It is not fully obvious to enough leftists that Republicans will stop at nothing to suppress votes and voters to retain power. Should Trumpists/Republicans retain any vestige of power after November, they will not, “Go back to normal.” They will use every trick at their disposal to continue voter suppression and further inflame the white supremacist militias that are now content to merely threaten state legislatures. If they are not defeated broadly enough, they will get worse, and there will be exponentially more violence.
They have nothing to lose because what we consider to be anathema to political viability — unvarnished right-wing extremism — they now know to be perfectly acceptable to their base. In fact, it generates enthusiasm. Another stark line for us — breaking the law, flaunting the constitution and violating behavioral norms in order to get whatever they want — is likewise catnip for their base. So far, the Republican party has not been punished in any way for these transgressions, but have been rewarded (even as their share of real popular support shrinks).
It is not enough to Defeat Trump in the presidential race. We must utterly defeat the Republican Party at every level possible. We must have a 50-State Strategy, as well as an Every City, County and School strategy. The numbers must be so overwhelming that Republicans lose all meaningful political power. Every single Republican who embraced Trump in the last six months of 2016 must go home this November and say to themselves, “Well, that was the biggest mistake we ever made. Duh.”
One of the best ways to deliver this kind of bayoneting would be to defeat both Lindsey Graham and Mitch McConnell this November. Not only would this be the icing on the cake of a Senate takeover, not only would it would secure the US Senate for Democrats in the next election (always a challenge for the party not holding presidential power), not only would it encourage Biden to appoint three more justices and take other anti-fascist steps, but it would send proverbial shock-waves through the right-wing bubble. Even the media could not help but notice if Trump’s most powerful “Lieutenants,” having given up all pretense of reason and constitutional behavior in the service of their king, lose their offices that had once been very secure.
Unlike many of the dreams that I dream as I lie awake at night, this one could come true. Here are two articles summarizing Amy McGrath’s chances against McConnell:
Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., who has faced criticism for his handling of President Trump's impeachment, is the most unpopular senator among voters in his state, with a 50% disapproval rating and 37% approval rating, according to approval ratings from Morning Consult….
There are multiple reasons why McConnell may not be well-liked by Kentucky voters. He has supported the ongoing trade war with China, which has hurt Kentucky’s logging industry. He has also been called “Moscow Mitch” due to blocking legislation that would protect U.S. election security. McConnell is also among the most prominent figures in Congress, which had a disapproval rating of 78% in June and has a 68% disapproval rating in December, according to Gallup.
Will Mitch McConnell Get Re-Elected To The Senate? Kentucky Republican Poll Numbers Are Dismal Ahead Of 2020 — International Business Times
Right now, the PPP has shown Senator McConnell has dropped to an 18 percent job approval. Asked whether they would vote for him in 2020, just 37 percent of the Kentucky voters said they would.
New Mitch McConnell Re-Election Polls Show A 2020 Blue Wave — BiPartisan Report
Articles detailing Graham’s vulnerablities:
Graham’s career in politics looks shakey as he’s found himself statistically tied with Democratic challenger Jaime Harrison, and the South Carolina Republican’s favorability rating is plummeting with independent voters.
Graham has only a 2-percentage point lead over Harrison, 47 to 45 percent, in the red state. Ten percent of voters surveyed remain undecided….
Lindsey Graham Could Lose His Senate Seat In 2020, After Democratic Challenger Has Nearly Tied Him In Poll — Political Tribune
Graham raised $5.6 million in the first three months of 2020, and Harrison, the former chair of South Carolina's Democratic party and associate chair of the Democratic National Convention, brought in $7.36 million. That leaves Harrison with $8 million in the bank to continue his challenge against Graham, and puts Graham's war chest at $12.8 million, The Post and Courier reports.
Lindsey Graham keeps breaking fundraising records. His Democratic challenger still outraised him. — The Week
These campaigns are still underdogs, but this looks to be a wave election. Making these fights high-profile will add height to that wave, and it would add momentum to all other races against previously solid republican office-holders. Fighting them here fights them everywhere.
I find myself often thinking that our leadership is not doing enough, even in the face of an actual, on-going fascist terror threat. I feel that progressives and activists are not articulating a clear enough message to our leaders that they need to do more. We also still seem to be reacting rather than taking the fight to them.
Defeating these two candidates seems to me to be a perfect opportunity to hammer the right, and it’s a fight everyone can agree upon. I encourage everybody to make these races priorities in their donations and activism.
https://secure.actblue.com/donate/mcgrath-harrison
secure.actblue.com/...
(Above this line should be an Act Blue donation page, but if it is only a link, please follow that as I attempt to fix the formatting.)
No disclaimer, as I am not associated with any campaign.