By Dustin Rowles | Politics | December 13, 2017 |
By Dustin Rowles | Politics | December 13, 2017 |
Good morning, everyone! I cannot believe that the morning after an Alabama Senate election, we are reveling in a Democratic victory. We’re still living in a nightmare, but the country is trying to wake us up from it. Last night’s election was like having a train blaring outside our windows. I felt stirrings of hope. By God, if we survive it, I think 2018 is going to be a great year.
What’s remarkable about the election, and what people are going to be talking about for days, are all the factors besides Roy Moore that pushed us over the top. There was the reporting by the Washington Post; the women who bravely came forward with their accusations against Roy Moore; there was Patti Sue Mathis, and her father Nathan, who nervously called upon the people of Alabama to vote for decency. But most of all, there were the Black voters.
Black voters illustrated that, if they turn out in big enough numbers, they can elect a Democrat in a deeply red state. The number that jumps out the most this morning, besides the fact that 92 percent of black voters pulled the lever for Doug Jones, is that Doug Jones won 16 percent of the female vote, despite the fact that 29 percent of white women voted for Roy Moore. That is insane.
And the thing is, if Democrats do what Charles Barkely suggests they do, and really go after the African American vote instead of taking it for granted, it’s possible to flip other states in the South. Alabama has the sixth largest percent of African American voters in the country, but a good God-fearing liberal Democrat who had a strong appeal to black voters could completely flip a state like Georgia (which is 30 percent black) or even Mississippi (37 percent black) or Louisiana, which is 32 percent black.
Best tweet of the night was this one:
.@TheDemocrats we owe Black voters a huge debt; maybe we pay them back by fighting voter suppression and gerrymandering, instead of worrying about reconnecting with rural white men? Just a thought.
— Boonie von Boonstrom (@LuceBoone) December 13, 2017
If folks like Jason Kander can fix the gerrymandering issues, the voter suppression, and the fucked up Voter ID laws in the Deep South, men like Roy Moore or Thad Cochran — who has held his seat in Mississippi since 1978, and who is “very proud” to use as his own the desk of Jefferson Davis — could get drummed out of office. Mississippi is 41 percent non-white; ain’t no goddamn reason in the world that a Confederate-flag loving motherfucker should not only be winning that state, but doing so handily.
Anyway, I got off track. Let’s just bask in the glow of these reactions from Twitter, which basically fall into three categories: Hell Yeah, Doug Jones; Thank You Black Voters; and go fuck yourself, Steve Bannon.
Selma, Lord, Selma. It’s no coincidence that Selma, where blood was shed in the struggle for voting rights for Black people, pushed #DougJones ahead for good. #Alabama
— Be A King (@BerniceKing) December 13, 2017
I'm gonna go ahead and volunteer to direct SELMA RETURNS. pic.twitter.com/IbmtDEEiBp
— Ava DuVernay (@ava) December 13, 2017
People love dunking on Steve Bannon https://t.co/q56wafAOkr
— (((Happy Hanuk-Kay))) (@kaysteiger) December 13, 2017
Cheers to all the craven assholes who knew better but endorsed a guy who molested a 14 year old girl anyway.
— Tim Miller (@Timodc) December 13, 2017
What an excellent night it is to think about how Jeff Sessions is a huge piece of shit
— Chris Conroy (@dyfl) December 13, 2017
Source close to WH: "It's devastating for the president… this is an earthquake… Virginia but on steroids… the president has egg on his face" because of Bannon.
— Jim Acosta (@Acosta) December 13, 2017
Roy Moore won’t concede; says will wait on God to speak. God wasn’t registered to vote in AL but the ppl who voted did speak and it wasn’t close enough for recount. In elections everyone does NOT get a trophy. I know first hand but it’s best to exit with class.
— Gov. Mike Huckabee (@GovMikeHuckabee) December 13, 2017
Hey Roy, hit me up if you need pointers on how to gracefully concede you dirtbag.
— Justin Guarini (@JustinGuarini) December 13, 2017
Thank you again black women for saving us from a monster.
— Solomon Georgio (@solomongeorgio) December 13, 2017
Maybe the @nytimes should send their reporters to interview working class Black voters in Alabama diners.
— Steven Santos (@stevensantos) December 13, 2017
Hey @MooreSenate, I know this is disappointing, but you know what always makes me feel better?
— Charlie Kesslering (@kesslering) December 13, 2017
Some retail therapy, baby!
Drop a few hundies at the mall and—
Oh… wait. Shit.
Ready for folks to stop calling Bannon an evil genius & start calling him an evil racist who is not very good at his job
— Clint Smith (@ClintSmithIII) December 13, 2017
Roy Moore not conceding reminds me of something I’ve noticed: a certain kind of white man, having grown used to creating realities to his liking, when confronted with a reality not to his liking tantrums like a goddamned baby
— Andy Richter (@AndyRichter) December 13, 2017
It’s not easy to go 0-2 in the same race with two different candidates but @realDonaldTrump just pulled that off. He has Bannon to thank for that 2nd loss
— Chuck Todd (@chucktodd) December 13, 2017
Worth noting that most African-American women, who gave Doug Jones a huge boost, are churchgoers. They’re “values voters,” every bit as much as evangelicals and other faith groups. pic.twitter.com/pXgGjuV0Qh
— Daniel Burke (@BurkeCNN) December 13, 2017
If black people had voted 68% for a pedophile last night, the media would be spending all day questioning the moral character of black families and communities.
— Samuel Sinyangwe (@samswey) December 13, 2017
Illinois Republican Congressman here:
Bannon is a RINO. His morally inept strategies are unwelcome here. #YoureFired
— Adam Kinzinger (@RepKinzinger) December 13, 2017
Give Bannon and Trump credit: They said they were going to redraw the map in ways establishment Republicans never dreamed about.
— Jonathan V. Last (@JVLast) December 13, 2017
Promises made; promises kept.
W’s Press Secretary:
Establishment candidate Ed Gillespie lost. Non-establishment candidate Roy Moore lost. The lesson: A base-only POTUS isn’t enough for gop to win. Ds hate Trump more than Rs love him. POTUS needs to increase his approval rating or D turnout will kill Rs in 2018.
— Ari Fleischer (@AriFleischer) December 13, 2017