FILE PHOTO: U.S. President Donald Trump delivers remarks at a reception commemorating the 35th anniversary of the attack on the Beirut Barracks in the East Room of the White House, in Washington, U.S., October 25, 2018. REUTERS/Al Drago

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said on Friday that news coverage of the pipe bombs targeting high-profile Democratic politicians and critics of the president had drowned out other stories and slowed Republican momentum ahead of congressional elections.

“Republicans are doing so well in early voting, and at the polls, and now this ‘Bomb’ stuff happens and the momentum greatly slows - news not talking politics. Very unfortunate, what is going on,” Trump wrote on Twitter as he urged Republicans to get out to vote.

Democrats are seen as having a good chance of wresting control of the U.S. House of Representatives away from Republicans in the Nov. 6 elections, while Republicans are expected to hold their Senate majority.

If Democrats were to take the majority in either or both chambers, it would likely increase congressional oversight of Trump, a Republican, and thwart parts of his policy agenda.

Departing the White House after news broke that a suspect had been arrested in the bomb case, Trump told reporters it was time for Republicans to regain their lost momentum.

“The Republicans had tremendous momentum and, of course, this happened where all that you people talked about was that -- and rightly so, it was a big thing, rightly so -- but now we have to start the momentum again,” he said.

Federal agents on Friday arrested 56-year-old Cesar Sayoc for the string of pipe-bomb mailings after following a trail of evidence that included a fingerprint lifted from one of the devices.