Why Georgia should get those Democratic dudes into the Senate

Why Georgia should get those Democratic dudes into the Senate

Dr. Josh R. Klein, December 30, 2020

Hi Georgians. I’m your worst nightmare: a lefty New York Jew. Like you, I have learned some things. I’m a college teacher, teaching criminal justice and studying politics. I’m writing you an open letter about this January 5 run-off election thing for your Senate seats. I want you to use your power to increase justice, not just for you — I’m being selfish too. As you know, some folks think you are standing on a cliff:

Walter Clemens:

“Voters in Georgia can change America’s future if they elect two Democrats to represent them in the U.S. Senate. They can stop the Senate from acting as a tool by which… mostly rich white men…have blocked policies that could benefit a majority of Americans” [1].

Jesse Jackson:

“Now the choice facing Georgia is stark: between the sitting Republican senators peddling racial fears and yesterday and the Democratic challengers representing hope and tomorrow.” [2]

Don’t let it go to your head. For one thing, the two above quotes over-sell the Democratic Party. The two parties are not very different; they defend socialism for the 1% instead of for everybody. The Senate will still be a tool of the rich, but the more wealth-protecting Republicans will be a bit cowed, which might make me do a little dance.

As many of you will agree, we seem not to have enough democracy these days. I would trace that problem back a long ways. Anyway, I am asking you to exercise the little democracy we have by voting for the Democratic senate candidates.

You gotta hand it to the right-wingers. They play dirty so good. They accuse Warnock of being anti-Jewish, a claim rejected by some of the smarter Jewish leaders [3]. A past relative is accusing him at a suspiciously important moment. Whatever the Democratic senate candidates’ flaws, their real offenses in the eyes of the rich are that they lean more toward freedom and justice for the 99%.

A couple of facts. Both Republican senators, Perdue and Loeffler, are millionaires. Loeffler was accused by a Republican opponent of seeking to “profit off the pandemic” [2]. Warnock defends the Affordable Care Act, which has meant health insurance for millions and has slowed medical care price increases [4].

I know that many of you will agree with many other Americans that the U.S. government should enact policies to: end U.S. hunger, raise the minimum wage, guarantee jobs, increase unions, increase renewable energy, and increase taxes on the rich [5]. Your two Democratic senate candidates are a bit willing to fight for these things. They are “radical liberal” things. That’s what Loeffler called Warnock at least five times during their recent TV debate.

Lets talk about radical liberals. I can name a few you know: the “founding fathers.” The most radical liberal were Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Paine. Franklin believed in natural and political equality [6, p. 87]. Those words would make most politicians today choke on their buttered snails. Among the founders, Paine, with the most democratic and egalitarian interpretation of the Declaration of Independence [6, p. 63], antagonized many powerful and rich [7, p. 5]. Paine argued for restricting private property (not an individual’s right to a toothbrush, but the power of few to own vast land holdings, factories, mines, buildings, etc.), he thought government should defend the poor, and he viewed poverty as due partly to low pay and economic oppression [8, p. 196]. What wild and crazy guys Ben and Tom were. You helping us get a couple more Democratic guys in the Senate is only the beginning. Next target is capitalism, which is screwing most of us. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Georgia, you do you. And think about what I said, ok? And I promise I’ll buy peaches on my next food shop. Thanks.

REFERENCES

[1] W. Clemens, “As Georgia Goes, So Goes the Senate…and the Country,” CounterPunch.org, Dec. 18, 2020. http://www.counterpunch.org/2020/12/18/as-georgia-goes-so-goes-the-senate-and-the-country/ (accessed Dec. 30, 2020).

[2] J. Jackson, “Senate runoffs in Georgia offer a clear choice,” The Chicago Sun-Times, Nov. 16, 2020. https://chicago.suntimes.com/2020/11/16/21570343/senate-runoffs-georgia-jon-ossof-raphael-warnock (accessed Dec. 30, 2020).

[3] B. Wilkins, “CodePink Defends Georgia Senate Candidate Raphael Warnock After GOP Opponent’s ‘Anti-Semitism’ Smear,” Common Dreams, Nov. 10, 2020. https://www.commondreams.org/news/2020/11/10/codepink-defends-georgia-senate-candidate-raphael-warnock-after-gop-opponents-anti (accessed Dec. 30, 2020).

[4] S. Stasha, “27+ Affordable Care Act Statistics and facts,” PolicyAdvice, Jul. 29, 2020. https://policyadvice.net/insurance/insights/affordable-care-act-statistics/ (accessed Dec. 30, 2020).

[5] J. Corbett, “Amid Public Health and Employment Crises, New Survey Shows Poor Americans Agree on Policy Solutions,” Common Dreams, Nov. 26, 2020. https://www.commondreams.org/news/2020/11/26/amid-public-health-and-employment-crises-new-survey-shows-poor-americans-agree (accessed Dec. 30, 2020).

[6] B.-P. Frost and J. Sikkenga, Eds., History of American Political Thought. Lanham, Md: Lexington Books, 2003.

[7] H. J. Kaye, Thomas Paine and the Promise of America. Hill and Wang, 2005.

[8] G. Claeys, Thomas Paine: Social and Political Thought. London; New York: Routledge, 1989.

Josh R. Klein is Associate Professor in the Department of Criminal Justice and Sociology at Iona College. This article represents his views alone.