A win for Democratic nominee for US Senator Raphael Warnock will not only be a bonus for Democrats; his victory would change the entire dynamic of the Senate in a divided government. | Brynn Anderson/AP
Some of the best news during midterm election coverage came Saturday night when the Nevada senator race was called for incumbent Democratic Senator Catherine Cortez Masto, a victory that ensures Democrats retain control of the Senate.
The House of Representatives, it seems, is run by Republicans by nearly the smallest of margins possible. The Republican majority will be so tiny that they will end up with severe limitations on the amount of damage they can do.
This makes the Democrats’ win in the Senate really good cause for celebration, considering they went into the election with a 50-50 record and believe they had to break the historical pattern that said they should lose even this small margin of control.
Analysts have rightly pointed out that winning Senate control will allow Biden to continue appointing judges and filling government posts of all kinds. While this is true, sticking to the 50-50 balance while Vice President Kamala Harris breaks the tie isn’t enough. It doesn’t give the people of the United States the ability to break down some of the barriers that have prevented them from making all the progress they could have made under the Biden administration. Nor will it be enough to break down the barriers that prevent them from making important advances in the future.
In short, turning the Democrats’ Senate victory into a greater victory for all the people of the United States will require the election of Raphael Warnock in the upcoming Georgia runoff.
After Cortez Masto’s win, there were comments on social media saying Georgia was just a beautiful form of dress that would add to the victory that had already occurred.
First of all, this idea is very crass and racist. The people of Georgia, particularly the masses of African Americans who have shed blood, sweat and tears to get to the point where their former slave state will be represented in the US Senate by an African American is not a victory anyone has ever won in Should consider slipping away.
All Georgians, black and white, deserve an honorable progressive leader who was Warnock as their Senator. And the needs of voters outside of Georgia are also up for debate. Warnock was a leader who fought for the interests of all working people and their allies across the land.
Aside from that issue — and the common sense issues, which include factors such as at least two members of the Senators arguing with the Democrats in the 1980s, making it possible that the Democrats could lose their majority on almost any point — there is there compelling reasons why a Warnock victory is essential to protecting the interests of the workers and their allies in the future.
We cannot ignore the fact that two of the Senate Democrats, Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema, have shown time and time again that they are willing to sabotage the interests of workers and their allies when it is to their own political advantage.
An important pad
A Warnock victory in Georgia would give Democrats a substantial cushion against potential defectors on key issues from Manchin and Sinema, or both.
His victory will allow Dems to lose Manchin or Sinema on a given confirmation vote.
But if Warnock loses, it gives Republican Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (or whatever GOP senator might unseat him) more incentive to pressure Manchin to switch parties. We don’t know if he would, but given his need for re-election in West Virginia, who knows what he would do? Senators have switched parties before.
Even if Manchin and Sinema are never forced to defect, Warnock’s re-election would significantly diminish their power. Manchin would no longer have sole veto power over the entire Democrat agenda.
A Warnock win will also make Sinema less likely to defy the Democratic Party majority. She watches Arizona Senator Mark Kelly get reelected with nearly 52% of the vote. He ran as a Democrat and supported his party.
Sinema also has concerns to worry about in 2024, when she will face a progressive Democrat primary. Already bragging about her progressive credentials, she is offering to lead a Democratic effort to legislate same-sex marriage rights.
While it cannot be said with certainty, it is entirely possible that a Warnock victory will result in a larger and less problematic Senate faction when it comes to passing progressive measures.
With 51 Senate seats, Biden can push through many more judges, and it’s far more than just a matter of numbers. The pace of appointments would increase tremendously if there were no more impasses in the Senate Judiciary Committee that force Democrats to spend hours and days voting on relief motions.
More importantly, a majority of 51 votes will help Biden weaken scrutiny of the courts by individuals placed in position during Trump’s stacking of the federal judiciary.
The importance of judicial appointments to the working people and their allies cannot be overstated. Right-wing Trump judges have already obstructed Biden on student debt, mask mandates, immigration issues and voting rights. Ending the GOP’s rule of the courts is one of the most important parts of the fight to save America’s democracy
But even without all of these reasons to re-elect him, Warnock is an excellent candidate and an excellent Senator. He’s an incredibly effective African American who represents a new Georgia shedding its past as a bastion of slavery. He’s a progressive fighter that everyone in America can and should stand behind.
His opponent, Herschel Walker, is an uncompromising Trumpite with a history of violence against women. Although he pays for abortions, he hypocritically opposes abortion rights.
Warnock’s re-election will be a victory for justice and a great victory in the fight to preserve democracy in the United States.
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