This week, as we all ponder what the consequential midterm elections mean for the country, we bring you a report directly from the White House.
Join us inside the cozy White House Press Briefing Room, where the top journalists in the world gather to hear from – and, importantly, question – our nation’s leaders.
You’ve seen that room countless times on TV, the iconic oval picture of the White House on the wall behind the podium immediately telling you that you are at the very heart of political power in the most important house in the world.
There I was, near the front of the room, standing where media titans have practiced their craft. It was a heady moment for me; I had dreamed of reaching this pinnacle of achievement since I began studying journalism in college.
Now I do need to note that I wasn’t in the press briefing room last week. I was there some years ago, on a private visit arranged by mattress colleagues, the details of which I have been asked not to share.
I’ve been thinking back to that memorable visit as I reflect on the changing power dynamics in Washington as we all assess the implications of the Democratic wave that swept across the country last week. What is the outlook for the home furnishings industry?
And I’m advancing this cautious verdict on what the elections mean for our business: We are still in uncertain times.
It’s tempting for pundits to say, in the aftermath of a big election, that we now finally have some certainty about the political landscape. Business hates uncertainty, as I’m frequently reminded in my conversations with mattress executives. And we have been living in very uncertain times in recent years.
It’s difficult to find mattress leaders who are willing to criticize the Trump administration publicly. Privately they decry key actions it has taken, such as the imposition of tariffs, the launching of a trade war with Canada, and the initiation of the Iran war. These are lumped under the general heading of “geopolitical headwinds,” and they are widely seen as drags on business.
Will those headwinds ease in the new year? They could, but right now it’s hard to say exactly how the Democrats will play the new stronger hand they were dealt in the elections, and it’s equally hard to say how the Republicans will operate in their suddenly weakened position.
Each year I meet with mattress execs who tell me that the coming year should be good for business. Last year that optimism ran into tariffs. This year it ran into the Iran war. After two straight years of Trump surprises, it would not be surprising if something unexpected issues from the Trump administration next year, especially considering the Democratic pushback it will encounter.
Still, executives are largely optimistic about business prospects next year. Hope does seem to spring eternal in Mattressville.
But, as one exec reminded me at the recent High Point Market, we are living in very polarizing times, and an election, however decisive, doesn’t magically sweep away our divisions and usher in new, more prosperous times. I wish it were that simple.
Yes, we now have certainty about the outlines of the new political landscape in our country. But no official who steps to the podium in the White House Briefing Room these days can predict how things will play out, precisely, in the new year. That’s just the harsh reality of our uncertain times.
But I do know this: It’s pretty cool to visit that famous briefing room.
