NY Special Election: A Game Changer?

House Republicans engaged in a tense round of finger-pointing Wednesday after their stinging loss to hold on to expelled Rep. George Santos’ seat that left them with a razor-thin majority and deeply divided over the way forward.

Several members blamed the push by a band of New York freshmen to expel Santos. Others said the constant GOP infighting had hurt them in the eyes of voters.

Some said that the GOP candidate, Mazi Pilip, should have embraced Trump. And many said that Republicans needed to improve their campaign mechanics — namely embracing early voting that Trump has denigrated.

Here's what some GOP lawmakers told CNN this morning on Capitol Hill:

Rep. Byron Donalds of Florida said it was a “stupid” move to expel Santos before he was convicted of a crime, despite the serious allegations against him.

Several vulnerable freshman members from New York, who had pushed for Santos’ ouster defended their decision, arguing that it was Santos’ fault for lying in the first place.

Rep. Mike Lawler said he "didn't shrink the Republican majority. George Santos shrunk it by his actions. He was unfit to serve in Congress." Rep. Marc Molinaro said Santos was "a con man and a crook and shouldn't have been a member of Congress." Molinaro also noted that Congress had not addressed the border, which may have hurt them in the eyes of the voters.

The chair of the House Republican’s campaign arm, Rep. Richard Hudson, argued that they could have done a better job encouraging early voting in New York's 3rd Congressional District, and said he would speak with former President Donald Trump about the issue. Trump has criticized early and mail-in voting in the past. Hudson added that the weather could have depressed Republican turnout.

Rep. Max Miller of Ohio argued that Pilip made a mistake by not cozying up to Trump during her campaign.