Latta: House majority within GOP reach

With Americans upset about inflation, U.S. Rep. Bob Latta, R-Bowling Green, predicted Monday that Republicans will win a majority of U.S. House seats in the fall elections. "I'm not sure it's going to be a wave, but I think it's going to be a turning this fall, and Americans are going to say that this country is (moving) in the wrong direction," said Latta, who represents Ohio's 5th Congressional District. Polls already are saying that people believe the nation is headed the wrong way, Latta said in an interview at The Courier on Monday. People are upset about higher prices at the gas pump and grocery store and about immigrants entering the country, he said. "This year is going to be one of those years that we're going to see a (House) body turning quickly," Latta said. "That's why 29 Democrats have already announced that they're not coming back." Even incumbent Democrats in more heavily Democratic districts are vulnerable this year because the vast majority of Americans are so unhappy, he said. If Republicans win a majority in the House, one of their priorities would be trying to maintain America's independence in oil, he said. Latta favors construction of the Keystone XL oil pipeline through Montana, South Dakota and Nebraska, for example. Reliance on other countries for oil is a mistake, he said. "A lot of those countries don't like us, so we are sending our dollars and our jobs overseas. We've got to make sure we're doing it here. And once you have it, you have got to be able to transport it. The safest way to do it is through pipeline," Latta said. "We've got to have a system in this country to get the energy where we need it." For carbon-free energy, Latta favors smaller nuclear systems instead of a huge generation plant, he said. He and other Republicans also would work to make the U.S.'s southern border more secure, he said. Wilin: 419-427-8413