Administration

Trump meets with Priebus to strategize about 2018 midterms: report

President Trump reportedly met earlier this week with his former White House chief of staff Reince Priebus to discuss the 2018 midterm elections.

The two met over lunch Tuesday, where Trump pressed Priebus on the electoral landscape ahead of next year’s congressional elections, The Washington Post reported.

The Post also reported that Priebus raised other concerns to the president about the GOP’s performance headed into the elections.

Priebus, the former head of the Republican National Committee, did not respond to the Post’s request for comment.

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Democrats are increasingly optimistic about a wave of victories next year after a series of local electoral wins in recent months.

In Alabama, Doug Jones (D) defeated Roy Moore (R) in a special election earlier this month, becoming the first Democrat to win a Senate seat in the state in a quarter century.

In Virginia, Democrat Ralph Northam defeated Trump-backed GOP candidate Ed Gillespie in November to become the state’s next governor after a hotly-contested national race. Northam defeated Gillespie by a wider margin than expected.

Priebus, who was replaced by John Kelly as Trump’s chief of staff earlier this year, rejoined the Wisconsin law firm Michael Best and Friedrich LLP as its president and chief strategist after leaving the Trump administration.

His reported meeting with Trump comes as the president and Republicans celebrate the passage of their tax overhaul this week, their first major legislative victory since taking control of government.