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Tag: johnny isakson
The Senate Needs Strong Democratic Voices

The Senate Needs Strong Democratic Voices

Stacey Abrams, please change your mind.

Earlier this week, upon hearing news of the impending retirement of U.S. Sen. Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., Abrams released a statement saying that she would not seek the seat. That’s too bad.

Georgia isn’t a purple state quite yet — it still has a reddish hue — but Abrams, former minority leader of the Georgia Senate, likely stands a better chance than any other Democrat of re-coloring the electoral map by capturing the seat. While she lost her bid for governor last year, she finished with a very respectable total, winning 48.8 percent of votes cast. It was the closest race for governor in Georgia since 1966, according to political experts.

If the reign of Mitch McConnell has taught us anything (aside from the truth of that old adage about the link between power and corruption), it’s that the U.S. Senate is critically important in determining the fate of the nation. Americans naturally focus on the authority of the president; the man or woman who inhabits the Oval Office is believed to hold the power to correct the economy, safeguard our constitutional rights and defeat our enemies abroad. But Congress is a co-equal branch of government, and the upper chamber has been given a special role by the U.S. Constitution.

As long as Trump-happy Republicans remain in charge, the federal judiciary will steadily harden into a formidable barrier against progressive forces; protections for the environment and consumers will continue to erode; and corporations and the wealthy will continue to enjoy special political privileges that lay waste to the concept of the common good. The obstructionist rule of Mitch McConnell, Senate majority leader, has been especially detrimental.

Even as minority leader, McConnell used protocol and procedure to gum up the works, preventing President Barack Obama from passing many of his legislative priorities. In 2010, McConnell infamously declared that “the single most important thing we want to achieve is for President Obama to be a one-term president.” He didn’t achieve that, but he did manage to derail many of the president’s second-term priorities. When Republicans gained control of the Senate in 2014, McConnell’s talent for forcing party discipline helped him to block Obama’s last U.S. Supreme Court pick, Merrick Garland.

The Trump presidency has merely magnified McConnell’s power, not only his ability to force through right-wing Supreme Court justices but also to block commonsense policies. McConnell has even refused to allow a vote on a bill, already passed by the House of Representatives, that would give states more money to protect their elections from foreign interference. Why?

Still, he has good reason to be optimistic that his malignant reign will continue. Electoral math and political terrain make 2020 a challenging year for Democrats hoping to take control of the upper chamber. They would have to hold on to every Senate seat they now control, and that won’t be easy. Alabama’s lone Democratic senator, Doug Jones, won his seat because of special circumstances — a vile opponent named Roy Moore — that worked in his favor. Jones is particularly vulnerable in his re-election bid.

In addition to retaining the seats they now control, Democrats need to pick up three seats currently held by Republicans. (That’s if Democrats win the White House; if Trump is re-elected, Democrats would need to pick up four seats for effective control.) While 23 Republican senators are up for re-election next year, most are in states considered likely or certain GOP territory.

Isakson’s announcement, though, makes one formerly certain seat a little less so.

His replacement, who will be named by Georgia’s Republican governor, Brian Kemp, will surely be a hardcore conservative, and that new senator will bring the advantage of incumbency to the campaign in 2020. But he or she won’t have Isakson’s stature.

The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee should get serious about including Georgia in next year’s prospects, starting with recruiting an excellent candidate. Getting rid of McConnell ought to be every bit as compelling as getting rid of Trump.

Georgia’s Sen. Isakson To Retire, Improving Democratic Chances In 2020

Georgia’s Sen. Isakson To Retire, Improving Democratic Chances In 2020

Republican Sen. Johnny Isakson of Georgia announced Wednesday that he will resign at the end of the year because of “mounting health challenges” related to his Parkinson’s disease.

“I have concluded that I will not be able to do the job over the long term in the manner the citizens of Georgia deserve,” he said in a statement.

Isakson will step down at the end of the year, and Georgia’s Republican governor, Brian Kemp, will name his replacement until the state holds a special election, likely next year.

Isakson’s retirement has huge implications for the fate of the Senate, with Republicans having to defend 22 of the 34 Senate seats up in 2020. Isakson’s seat open makes it 23. With Democrats needing to pick up three or four Senate seats — depending on who wins the White House — this gives Democrats another opportunity to take back control of the Senate from the GOP and from the self-described “Grim Reaper”of popular legislation, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.

David Perdue, Georgia’s other Republican senator, is also up for reelection next year, and he’s a top target for Democrats. It’s an uphill battle for Democrats in Georgia, but there have been signs in the last year that it’s not impossible. Stacey Abrams nearly defeated Kemp in last year’s gubernatorial race, and Lucy McBath picked up Georgia’s 6th Congressional District — a seat Republicans had held for decades.

As Jeff Singer of Daily Kos Elections writes, “A Democratic victory in one of the Peach State’s two seats would go a long way toward helping Team Blue turn its 53-47 deficit in the Senate into a majority, and it now has the tantalizing possibility of taking both.”

Published with permission of The American Independent.

Georgia Senators Will Consider Future Clinton Supreme Court Nominees

Georgia Senators Will Consider Future Clinton Supreme Court Nominees

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Georgia’s two Republican senators broke with members of their party, saying they would consider Supreme Court nominees put forward by Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton if she wins the presidency, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported on Sunday.

The comments from U.S. Senator Johnny Isakson, who is up for re-election on Tuesday, and U.S. Senator David Perdue came after Republican Senators John McCain and Ted Cruz suggested they might block any of Clinton’s potential nominees.

“You don’t shirk your responsibility when you’re an elected official. You sanctify your responsibility, and that’s what I’ll do. I’ll consider who she nominates at the time she does and make a decision that’s right for the people of Georgia,” Isakson told the Atlanta newspaper.

A spokeswoman for Perdue, a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, told the AJC: “He wants to ensure we have a Supreme Court justice who will uphold the Constitution, and he will examine each nominee independently based on their merits.”

The death of conservative Justice Antonin Scalia in February has left the nine-member high court short one justice and evenly split between liberals and conservatives.

In March, President Barack Obama nominated Merrick Garland, a federal appeals court judge, to replace Scalia, but the Republican-led Senate has refused to consider the nomination, saying the next president should make the pick.

The Senate’s inaction on Garland, a centrist, has made the Supreme Court a potent issue in the election. After many years of leaning conservative, the court could tilt to the left for the first time in decades if Clinton wins the election.

Isakson said he expects the Senate will confirm Garland before January in the event of a Clinton victory. Some Republicans fear Clinton would nominate a more liberal justice, swinging the ideological balance of the court even further to the left.

(Additional reporting by David Morgan; Editing by Paul Simao)

IMAGE: U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton addresses the crowd during a campaign rally in the Hall of Fame Pavilion at Louisville Slugger Filed in Louisville, Kentucky, U.S., May 10, 2016. REUTERS/John Sommers II  

Senator Johnny Isakson Announces Parkinson’s Diagnosis

Senator Johnny Isakson Announces Parkinson’s Diagnosis

Senator Johnny Isakson (R-GA) announced in a statement Wednesday morning that he is being treated for Parkinson’s Disease, after having been diagnosed with the degenerative illness two years ago.

“I am in the early stages of the disease, and my main symptoms are the stiffness in my left arm and a slowed, shuffling gait,” Isakson said. “The recovery from the back surgery I had in October 2014 also has affected my gait. I have undergone rigorous physical therapy; I do exercises every morning and evening; and I take two Parkinson’s medicines.”

“My diagnosis has not impacted my ability to represent the state of Georgia in the U.S. Senate,” Isakson also added. “I am serving on five Senate committees and am the only Republican serving as chairman of two Senate committees. I am busier and have more responsibility today than ever before in my political career, and I couldn’t be happier about that. I remain devoted to public service, to my state and to my constituents. I am eager to take my record of results to the voters of Georgia as I run for re-election in 2016.”

Isakson’s press release also included a statement from his neurologist, Dr. Thomas M. Holmes, MD, of the Marietta Neurology & Headache Center, attesting to the senator’s continued overall health and capability.

Photo: Senator Johnny Isakson (R-GA), via Senate.gov