As red wave fails to materialize, Biden celebrates but promises to work across the aisle

Judy Woodruff:

And while results continue to come in and the balance of power in Congress remains in question, as we heard earlier, President Biden today is celebrating what he called a strong night for Democrats. And he promised to work with Republicans to find bipartisan solutions if they win majorities.

For more on the president's reaction to the election and what it means for the next two years, I'm joined by Laura Barrón-López. She is at the White House, where she was last night.

So, Laura, we talked — we told everyone about the president's news conference this afternoon. You were there. Give us the gist of what he was saying.

Laura Barrón-López:

The president was very cheerful, Judy, saying that the prognosticators got it wrong about big Republican gains.

He also expressed confidence about the signal that voters sent to the public. You can listen here.

Joe Biden, President of the United States: And they sent a clear and unmistakable message that they want to preserve our democracy and protect the right to choose in this country.

Laura Barrón-López:

The president also gave a shout out to young voters, those aged 18 to 30, because of the fact that it looks as though young voters turned out in record numbers, matching 2018 numbers. And they are a key constituency for Democrats. They were also a key constituency for President Biden when he won the presidency in 2020.

Judy Woodruff:

And, Laura, we know that the president acknowledged he doesn't know yet, we don't know yet whether there will be a Republican majority in either or both houses.

But what is the president saying about how that would affect his agenda? What is he saying his agenda will be, especially if there's a divided Congress?

Laura Barrón-López:

So the president didn't give a lot of specifics about what he may propose, new legislation that he may propose.

He talked a lot about the use of his veto pen. He said that he would use his veto pen against any attempts to propose a national abortion ban. He also said he would use it if Republicans tried to undo the laws that we saw him pass in his first two years, namely, the infrastructure law, prescription drug reform, also elements of the Inflation Reduction Act that had to do with addressing the climate crisis and boosting renewable energy.

And the president was also asked Judy, about Ukraine, and specifically comments by Minority Leader, the Republican leader, Kevin McCarthy, where he recently said, prior to the election, that there should not be a blank check in aid for Ukraine, and this was the president's response:

President Joe Biden:

And there's so much at stake.

So, I would be surprised if Leader McCarthy even has a majority of his Republican colleagues who say they're not going to fund the legitimate defensive needs of Ukraine.

Laura Barrón-López:

Ultimately, the president said that he hopes that Kevin McCarthy, if he ends up being the speaker, as well as other Republicans, particularly if the Senate ends up in Republican hands even by one seat, that they will work with him.

Judy Woodruff:

Yes, we did hear him say he hopes to be able to work across the aisle.

Laura, we know also that a number of Republicans are talking about investigating the president, his administration if they win the majority, especially in the House. They have talked about investigating immigration policy, the withdrawal from Afghanistan last year, and also members of the president's own family, the president himself.

How is the White House preparing for what could come?

Laura Barrón-López:

The president was asked about that today, Judy, and he treated it as though it's comedy. He specifically said that if Republicans tried to do that, it's comedic.

And he also said that it's out of his control and that, ultimately, he was going to focus on trying to push forward other agenda items for the American public. But you're right. The White House is preparing. They have — they brought on over the summer a senior lawyer, Dick Sauber. They brought him over from Veterans Affairs in preparation for this onslaught of possible investigations.

And they also brought on a new comms spokesperson to handle this as well. One other important thing I just want to note, Judy, is that the president was again very optimistic, even though a lot of the races are still — a number of significant races are still left a call. And he said that this was the best midterm election for a first president in the last 40 years.

Judy Woodruff:

It certainly did — or appears to be going against trends. We are watching it all as we wait for the final numbers to come in.

Laura Barrón-López at the White House.

Thank you, Laura.

Laura Barrón-López:

Thank you.