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Sen. John Kennedy warns Republicans against calling midterm losses normal

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Coverage spectrum

Covered by 3 outlets across the spectrum.

4 articles in total, 1 of them opinion. The spectrum counts each outlet once and leaves opinion out. How we measure bias

Older man in pinstripe suit and red tie, arms crossed, speaking to reporters in a Capitol corridor.
Image via PJ MediaHow images are chosenReport this image

Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) warned Senate Republicans not to describe their midterm election losses as a normal defeat and said they should work to win back voters who shifted to Democrats, The Hill reports. Kennedy said “This was not a normal midterm election loss,” and that anyone who concluded otherwise was “stupid,” according to PJ Media, The Daily Beast and The New Republic. Kennedy also said the Democrats won because they did a better job of acknowledging economic pain, according to PJ Media. The Daily Beast reports that Republicans lost both chambers of Congress to Democrats. The New Republic reports that House Republicans chose Rep. Jim Jordan as their next minority leader.

Headline and summary written by Mantle’s AI from the coverage below, under published rules. Editors read every story. How this works

What happened

Key points

Each point shows who reports it, from Far Left to Far Right.

  1. Kennedy warned Republicans not to call the midterm losses normal and said they should work to win back voters who shifted to Democrats.

    Reported byFar Left1Center1See the outletsHide the outlets
    Far Left
    The Daily Beast
    Center
    The Hill

  2. Kennedy said anyone who concluded the midterm loss was normal was “stupid.”

    Reported byFar Left2Far Right1See the outletsHide the outlets
    Far Left
    The New Republic, The Daily Beast
    Far Right
    PJ Media

  3. Kennedy said in a Senate floor speech that the midterm loss was not normal and pointed to the size of the defeat.

    One outletPJ Media· Far Right

  4. Kennedy said the Democrats won because they did a better job of acknowledging the economic pain of the American people.

    One outletPJ Media· Far Right

  5. Republicans lost both chambers of Congress to Democrats in the midterm elections.

    One outletThe Daily Beast· Far Left

  6. House Republicans chose Rep. Jim Jordan as their next House minority leader.

    One outletThe New Republic· Far Left

How each side tells it

Compare views

All sides report that Kennedy warned Republicans against calling the midterm losses normal. Left outlets stress his “stupid” remark and GOP infighting, while The Hill’s headline frames it as a warning to colleagues and PJ Media frames it as a crude warning about a Democratic takeover.

  • the left

    1 outlet · 1 opinion

    Left headlines center Kennedy’s “stupid” remark and describe the midterms as a wipeout or crushing defeat, casting the story as Republican infighting.

    GOP Senator Loaded verb“Rages at”Rages describes anger in the senator’s state of mind, which the report does not show.More neutral: CriticizesDisagree with this highlight? ‘Loaded modifier“Stupid”The label attached to fellow Republicans pre-judges them, though it quotes Kennedy.More neutral: Republicans who call the loss normalThese are John Kennedy’s words. The outlet is reporting them.Disagree with this highlight?’ Republicans After Crushing Defeat
    The Daily BeastFar LeftAll left-leaning headlines

  • the center

    1 outlet

    The Hill’s headline presents the story as a warning to colleagues against downplaying the losses, describing the midterm result without loaded wording.

    Senate Republican warns colleagues against downplaying midterm losses
    The HillCenterAll center headlines

  • the right

    1 outlet

    PJ Media, a Far Right outlet, uses crude slang in its headline to frame Republicans’ response as self-harm before a Democratic takeover, while its text stresses Kennedy’s economic explanation.

    Sen. Kennedy Warns the GOP to Stop ‘Sensational language“Urinating on Our Hands”The crude phrase adds shock and drama to a warning that the headline could state in plain words.More neutral: warns Republicans against downplaying the lossThese are Sen. John Kennedy’s words. The outlet is reporting them.Disagree with this highlight?’ Before the Dems Take Over
    PJ MediaFar RightAll right-leaning headlines

The words they chose

Language to notice

Words that carry a judgement beyond the facts. Tap a highlighted word anywhere on the page to see why.

  • Left6

    furiouslashed outRages attotal disaster

  • Center0

    No loaded words in its own voice.

  • Right0

    No loaded words in its own voice.

In the outlets’ own words

  • Sensational language

    furiousMore neutral: critical

    Describes the senator’s emotional state beyond the words the report quotes.

    A furious Republican senator has branded any Republicans downplaying the crushing midterm…

    Used byThe Daily Beast (Far Left)

  • Loaded verb

    lashed outMore neutral: criticized

    Suggests anger beyond the remarks the report describes.

    John Kennedy, 74, lashed out Wednesday night as his party descended into infighting after losing both chambers of…

    Used byThe Daily Beast (Far Left)

  • Loaded verb

    Rages atMore neutral: Criticizes

    Rages describes anger in the senator’s state of mind, which the report does not show.

    GOP Senator Rages at ‘Stupid’ Republicans After Crushing Defeat

    Used byThe Daily Beast (Far Left)

  • Sensational language

    total disasterMore neutral: heavy losses

    Calls the midterm result a disaster in the outlet’s own voice, beyond the vote results reported.

    Following total disaster in the midterm elections, Republican lawmakers have responded by refusing to…

    Used byThe New Republic (Far Left)

Show 2 more phrasesShow fewer

  • Loaded modifier

    MAGA extremistMore neutral: Republican Rep. Jim Jordan

    Attaches a label to Jordan that the article does not support with a cited record.

    …greatly to Republican losses, and choosing Representative Jim Jordan, a MAGA extremist , to serve as the new House minority leader.

    Used byThe New Republic (Far Left)

  • Loaded verb

    Keep AdmittingMore neutral: Saying

    The word admitting implies a confession, while the remarks were public statements.

    Republicans Keep Admitting They’re “Stupid” After Election Wipeout

    Used byThe New Republic (Far Left)

Words quoted from someone else (2)Hide the quoted words

Loaded words that outlets reported someone else saying. They show what was said, not how the outlet chose to say it.

  • Loaded modifier

    Quoted

    StupidMore neutral: Republicans who call the loss normal

    The label attached to fellow Republicans pre-judges them, though it quotes Kennedy.

    GOP Senator Rages at ‘Stupid’ Republicans After Crushing Defeat

    Quoted byThe Daily Beast (Far Left)The New Republic (Far Left)

    These are John Kennedy’s words. The outlets are reporting them.

  • Sensational language

    Quoted

    Urinating on Our HandsMore neutral: warns Republicans against downplaying the loss

    The crude phrase adds shock and drama to a warning that the headline could state in plain words.

    Kennedy Warns the GOP to Stop ‘Urinating on Our Hands’ Before the Dems Take Over

    Quoted byPJ Media (Far Right)

    These are Sen. John Kennedy’s words. The outlets are reporting them.

See the full language guide

See for yourself

Side by side

What each side leads with and what it leaves out. Open a side to read its headlines.

From the left

1 outlet · 1 opinion

Leads with

  • Kennedy’s “stupid” remark
  • Republican infighting
  • the scale of the defeat

Leaves out

  • Kennedy’s remark that the Democrats addressed economic pain better

Reported by other sides, not found in this side’s coverage.

See the 2 headlines from the leftHide the headlines
  • The Daily BeastFar Left

    GOP Senator Loaded verb“Rages at”Rages describes anger in the senator’s state of mind, which the report does not show.More neutral: CriticizesDisagree with this highlight? ‘Loaded modifier“Stupid”The label attached to fellow Republicans pre-judges them, though it quotes Kennedy.More neutral: Republicans who call the loss normalThese are John Kennedy’s words. The outlet is reporting them.Disagree with this highlight?’ Republicans After Crushing Defeat

    A Sensational language“furious”Describes the senator’s emotional state beyond the words the report quotes.More neutral: criticalDisagree with this highlight? Republican senator has branded any Republicans downplaying the crushing midterm election defeat as “stupid.” Sen. John Kennedy, 74, Loaded verb“lashed out”Suggests anger beyond the remarks the report describes.More neutral: criticizedDisagree with this highlight? Wednesday night as his party descended into infighting after losing both chambers of Congress to Democrats and warned that the …

    Read at The Daily Beast (opens in a new tab)
  • The New RepublicFar LeftOpinion

    Republicans Loaded verb“Keep Admitting”The word admitting implies a confession, while the remarks were public statements.More neutral: SayingDisagree with this highlight? They’re “Loaded modifier“Stupid”The insult labels fellow Republicans with a term that pre-judges them.More neutral: Republicans who call the loss normalThese are John Kennedy’s words. The outlet is reporting them.Disagree with this highlight?” After Election Wipeout

    Some Republican lawmakers are clearly fed up with their “stupid” GOP colleagues who refuse to learn from the party’s sweeping losses in the midterm elections. …

    Read at The New Republic (opens in a new tab)

From the center

1 outlet

Leads with

  • Kennedy’s warning to colleagues
  • winning back voters who shifted to Democrats
See the headline from the centerHide the headlines
  • The HillCenter

    Senate Republican warns colleagues against downplaying midterm losses

    Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) is warning Senate Republican colleagues not to downplay the blowout Republican losses in last week’s election as “a normal midterm election loss,” saying they should instead work hard to win back voters who shifted to Democrats. …

    Read at The Hill (opens in a new tab)

From the right

1 outlet

Leads with

  • Kennedy’s crude warning to Republicans
  • the coming Democratic takeover
  • Kennedy’s economic explanation for the loss
See the headline from the rightHide the headlines
  • PJ MediaFar Right

    Sen. Kennedy Warns the GOP to Stop ‘Sensational language“Urinating on Our Hands”The crude phrase adds shock and drama to a warning that the headline could state in plain words.More neutral: warns Republicans against downplaying the lossThese are Sen. John Kennedy’s words. The outlet is reporting them.Disagree with this highlight?’ Before the Dems Take Over

    When Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) took to the Senate floor on Wednesday, he gave his fellow Republicans a brutal reality check on the 2026 midterms and a to-do list for the weeks they have left in charge, in a way one can. He didn't sugarcoat the results.

    Read at PJ Media (opens in a new tab)

The stories you read build My Mix, a private picture of which sides cover the stories you choose, kept on this device. What is My Mix?

The left is Far Left and Left together. The right is Right and Far Right together. Every outlet keeps its own five-point rating.

Who reported it when

How the coverage built up

  • Left

    First to report

    The Daily Beast, Nov 12, 6:43 AM EST

  • Center

    2 hr 14 min later

    Its first report, Nov 12, 8:58 AM EST

  • Right

    8 hr 49 min later

    Its first report, Nov 12, 3:33 PM EST

See the order the outlets reported inHide the order
  1. The Daily BeastFar LeftNov 12, 6:43 AM EST
  2. The HillCenterNov 12, 8:58 AM EST
  3. PJ MediaFar RightNov 12, 3:33 PM EST

Times are the ones the outlets published in their own feeds, in Eastern time. Opinion is left out.

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