"Trump is the magic man" — said Ben Stein and Trump agreed.

Video of Ben Stein, at Mediaite:

"There’s only been five times in the last 105 years that an incumbent President has won seats in the Senate in the off-year election. Mr. Trump has magic about him. This guy has magic coming out his ears. He is an astonishing vote-getter, an astonishing campaigner. Republicans are unbelievably lucky to have him, and I’m just awed at how well they’ve done… It’s all the Trump magic. Trump is a magic man."

Trump tweeted the text of that quote, which you can see at Mediaite or in his Twitter feed, where you can also see his other reactions to yesterday's election results. Only 4 other tweets so far:

1. "Tremendous success tonight. Thank you to all!"

2. "@DavidAsmanfox 'How do the Democrats respond to this? Think of how his position with Republicans improves-all the candidates who won tonight. They realize how important he is because of what he did in campaigning for them. They owe him their political career.' Thanks, I agree!"

3. "Received so many Congratulations from so many on our Big Victory last night, including from foreign nations (friends) that were waiting me out, and hoping, on Trade Deals. Now we can all get back to work and get things done!"

4. "Ron DeSantis showed great courage in his hard fought campaign to become the Governor of Florida. Congratulations to Ron and family!"

That is, the one person he singled out, of all the many candidates he tried to help, is Ron DeSantis. That was 10 minutes ago, so expect more specific congratulations like that. I wonder if Trump will eventually address the GOP loss of the House, but I note that he concentrated his support on Senate candidates. Here's a list (at Wikipedia) of all of the rallies Trump has done since his election. There are a few of yesterday's losers on that list. One is Dean Heller, who lost his bid for the Senate seat for Nevada. Another is Leah Vukmir, who lost in my state, Wisconsin, as was predicted.

If you look at the Governors races, you'll see the Republicans lost a lot — the Democrats flipped 7 states — and one of the governor candidates for who lost despite a Trump rally, was Scott Walker. That was a completely close race, and who knows if Trump "magic" helped or hurt. Trump also rallied for Kris Kobach in Kansas and Adam Laxalt in Nevada, both of whom lost their race for Governor.

Anyway, Trump will, obviously, concentrate on his success with the Senate candidates. What can he say about the seats lost in the House? In the flippable districts, he really couldn't help, and he basically didn't try. I assume that means that, going forward, the House Republicans will be stauncher Republicans, and there will be a lot of Democrats who, facing reelection in 2020, will be susceptible to Trump's dealmaking. There will also be a lot of new, activist, left-wing Democrats to be wrangled. It will be interesting, and we'll see how Trump's "magic" works in the newly reconfigured game.

ADDED: Another new Trump tweet:

Those that worked with me in this incredible Midterm Election, embracing certain policies and principles, did very well. Those that did not, say goodbye! Yesterday was such a very Big Win, and all under the pressure of a Nasty and Hostile Media!

If you lost, it's your fault. If you won, it was thanks to me.

Obama is smart, but "not in the same league of presidential genius as Nixon."

Says Ben Stein.

"I have never seen a wildly successful adult who got there because his mother made him cry over his grades."

Says Ben Stein:

Men and women succeed because they find a field of endeavor that matches their interests and abilities. It's that simple. They then motivate themselves and achieve.... I don't believe the most successful people are the ones who got the best grades, got into the best schools, or made the most money. The most successful ones are those who find peace of mind. If they can do it with mothers who manufacture self-loathing the way Ms. Chua or Ms. Waldman do, it's despite those Moms and not because of them. This whole idea that there is something noble about browbeating your own children is just plain sick.

And then there's Lee Siegel:

Ms. Chua's book is a case study in how lack of self-knowledge, absence of empathy, and poor writing skills can be a blessing if you possess enough robotic ambition, callousness toward other people and lack of honesty about yourself and your subject. Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother is an inspiration to aggressive mediocrities everywhere. The book wasn't written; it was assembled.