It was the most expensive House race in history. It was hyped to no end. It was the bellwether for how Democrats could perform in red-leaning districts. And they failed. Georgia’s special election in its sixth congressional race, which cost over $50 million dollars, pitted Democrat Jon Ossoff against Republican Karen Handel. Handel won and now Jon Ossoff, who didn’t perform any better than when he first failed to clinch the seat in a primary, is slated to be an oracle to victory at the progressive Netroots Nation conference in Atlanta. David Rutz at the Free Beacon has more [bold indicates conference agenda text]:
The 30-year-old documentary filmmaker and former congressional aide lost the most expensive U.S. House race in history to Republican Karen Handel in June. The two were vying to fill the sixth congressional district seat in Georgia vacated by Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price.
Ossoff also did not live in the district he was running for and thus was unable to vote for himself.
Yet Ossoff will be a featured panelist at "Leaving it All on the Field: The Midterm Elections in the Resistance Era." The description of the panel reads:
Democrats have suffered severe losses in recent midterm elections. Because of redistricting, the 2010 elections devastated the party so badly that we have not yet been able to recover. And 2014 wasn’t much better. But the party in control of the White House usually loses ground in the midterms—and because of Trump, progressives are more mobilized than they have been in a decade. Just in time, too: not only is control of the House at stake, but the next round of redistricting is just around the corner. For 2018, where, and how, should progressive activists focus their energy for maximum impact? Our panel— comprised of a handicapper, a staffer, an activist, and a candidate—will approach these questions from each angle.
It will be moderated by Daily Kos labor editor Laura Clawson, with Ossoff, operative Carolyn Fiddler, Daily Kos political director David Nir, and "potential candidate for Congress" Lauren Underwood serving as panelists. Democrats are hoping to win back control of Congress after two straight dismal election cycles for their party.
Yeah, Democrats need to quit using redistricting as a crutch to explain their serial failure in winning elections. It’s because they moved to the Left of America, especially on culture issues, and they embraced an authoritarian version of political correctness. They shunned white working class voters, 44 percent of eligible voters, lost the rural counties, and have no farm system to find quality candidates to win in these areas. Democrats need to reclaim rural America to retake Congress and win back the presidency. They cannot do it with just the cities. And because of these geographic constraints, it’s very possible that the GOP can retain its majority in Congress next year, especially if Trump increases his approval ratings to at least 40 percent. That’s unprecedented, but also a rather stinging reminder for the Left that the depth of their political apparatus is stunningly shallow.
Jon Ossoff will be leading a panel discussion at Netroots on Saturday about winning the 2018 midterm elections pic.twitter.com/uRcJwZyJHR
— Jeff Stein (@JStein_Vox) August 10, 2017
If more than 50% of your '16 voters lived in just 9 states & 94 of America's 3,141 counties...you're probably not a healthy national party.
— Dave Wasserman (@Redistrict) August 8, 2017
My point is not that complicated, guys: Democrats' historic geographic concentration is negatively impacting their ability to win power.
— Dave Wasserman (@Redistrict) August 8, 2017
Democrats are giddy about the 23-24 House seats where voters split tickets for Hillary Clinton and their respective GOP representative. The problem is that there are a dozen Democratic House districts where Trump won last year. Second, suburban districts aren’t enough to win back the House. Third, and here’s the real punch to the gut, even if the Democrats were able to turnout every Clinton voter who voted for a Republican House member and have them flip their vote—it wouldn’t be enough to retake the House. It all circles back that they need to branch out from the metropolitan centers of power and maybe tolerate Democrats who are pro-gun, pro-life, and not too keen on single-payer health care. That is a compromise that they may not be able to accept, as the party heads for a collision course with its own geographic wall. Yet, by all means, elevate Ossoff as an oracle for winning since moral victories are all that you have right now, Democrats.
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