jesse, welcome back. Haven't heard your take yet on Tuesday's results. What do you make of it? [0:06](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=6) Well, it's about as bad as you could possibly imagine. I do There are some good things that might come of it, but it's about as bad as you could possibly imagine. It's to get wiped out in places like Kansas, Iowa, Texas, South Carolina. It's such an unbelievable repudiation on on on the Trump administration and Republicans in general. There's no other way to look at it. People can try to wash their hands of it, but this was a punishment election. All the polls show that Democrats are not popular. Everyone still knows they're sick, evil, and insane, but they were very, very angry that the man they elected to lower prices instead raised them and then took gave speeches telling them that it's no big deal if they had to pay a little bit more. It's honestly one of the biggest political catastrophes of my lifetime. [0:51](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=51) The state Texas The state of Texas is now blue. I have I have so many Texas friends texting me saying what How did this I don't even know what to do now. It's It is such a catastrophic disaster, Megan, and I I'm not I'm not going to mince words on the whole thing. I can't I can't believe this happened. Two for two. Two for two on Trump's terms. His first term, he has everything going pretty well. Things are churning along. Listens to the wrong people and shuts down the country for a chest cold. Destroys the whole rest of his presidency. Allows Democrats to steal an election. Just destroys everything. [1:25](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=85) Um Term two. Okay, the tariffs were a little rough or whatever, but deportations are going great. He's done so many great things. We are making real progress and decides to just drop bombs on Iran because Lindsey Graham told him to. I I I don't know what to say, Megan. If I sound frustrated, it's because I am. [1:45](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=105) Yeah, of course you are. We all are. We all feel it. We feel angry, just like the voters who voted these guys out of office. They felt angry and dissatisfied. That That Those are the top two words that they used to explain their votes. Republicans who voted Democrat, not in favor of Democrats, but in favor of sending a message to the Republican Party, which was we're burning it down. That's what we're doing. It is burned down to ash. Get your together. That's really what they were saying. [2:15](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=135) Yeah, it is what they were saying. And actually, that leads me with all this anger, which I'm sure I'll get back to in a moment. That does leave me to a conversation I was having with my producer before the show on, you know, let's try to find some sort of a potential silver lining here. Obviously, it's not good. I'm not going to pretend that it's good that we got our doors blown off from state houses to the Senate to the house I'm not saying it's good. However, remember those 15 loser Republicans who sponsored that amnesty bill with Maria Salazar? Yeah, 2/3 of those people are gone. That's just one example of how much gunk we did clean out here. Like, it's not ideal to get cleaned out like this. Ideally, you want to clean out bad Republicans in primaries. You don't want to hand the country over to the communists. That's not ideal, but if we have to rebuild, sometimes you got to tear the house down [3:04](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=184) to the foundation. And I'll tell you what, we're about as torn down to the foundation as you could possibly be at this point in time. I think there's a chance it makes rebuilding the GOP into something that it has not been a lot better. [3:17](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=197) Yeah, you're right. We're down to the studs right now, which is great. I mean, like I as somebody who just went through this problem, um our house had mold. It had mold everywhere. It was It got into the AC, the HVAC vents. And you know the little vent that shoots the AC out of it in your house? It Each one was covered in like black dots. We were like, "Oh my god." And you know what happened? We had to take that house down to the studs. [3:44](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=224) Oh. And it had to be fumigated and the whole bit. Now, now it's fine. Um But that's what had to happen. You can't fight that kind of a problem while keeping everything intact just around the edges. [3:56](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=236) I really wish you hadn't just told me that, Megan. I kid you not, on my life, my wife, Aubrey, you know, she says hi. She calls me yesterday and tells me they found mold in our house yesterday. And now I'm sitting here with Megan Kelly tell me she had to practically take her house down cuz of the whole thing. This this is a disaster. [4:13](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=253) We did. Let's see. We did. It It was our house in Jersey at the at the shore and it was a nightmare, but it was and I can walk you through offline exactly what you should do and you should you should handle it early as opposed to what we did. We didn't even realize it was a problem until it was far too late and it was far too infested. And then studs. And so that's where we are with the Republican Party. We are We are at studs. They deserve it. And the question is how to rebuild, but to your point, you cannot do that without being very honest about how we got here. And I've been watching some of your online commentary. I did long talking points memo yesterday on what I think got us here. [4:48](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=288) It was a you know, many factors. It was a complete repudiation of what Trump has been focused on um for the past year of his presidency. I think people were on board with the deportations. Maybe not the excesses that they saw in Minneapolis, but they were on board with getting rid of the illegals who came in under Biden. They were on board with shutting down the border and so on. And then he just lost his way. He launched a a new Middle East war which spiked prices in an economy that was already suffering to some extent from tariffs and so on. He talked all about the ballroom and renaming the Kennedy Center and the reflecting pool and not about people's actual problems. Talked about how much money he was making, quote, we were making, something that no working class voter felt. It alienating them and enlarging the gulf between this elite sort of class of politicians and regular people who were genuinely and are [5:39](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=339) genuinely suffering. Good news, Birch Gold has extended the Veterans Day silver offer through November 11th. So act now to get a free 1 oz silver coin for every $10,000 purchased. This silver coin features the American flag and the Gadsden flag and is a reminder that you saw the writing on the wall and did something about it. You realized we cannot afford the interest payments on our national debt. You realized inflation is still a challenge and it's time to diversify into gold and silver. Text MK to the number 989898 today and speak with a Birch Gold precious metals specialist. They will help you convert an existing IRA or 401K into an IRA in gold and silver, and then you will receive a free 1 oz silver commemorative coin for every $10,000 you spend. But this offer ends on November 11th. [6:26](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=386) Diversify into gold and silver and get free silver. Text MK to the number 989898. That's MK to 989898 today. And so, what we have now instead of an honest accounting on the disastrous launch of the Iran war is the people who talked Trump into it pretending that had nothing to do with it. We are being gaslit yet again by the same crew that got us into this about why this happened. That across the board now, you're hearing from, you know, all of the usual suspects. Ari Fleischer put it in writing on X, but he was by far not the only one talking about it. [7:05](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=425) It wasn't the Iran war, Jesse. It was the ceasefire agreement. The it was the disastrous ceasefire agreement that the president agreed to. He used J.D. Vance to negotiate it, but you see, this is their chance to hit Vance. They want him to bear the burden of their decision that they pressured Trump into making in launching the war. They'd much rather get out of February, March, when Trump launched the war after BB encouraged him to and all the hawks and the neocons told him to do it, and get to June, when Trump sent in J.D. [7:39](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=459) Vance to say, "Get this thing off my back. It's a monkey that I got to get rid of." And Vance came up with a paper-thin agreement called a memorandum of understanding with the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, and they violated it within 2 seconds. But it was popular cuz people just wanted an end to the thing. And now that same crew that literally they they have blood on their hands. They have actual blood of our troops on their hands, and now they have electoral blood on their hands as the Republican Party is gone, want to say all the problems around the Iran war come down to the ceasefire. [8:13](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=493) More than a decade, Megan. Donald Trump has been a leading voice in the Republican Party for more than a decade, no question about it. He's been the unquestioned leader of the Republican Party for more than a decade. Donald Trump has 2 years left in his presidency. What we're experiencing, what you're describing right now, is a succession fight. That's what this is all actually about. Just like any other succession fight, when the king is dead or dying, the people start People underneath start squabbling to see who's going to actually sit on the throne in the end. You mentioned the people and going after J.D. Vance and things like that. About 99% of the political arguments you see from political people online now are simply a proxy war for the 2028 Republican nomination. They're a proxy war for that because J.D. Vance, and don't take this as an endorsement of J.D. Vance. I like J.D. [9:00](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=540) Vance a lot, by the way, but it's not it's not that. J.D. Vance represents uh the biggest I'm I'm not going to say a total separation, but the biggest separation we have seen in my 45 years on this earth from the traditional GOP, big corporate, bring in as many foreigners as possible, bomb every inch of the planet. J.D. Vance philosophically represents the biggest separation from that of my entire lifetime. Well, all the people who've made their entire living on that being the way things are, they are they are now and they're going to continue to launch an all-out war trying to stop his nomination because if Donald Trump endorses him as the vice president, the vice president's usually the presumptive nominee anyway. If he does that with Donald Trump's endorsement, the race is over. It doesn't matter who else gets in. And so, what you're seeing is a proxy war for that and all this stuff is [9:51](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/the-gop-establishment-failure-that-led-to-midterm-wipeout/transcript?t=591) a proxy war for that. Thanks for watching this clip. If you're new here, subscribe. We got a whole lot more goodness where that came from. Would love to hear your feedback. You can email me, too, megan.megyn@megynkelly.com or just leave a comment below. But, join the community by becoming a subscriber. We really, really value your input and your support. We may not always agree, but we are always going to talk about it and respect. No BS, no agenda, no fear. ## Questions about this episode ### Who speaks in "The GOP Establishment FAILURE That Led to Midterm Wipeout"? Jesse (Guest), Megyn Kelly (Guest). ### What is "The GOP Establishment FAILURE That Led to Midterm Wipeout" about? The piece argues that a Republican establishment collapse led to a sweeping midterm loss, framing it as a bipartisan punishment election driven by disillusionment with Trump-era policies, poor economic messaging, and perceived missteps in national leadership. It highlights widespread voter anger across states like Texas, Kansas, Iowa, and South Carolina as the core cause of the GOP wipeout. ### What is mentioned in this Megyn Kelly episode? 25 people, works and ideas are mentioned, including Republican Party, Donald Trump, Megan Kelly, Iran war (2026), 2026 Midterm Elections, Jesse Kelly. Each one on this page links to its own page with every episode that mentions it. ### How long is "The GOP Establishment FAILURE That Led to Midterm Wipeout"? The episode runs 10 min; the transcript is about 2,032 words in 19 timestamped sections. ## More from Megyn Kelly - [All analyzed episodes](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly) - [Books mentioned on Megyn Kelly](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/books) - [People mentioned on Megyn Kelly](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/guests) - [Sponsors mentioned on Megyn Kelly](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/sponsors) - [Topics mentioned on Megyn Kelly](https://reclip.me/podcast/megyn-kelly/topics) About this transcript: the episode's spoken words as captioned on YouTube, split into timestamped sections. Reclip.Me locates every person, work and idea in the text, keeps the time it is first named, and quotes the words around it verbatim. Last updated November 6, 2026.