Probably the best thing about Democrat Raphael Warnock’s victory over Republican Herschel Walker in the Georgia Senate election Tuesday night was that it represents another significant blow against Donald Trump’s chances to stage a political comeback in 2024.
Trump hand-picked Walker, of course, a seriously under-qualified candidate who was wickedly satirized by Kenyan Thompson in an SNL episode last Saturday night.
In that episode, actors playing Republican leaders including Mitch McConnell ushered Walker into a room with a mirror where he could spend the days leading up to the election out of view from the public. “Hey, I’m already in here,” said Walker as he entered the room and glimpsed himself in the mirror.
***
Trump may be self-destructing with his insane comment in support of suspending the Constitution and the likelihood he will face criminal charges for inciting the January 6th riot. But he remains a living threat to everything that is sacred to anyone who believes in our imperfect democracy.
Now the Georgia results are in, the Democrats control the Senate, 51-49, for the next two years. That means that if the House, where GOP election deniers have proliferated like pig weed, pursues conspiracy theories to impeach Biden, the Senate will send any such vote back where it came from.
Into the room with mirrors.
There was one thing at the end of last night that surprised me and that was Walker’s concession speech, which was surprisingly gracious and notably un-Trump-like. First of all, Walker conceded! Trump would never do that. Secondly, as he thanked his supporters he urged them to continue to believe in the Constitution and to support their elected officials.
I do not know if Walker was taking a direct shot at Trump by saying those things. But he clearly learned something from playing football that Trump never learned.
Sometimes you lose. If so, be a good sport and move on.
And that was refreshing.
LINKS:
Did Herschel Walker just end Trump’s presidential hopes? (The Hill)
Georgia’s runoff system was created to dilute Black voting power (WP)
House January 6 committee has decided to make criminal referrals, chairman says (CNN)
The emerging theme of Donald Trump’s 2024 campaign for president is not only that he actually won in 2020 and the election was rigged against him, but also that the Jan. 6, 2021, riot was an appropriate response. He has made it increasingly clear that he believes that he and his supporters are above the law. Last week, Trump participated via video in a fundraiser for people who are in jail for attacking the Capitol on his behalf. [HuffPost]
Trump digs deeper hole with Constitution comments (The Hill)
Trump Organization convicted in executive tax dodge scheme (AP)
Yes, this might be the end of Donald Trump but we’ve been here before (Independent)
With his call to ‘terminate’ the Constitution, Trump is spinning out of control (WP)
McCarthy or bust? House GOP stuck in ‘burning building’ over speaker's gavel (Politico)
Capitol Police chief: Jan. 6 failures 'largely' fixed but extremism threat persists (NPR)
Supreme Court case to test the limits of election denial (Yahoo)
The Respect for Marriage Act, which passed the U.S. Senate last week, is expected to pass the House of Representatives with bipartisan support. It was designed as a backstop to the Supreme Court ruling and would protect the federal recognition of same-sex marriages. (Reuters)
Governor Calls Attack on Power Stations a ‘New Level of Threat’ (NYT)
North Carolina county enters third day of outages as authorities probe motive (NBC)
Support slipping for indefinite U.S. aid to Ukraine, poll finds (WP)
Ukraine Targets Bases Deep in Russia, Showing Expanded Reach (NYT)
VIDEO: Civilians Shelter in Kyiv Metro Amid Russian Missile Attacks (Reuters)
Russia claims Kyiv hit its air bases, fires more missiles (AP)
Hungary vetoes EU aid for Ukraine, bloc delays decision on funds for Budapest (Reuters)
Ukraine leader defiant as drone strikes hit Russia again (AP)
At least seven killed in northern Afghanistan roadside blast (Al Jazeera)
Afghanistan’s Hunger Crisis Is a Human-Made Catastrophe (WPR)
Countries are gathering for a key U.N. nature conference in Montreal, known as COP15, aiming to set new global targets to protect what's left of Earth's wildlife and natural spaces. More than 10,000 participants are expected to attend the summit over the next two weeks. Here’s their agenda. (Reuters)
In Sweeping New Law, Indonesia Outlaws Sex Outside of Marriage (NYT)
BuzzFeed Lays Off 12% of Employees (Variety)
Meta could remove U.S. news if Congress helps outlets demand payment (WP)
Elon Musk's Neuralink firm facing animal testing investigation - report (BBC)
The Y Chromosome Is Slowly Vanishing. A New Sex Gene Could Be The Future of Men (ScienceAlert)
How We Could Discover Alien Life (Atlantic)
Ancient human relative used fire, surprising discoveries suggest (WP)
Researchers claim that the behavior of a massive extinct herbivore, the Steller’s sea cow, might inform conservation efforts of threatened ecosystems, such as California’s kelp forests. (Cal Today)
Dig at UK housing site yields major 7th century treasures (AP)
Rising Conservative Star Just Guy Wearing Nazi Armband And Crying (The Onion)
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