Georgia On My Mind

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   Sharlee01posted 3 years ago

   
   Remember last summer, when so many here on the forum were fearful of how Georgia's new voting laws would surly suppress voters. No water, lack of drop boxes, need to follow a few new rules to vote by mail. and more...  Glad to report
   
   ATLANTA — More Georgians went to the polls during the 2022 primary elections early voting period than EVER before, according to the Secretary of State’s Office.
   
   Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger announced over the weekend that the three-week voting period saw voters show up in record numbers.
   
   In total, 857,401 Georgians cast their ballots ahead of election day. Nearly 93% of those ballots were cast in person. The remaining 7% were cast absentee.
   
   The Secretary of State’s office says these numbers show a 168% increase in early voting turnout from the last gubernatorial primary in 2018 and 212% increase from the last presidential primary in 2020.
   
   Raffensperger credited the turnout to Georgia’s new Election Integrity Act, which many have called an act of voter suppression.
   
   “The record early voting turnout is a testament to the security of the voting system and the hard work of our county election officials,” said Georgia Secretary of State Raffensperger. “The incredible turnout we have seen demonstrates once and for all that Georgia’s Election Integrity Act struck a good balance between the guardrails of access and security.”
   
   Many were quick to join in the media hysteria that red states were pushing to change voting laws to make it hard for some folks to vote.  Well,  seems Georgia is doing just fine with the new laws.
   
   I must say, sometimes it's better to sit back and wait and see how things take their course. Wait to determine how it all works out for the actual people involved. 
   
   The Georgia voting law kerfuffle we had last summer gives me cause to stop and think about something we are currently concerned about, the overturn of Roe V Wade. So many "what if's" are floating around on social media, not to mention the media reports.
   
   It makes me think, will it all be as dire as some are predicting?

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      GA Andersonposted 3 years agoin reply to this

      Relative to the success of the new voting laws, (it does look bad for the doomsayers), I'll hold any celebration until I see what challenges will come.
      
      Here's a prediction: Politically, for the democrats, things will be as bad as the pundits are saying. If Kemp wins the primary it will be a double victory.
      
      In the 'who can beat Abrams' arena, I think Kemp is a much stronger candidate for the fight. And, he is the V.P. Pence supported non-Trump choice vs the Pres. Trump-supported loser.
      
      I think that a Pence candidate win will affect some Republican weasels—the ones that don't like anything about Trump, or his presidency, but are publically pro-Trump because they lack character. That effect might be enough to make them feel a little safer in hedging their bets and not be so pro-Trump in public. It's just a thought.
      
      So beyond the governorship victory, it will also help unite a few
      more Republicans against the Trump-driven, (of course, that's my opinion), split they're having now.
      
      Which will also translate into stronger Republican participation in the mid-terms. Yep, It's going to be a red wave in Congress.
      
      GA

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         Sharlee01posted 3 years agoin reply to this

         All makes perfect sense. I think Abrams shot herself in the foot with her derogatory statement about Georgia being the "worst state to live".
         
         I can't imagine many citizens are talking about anything else this morning, and that kind of statement is like gum on a shoe, hard to get rid of. I think we have seen the last of Abrams. She will be headed to CNN.

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            Fayetteville Fayeposted 3 years agoin reply to this

            Well, let's look at some data and see what she was talking about.  she specifically cites the fact that Georgia has the highest maternal mortality / and is the most dangerous state for a woman to become pregnant. Along with being 48 in the nation for access to mental health services.
            
            She was pointing out facts. it takes recognizing a states issues in order to correct them.
            
            That comment was really taken out of contex also.
            
            What is most disappointing to me  is the fact that she's only received very personal attacks by her challengers. No one addressed the issues she raised whatsoever.
            
            Governor Kemp has not yet specifically refuted Abrams’ point by point in which she describes Georgia’s low rankings in several life-and-death health categories.

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               Sharlee01posted 3 years agoin reply to this

               Last night while campaigning he did address her statement ---
               
               "Governor Kemp, at a rally in Cobb County Monday night with former Vice President Mike Pence, mentioned Abrams by name.
               
               “Well I don’t know about y’all, but I’m glad we’re the number one state in the country for business,” Kemp said. “We are the best state in the country to live, work and raise our families in. And that is why we are in a fight for the soul of our state.”
               
               Kemp has not yet specifically refuted Abrams’ point by point in which she describes Georgia’s low rankings in several life-and-death health categories. But, he is campaigning on a long list of accomplishments in other areas.
               
               He tweeted a thread on Monday, listing some of what he’s done in the office for the economy, public safety, and other areas.
               
               Yet, Kemp did not answer Abrams on her other criticisms, such as Georgia being number one among the 50 states in new HIV cases (which is an accurate ranking, according to the CDC.)
               
               On the issue of maternal mortality, Kemp did write on Twitter, “We extended postpartum coverage from 6 to 12 months, and we’ve made large investments to address Georgia’s maternal mortality rate.”
               
               It is clear he does not campaign using the ploy ---" hate where you live" hate your country, hate your neighbor if they don't agree with you.
               
               This has become a sad cry, and ploy of Democrats in my view. Biden uses this tactic almost every time he gets in front of a camera. This kind of rhetoric breeds hate. Turns one against the other. 
               
               I keep faith that more Americans will come to see what this party is promoting and turn away from the sick hateful ideologies they are pushing.

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                  Fayetteville Fayeposted 3 years agoin reply to this

                  I don't think it's sick or hateful for any politician on either side of the aisle to point out where there are problems and  issues that need attention. I don't pretend to know that much about Georgia but if they are ranking near the bottom of all the states on some key quality of life issues I think it's important to bring those up. She made an encouraging comment about how they could make improvements.   Her comment  actually made me look up my own state's ranking on the factors she listed and more.  It really got me to thinking why the politicians in my own state aren't addressing some of these issues? We're right there near the bottom on a lot of key metrics also but I guess hey just sweep them under the rug and pretend like they don't exist.

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               GA Andersonposted 3 years agoin reply to this

               As I heard her statements hit the news my perception was and still is, that this is probably a fatal political gaff.
               
               It only took a second to realize the context of her statement, and the numbers support her, but the only numbers voters hear are the ones that directly affect their pocketbooks. All they are going to hear is what the Republicans are promoting: Stacy Abrams says Georgia is the worst state to live in because of the people of Georgia.
               
               This will amount to a lot more than a simple misunderstanding.
               
               GA

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                  Fayetteville Fayeposted 3 years agoin reply to this

                  "Stacy Abrams says Georgia is the worst state to live in because of the people of Georgia."
                  
                  I don't know how anyone could come to that conclusion after listening to the entirety of her statement.  That's really a stretch.

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                     GA Andersonposted 3 years agoin reply to this

                     I thought I noted that, but to be clear, I don't think most people (much more than "anyone") will hear the entirety of her statement. That 'most people' won't hear about 'the context' until after the media's repeated 16-sec loops of her statements have established a false impression that, in their minds, adds the finish to Abrams' statement: '. . .  because of the people of Georgia.'
                     
                     I don't think that's a stretch at all. The election will tell us if it was.
                     
                     GA

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                        Fayetteville Fayeposted 3 years agoin reply to this

                        Well certain media outlets are already obscuring the context.

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                           GA Andersonposted 3 years agoin reply to this

                           Yes, conservative media is ignoring the context and spinning her statement for all it's worth. I think it is worth a lot in the minds of most of the average conservative voters.
                           
                           However, the supporting media are also milking it. Even though they end up explaining the context, their headlines and lead-ins all use the bare statement and the same 16-sec. loop—before they get into the details of the context a third or half-way into the reporting.
                           
                           GA

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   GA Andersonposted 3 years ago

   Oh lordy, lordy, I just heard her do it again, what the hell is wrong with Abrams? I mean I heard her do it, not some spin that she did it.
   
   Here's what she did at a media event: In rebutting conservative charges that her voter suppression claims about Georgia's new voting laws were proven wrong, she said something like this;
   
   'The voter turn-out numbers don't mean that the new laws aren't suppressing the vote. Causation does not equal correlation, wait, some folks will sharpshoot that, I mean Correlation does not equal causation . . . yadda, yadda, yadda. . .
   
   Pick a number, what percentage of average voters will hear that, and think, "What the hell did she just say? More voters means voters were suppressed?"
   
   I say what difference does it make that she could be right, (or not), what part of the Georgia electorate do you think would know what she meant without asking Google. Even more basic, what percentage would even be motivated to ask Google?
   
   ♫ Second verse, same as the first . . .♫
   
   GA

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      Sharlee01posted 3 years agoin reply to this

      Say it enough and some believe it...  Like a catchy tune sing the one line over and over.
      
      Just give them something to be ashamed of, and ya got their vote.
      
      You have, on one hand, America First, on the other hate America, be ashamed of America.  Which is more appealing?  One might think this hate 'ashamed ploy has seen better days.

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   Sharlee01posted 3 years ago

   
   
   
   "Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, ripped Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams Wednesday on "The Faulkner Focus," calling out her "big lie" about voter suppression and arguing the Democratic candidate has it "all wrong" on voter turnout in the Peach State.
   
   SEN. JONI ERNST: Stacey Abrams has this all wrong. When you're saying there's voter suppression and yet we see increases year over year of voter turnout, she is promoting the big lie out there that we are trying to suppress votes all across the United States by making sure that our elections are secure. We have seen this even in Iowa where we have strengthened voter security laws, and you know what? Voter turnout continues to go up. So Stacey Abrams is trying to promote a fallacy out there. She is lying to voters across the state of Georgia and there's nothing to see here other than trying to make sure elections are secure, and I do hope we have strong voter turnout out there. I think it's important that people participate in the elections process. But again, she is trying to promote something that simply is not happening."

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