The Georgia Dilemma

As Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue campaign as a check on Biden, many of their voters remain convinced Trump won.

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CANTON, GA—It’s runoff season in Georgia, and the GOP crowd that’s gathered here at the Canton campus of Chattahoochee Technical College in the north of the state for a “Defend the Majority Rally” is feeling pretty good. It isn’t just Sens. David Perdue and Kelly Loeffler they’ll hear from: The headliner is Mike Pence, who—while no substitute for the big guy, rallywise—has plenty of star power of his own in these parts. On the shuttle bus from the parking lot to the venue, a young girl a row in front of me informs her grandmother that, if she gets to meet Pence, she’ll pass out.

Once we arrive at the outdoor venue, the crowd mills about and people chat with their friends, enjoying the November sunshine. The arrival of the motorcade is an occasion of great excitement. The good times last until about a third of the way through the program. Sen. Perdue is speaking, and here’s what he says:

“We have spent four years with President Trump and Vice President Pence rebuilding our military. And these guys want to cut the military for the third time in 30 years. Clinton did it, Obama and Biden did it, and they’ll do it again with President Biden—if it turns out that way. We’re not going to let that happen in Georgia.”

Suddenly the crowd is on edge. A discontented buzz starts up. Then, as Perdue tries to move on, they start to chant: “STOP THE STEAL! STOP THE STEAL!”

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  1. Avatar photo
    Jason Gibson

    This is a great and absolutely discouraging article..................First time I felt a bad feeling that the Trump phenomena isn't going anywhere............(have I been blissfully naive?)

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  2. JohnO

    Organized, delusional people: always troubling. But hard to tell how numerous. It seems almost a joke to rely on polls for this given recent history besides the general difficulty in inferring the degree and nuance in people's feelings on a question like 'was the election legitimate?' Anyway the bottom line in practical politics is whether the election challenge farce actually depresses GA GOP turnout in the runoffs. One big missing piece of info is what Trump does. He has said 'don't listen' to people on the right saying not to vote for Perdue/Loeffler. Question is whether he'll actively campaign for them and what he'll say while doing so. But 'sources close to' stories generally say he realizes he lost and is focusing now on a future with GOP king maker or even 2024 candidate as a major option. And the Democrats with control of the Senate could undo much more of his legacy than just Biden in the WH. It's very much in Trump's self interest that Perdue and Loeffler win, therefore the likely outcome is he attempts to help them. The risk to P/L would be more the usual one with Trump: that he says stuff on the stump to excite GOP turnout which may increase Democratic turnout as much. In this case specifically, how much will he carry on about how he actually won rather than talk about the Senate?

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    Donny from Queens

    Dude I live here with them. They are not good-hearted people gone astray. That narrative is as much a part of the problem as they are. Willful stupidity is a moral problem.

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    John D. Wright

    These people aren’t just in GA. I know they are in KY too. I live around them.

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    Stephanie

    Everyone's talking about whether or not Loeffler & Perdue should be re-elected.

    It seems to me, on the other hand, that a big focus of Andrew's piece is that people who should have more sense have totally bought into right wing conspiracy theories and cannot somehow take it in that Trump's actually been voted out.

    This seems like a terrible situation to me. It's not just Georgia, either. It seems to be most anyone who limits their information intake to the right wing media bubble. It's a mass delusion. There are people I thought were my friends, going back to high school, who repeat this rubbish. I said to one person that no politician was important enough for people to quarrel about, and she looked at me as if I had 3 eyes.

    I can't imagine what could possibly change this situation, either. It seems almost like an addiction that can't be treated. Trump supporters live in a world I don't recognize where facts are not important.

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    Sonofasailor35

    When a nutjob is disposed to vote for you instead of your opponent, what do you do? Call him a nutjob? The answer to that question is why honorable people mostly do not aspire to be politicians.

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  7. Rick Osial

    Why Trump isn’t in Georgia whipping up the GOP vote for the two GOP nominees as opposed to his current Manginot Line of attack/defense only shows the short sidedness of the strategic.

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  8. Brett Austin

    I don't see the dilemma here. Conservatives need to speak the truth even if it's not popular with their base. If acknowledging Biden's win costs them the senate, well that's on Trump. Maybe losing the senate is a natural consequence of having Trump as President, but I teach my kids that it's never OK to lie in order to escape consequences.

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    1. Boatbody

      Horse hockey.

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      1. Boatbody

        Brett are you going to hold Democrat's to the same speak the truth doctrine? As for lying to escape consequences, are your children yet teenagers?

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          Donny from Queens

          You would get a spanking at my house for the “what aboutism.” You clearly lack a sense of personal moral responsibility. Your parents failed not just you but our society.

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          1. Boatbody

            My father flew fighter planes off aircraft carriers in the Pacific during WWII. Mom raised three kids who all got college degrees when that was not in vogue and all of us can do critical thinking, thank you. they helped build our society, not tear it down. I don't need your moral judgment. You lack it.

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  9. Charles Gonzalez

    Really - I don’t care what they think in GA or ND or SD or MS or AL or even FL - let them eat their cake and feel the consequences of their beliefs and actions - the nation moves on.

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    Adam

    Terminal. Schadenfreude.

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