The Washington PostDemocracy Dies in Darkness

Trump privately tells donors it would be ‘very tough’ for GOP to hold Senate

October 24, 2020 at 10:21 p.m. EDT
President Trump speaks during a campaign rally at the Robeson County Fairgrounds in Lumberton, N.C., on Saturday. (Chris Seward/AP)

President Trump privately told donors this past week that it will be “very tough” for Republicans to keep control of the Senate in the upcoming election because some of the party’s senators are candidates he cannot support.

“I think the Senate is tough actually. The Senate is very tough,” Trump said at a fundraiser Thursday at the Nashville Marriott, according to an attendee. “There are a couple senators I can’t really get involved in. I just can’t do it. You lose your soul if you do. I can’t help some of them. I don’t want to help some of them.”