Julian Zelizer : Most presidents fare poorly in their second set of midterm elections . He says Eisenhower , the Supreme Court , Eisenhower , Eisenhower and Bill Clinton all suffered reverses . In 1937 , Roosevelt tried to expand the size of the Supreme Court so that he could appoint more liberals and prevent the court from knocking down any more of his programs ; he also pushed a plan to reorganize the executive branch by granting the president 's staff more sweeping power over Congress . In 1998 , only Bill Clinton was able to gain strength from second midterm , he says . Zelizer : Obama 's final years in office could be shadowed by midterm results .
Julian Zelizer : Most presidents fare poorly in their second set of midterm elections . He says Eisenhower , the Supreme Court , Eisenhower , Eisenhower and Bill Clinton all suffered reverses . In 1998 , only Bill Clinton was able to gain strength from second midterm , he says . Zelizer : Obama 's final years in office could be shadowed by midterm results .