Let’s Retire The Grim Reaper Of Progressive Policies In 2020!

At the present time, the Democrats are solid favorites to hold on to — or even expand — their majority in the House of Representatives in 2020. For example, Don Bacon is acting like a vulnerable and targeted incumbent in CD02. At the same time, the Democrats are favored to win back the White House from Donald Trump. Democratic front runner Joe Biden currently leads Trump in all recent presidential polls. Moreover, Trump’s approval ratings are in the tank in Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. Trump even trails Biden and Sanders in Texas!

Ousting Trump and maintaining our majority in the House aren’t enough. We need to regain control of the Senate. Mitch McConnell recently boasted that he is the “grim reaper” for progressive policies. Since January, the House has passed over 100 bills, including election reform, gun reform, health care reform and a legal pathway to citizenship for the Dreamers. McConnell has refused to hold an up or down vote on all of this legislation.

The Democrats need to pick up a minimum of three seats to regain control of the Senate. In addition, the Senate map is favorable to the Democrats in 2020. Out of the 34 seats that are up, 22 of them are held by Republicans. The only vulnerable Democrat in this cycle is Doug Jones in Alabama. This is a huge opportunity for the Democrats to break McConnell’s iron grip on the Senate.

In contrast, six GOP held seats are in play or could be in play. The Democrats’ best pick up opportunities are in Arizona, Colorado and Maine. Other strong possibilities can be found in Georgia, Iowa, and North Carolina. In Arizona, former astronaut — and the spouse of Gabby Giffords — Mark Kelly has a good chance to knock off appointed GOP Senator Martha McSally. Susan Collins’ approval ratings are in free fall and down to the low 40s in light of her mendacity in connection with the Kavanaugh hearings.

The Democrats could put Montana and Texas in play if Steve Bullock and Beto O’Rourke end their quixotic presidential campaigns and choose to run for the Senate. Serving in the Senate with a Democratic president and Democratic majorities in both houses would be a great way for them to serve our country. The Senate would actually work again with a Democratic majority.

Here in Nebraska, incumbent Ben Sasse is the favorite to be re-elected. So far, three Democratic candidates have announced: Angie Philips, Chris Janicek and Dan Wik. Some other candidates may throw their hat in the ring before the filing deadline of March 1, 2020.

The stakes in the Senate elections couldn’t be higher. We are in the current mess because millions of Democrats stayed home in 2014 and 2016. This apathy allowed the GOP to regain control of the Senate in 2014 and maintain its majority in 2016. McConnell has used that majority to pack the Supreme Court and the lower federal courts with right wing extremists selected by the Federalist Society.

If the Democrats win the presidency and the House in 2020 but fall short in the Senate, the results could be catastrophic. The economy will most likely go into a recession in 2020 or 2021. If that were to occur with a GOP majority in the Senate, McConnell wouldn’t allow one nickel of stimulus money to pass. The new Democratic president would be unfairly blamed for the recession and the GOP would make a big comeback in 2022.

If we achieve the trifecta in 2020, the filibuster rule must be abolished. If the filibuster rule is maintained, about the only thing the Democrats could accomplish would be to roll back the Trump tax cuts for the rich. Progressive legislation on health care, immigration, labor law reform, judicial reform, gun reform, and climate change would be blocked. The filibuster rule must go.

I don’t have to tell you that the 2020 election is perhaps the most important election in our lifetimes. If Trump is re-elected, the judiciary will be dominated for decades by right wing radicals who will do the bidding of big business and the top 1%. In addition, we will fall further behind in the race to deal with the threat of global warming. Finally, the START treaty with Russia will expire in 2021. Trump will most likely repudiate that vital treaty and start another nuclear arms race.

Now let’s go out there and take our country back from the malefactors of great wealth. We can do this! Let’s get it done in 2020!