After midterm rout, Jay Collins tells Republicans to 'get up and fight' like warriors

Florida Lt. Gov. Jay Collins has said that after the midterm rout, the Republican Party must get up and fight like warriors.

In an interview with Fox News Digital, Green Beret Collins said, "Where we go from here is up to us as a Republican Party. This can be a definitive death blow if we allow it to be, but I believe in what we stand for." He added, "I believe in our Constitution. I believe in our founding fathers' vision. I believe that God blessed this nation."

In combat, an insurgent's bullet shattered his arm. Instead of waiting for an evacuation team, the Green Beret performed emergency surgery on himself to save the limb. Gov. Ron DeSantis has dubbed him the "Chuck Norris of Florida politics."

DeSantis described the Republicans' midterm losses as a "near extinction-level" event. In Collins' words, the national Republican Party now lies bloodied on the field.

Collins said, "Hard times happen. Warriors, leaders get up and fight. That's what we have to do now." In his view, the party must knuckle down, learn, and apply itself with relentless dedication and fury to what matters.

He said Florida's recent history of going from a purple state to a Republican stronghold can be an example for the rest of the country. In his words, "Florida's been the road map. I think we've been what I call the conservative proving grounds." Florida is now the largest red state on the 2028 map. Among the national losses was the loss of Texas to Democrats.

Collins admitted that even Florida's heavy Republican registered voter edge led to slim margins in the tough midterm environment. He said, "Republicans showed up, but the NPAs showed up and they overwhelmingly did not align with Republicans. What does that tell us? Well, the biggest gap we had was that we didn't spend enough time communicating to our NPAs."

He recalled his first race. In a Tampa district that is not a conservative stronghold in Florida, he ran against the Tampa mayor's mother-in-law. He said, "This was my very first race. We didn't talk to a single Republican out there. We only knocked NPA's and light D's, and we won by 10."

He said, "What I realized is if you're honest with people, you agree on more than you don't, but you have got to be willing to step in there and have that conversation." In his view, the party needs to go back to being a party that welcomes folks in — a little bit more of a big tent — but has to stand on its conservative values.

Collins is termed out of office along with DeSantis in January. He has not decided anything about his future in the state or the national party. He only said, "Stay tuned."

He said, "We have to row the boat. Sept. 11 was a big day in our life. Sept. 12 was incredible because we saw the power and the might of what America can be." In his words, "What our enemy fears, what other nations fear is Americans coming together."

Collins said, "We have to come together and realize that our nation is blessed. It will fall if we don't come together. But it won't happen if we don't start uniting and remind ourselves that this is America. America's worth fighting for."

He added, "We need to focus on getting through this, the aftermath of this cycle, wrap it up, transition, and make sure that we understand exactly what happened. When we started the war on terror, and I was a young soldier, we spent two years trying to fight the last war. It wasn't very great, to be honest with you. Let's not fight the last war." Meanwhile, Trump-backed Byron Donalds is set to make history as Florida's first Black governor, according to reports.