Joe Rogan has addressed the Republican Party’s heavy midterm losses, arguing that President Donald Trump and his administration have “lost most of the country.”
Rogan, the comedian and UFC commentator who backed Trump in the 2024 presidential election, discussed the results on Friday. “They didn’t just lose the podcast bros,” he said.
“They lost most of the country. It’s like getting involved in a war nobody wants, while militarized police are on the streets wearing masks and carrying no identification.”
The 59-year-old acknowledged that the administration had achieved some goals, saying: “They did some good things. They closed the border and crime dropped significantly.”
“It’s not good to have the border completely open, allowing anyone—including terrorists—to enter the country,” he added.
“But it’s also not right to pull people out of their f****** taco stands when they’ve lived here for 20 years, are decent people and are loved by their communities.”
Rogan continued: “There are plenty of scumbags who were born on this patch of dirt and whom we keep releasing from prison.”
His comments marked the first time he had directly addressed the election outcome. Earlier in the week, he had offered a more general reaction, saying: “It’s all gross. I hate it. I don’t like politics at all.”
Rogan said Republicans had “lost the country,” pointing to ICE agents on American streets and the war in Iran as contributing factors
President Trump and Vice President JD Vance are pictured saluting during a Veterans Day ceremony earlier this week
In the months before the 2024 presidential election, Rogan and several other high-profile podcasters were credited with helping Republicans regain the White House.
Rogan welcomed Trump onto his podcast, while fellow comedians Theo Von and Andrew Schulz also interviewed the former president.
However, after war broke out in Iran earlier this year, Rogan appeared to distance himself from his previous endorsement.
“It just seems so insane,” he said. “He ran on no more wars—ending these stupid, senseless wars—and then we have one.”
Von expressed a similar frustration during a conversation with Rogan, saying he was “sick of rich people not putting [their children] over in these wars.”
The Daily Mail reported in September that MAGA influencers and podcasters were adjusting their content and moving away from Trump-focused messaging ahead of the midterms.
“I definitely have been talking about Trump less,” one MAGA podcaster told the Daily Mail. “He doesn’t primarily drive the news anymore, at least in terms of what goes viral.”
MAGA creators on Instagram, Facebook and TikTok have increasingly shifted their focus, citing changing algorithms and the subjects most likely to attract viral attention.
Joe Rogan is pictured with Trump in the Oval Office as the president signed an executive order on psychedelic drug use in April this year
“We talk about whatever is going viral,” another MAGA digital creator told the Daily Mail. “It’s not an intentional decision to ignore Trump; it’s simply about following the trends.”
The midterm results were quickly dubbed a “bluenami,” after Democrats secured control of both chambers of Congress.
Democrats gained eight Senate seats, giving them a 55-seat majority, while their House gains totaled 42 seats.
Trump also suffered a major setback in the 2018 midterms during his first term in office. The Republican defeat in the House helped propel Nancy Pelosi to the speakership.
The change in power led to congressional gridlock and a series of investigations into the president and his activities.
The political turmoil was followed by the longest US government shutdown in history at that time, as well as two impeachments, in 2019 and 2021.
The Senate acquitted Trump on both occasions, making him the only president in US history to have been impeached twice.