Democrats have won the Senate majority after a pair of runoff victories in Georgia, giving the party control of Congress and smoothing the path for Joe Biden to enact his radical Left-wing agenda in 2021. Once again, we witnessed late night ballot dumps leading to a bizarre surge in votes for Warnock and Ossoff. This is the end of America as we know it.
Democrat Raphael Warnock wins race against Senator Loeffler
Jon Ossoff’s and Raphael Warnock’s victories over Republicans David Perdue and Kelly Loeffler will bring the balance of power in the Senate to 50-50, with Vice President Kamala Harris able to cast tie-breaking votes once she is inaugurated later this month. The first of those will make Sen. Chuck Schumer the majority leader, relegating current Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to the minority after six years in charge of the Senate.
The results of the disastrous Senate flip could be felt immediately. Ossoff and Warnock campaigned vigorously on additional Covid-19 stimulus checks, with Joe Biden telling voters if they want $2,000 to go out and vote Democrat. Senate GOP leaders have declined to commit to additional stimulus funding after recently approving a $900 billion package, a move that probably shot them in the foot with some Georgia voters.
Biden’s key policy promises hinged on his party controlling the Senate, and he has room to move a significantly more ambitious agenda now than if McConnell retained power in the chamber. It will also give Biden a much simpler path to getting nominees through the chamber more quickly than he would have been able to under a Republican Senate.
Early Wednesday morning, Warnock was declared the winner over Loeffler, an incumbent Republican senator, while in the afternoon Ossoff was declared the winner against Perdue, a first-term senator whose term expired this week.
“I can’t wait to get to work, to put my boots on, and represent the people’s concerns in the United States Senate,” Warnock told NBC’s “Today” show just hours after winning the state’s special election. Warnock is in office for the remaining two years of former Sen. Johnny Isakson’s term and will have to run for a full term in 2022.
Raphael Warnock Hit With Multiple Tax Liens After Failing To Pay His Trash Bills https://t.co/qLHAJBN6QN
— Thomas Paine (@Thomas1774Paine) January 7, 2021
Historically Red Georgia flips Blue
The two victories were extremely narrow. Ossoff led Perdue by close to 25,000 votes when the race was called in his favor Wednesday afternoon, with a lead slightly larger than 0.5 percentage point margin that would open the door to a recount, though not all votes have yet been tallied. Warnock’s lead was more than 60,000 votes, well outside the recount margin.
“It feels like a brand new day,” a triumphant Schumer (D-N.Y.) said. “For the first time in six years, Democrats will operate a majority in the United States Senate — and that will be very good for the American people.”
As the country experiences “one of the greatest crises we have ever faced,” he continued, “the Senate Democratic majority is committed to delivering the bold change and help Americans need and demand. Senate Democrats know America is hurting — help is on the way.”
In another interview with NPR, Warnock previewed his own legislative priorities, indicating that he would move quickly to help shepherd the passage of $2,000 stimulus checks to Americans.
“We ought to pass the $2,000 stimulus checks,” Warnock said, arguing that “people need immediate relief.”
He added: “I can’t tell you how honored I am that the people of my home state — where I was born and raised and educated at Morehouse College — have decided to send me to the United States Senate to represent their concerns at this defining moment in American history.”
Buckle up patriots. It’s going to be a rough few years. But we’ll get through it.
