Democrats Don't Want to Run for the Senate--and It Will Screw Them

[Celerity]

https://www.thedailybeast.com/stacey-abrams-and-other-top-democrats-look-longingly-at-the-white-house-but-loathe-the-senate

At least three of the nearly two dozen Democrats eyeing the presidency would have a good shot at winning a Senate race and helping to end the GOP’s domination. Instead they chose not to answer their party’s call to make the run, and you can’t really blame them.

Party favorite Stacey Abrams bowing out of the Georgia Senate race put a spotlight on the challenge Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer faces in recruiting candidates who want to come to Washington and serve in a chamber mired in gridlock. “Serving in the Senate is not nearly as fun as it used to be,” says Jennifer Duffy, who tracks Senate races for the non-partisan Cook Political Report.

Abrams may yet enter the presidential race, putting her in good company with Beto O’Rourke, who rejected a second try for the Senate in Texas, and John Hickenlooper, who won’t challenge Republican Senator Cory Gardner in Colorado, instead opting to be the longest of long shots for president.

Then there’s Montana Governor Steve Bullock, who turned down party entreaties to run for the Senate, explaining it doesn’t suit his skill set. “I just wouldn’t enjoy it,” he said. Who does these days? Democrats are hard to recruit when it means serving in an institution controlled by the loathsome Mitch McConnell, who has stripped away many of the rules and traditions that made the Senate a club politicians wanted to join.

snip


another big turn-down not mentioned:

Susan Rice Will Not Run Against Susan Collins For Maine Senate Seat In 2020

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/susan-rice-will-not-run-against-susan-collins-for-maine-senate-seat-in-2020_n_5caf9d2ae4b082aab082e55a

[greymattermom]

1. I really don't get this.

Stacey Abrams has traveled the state and is well known. What's wrong with the Senate? We need better judges, at least, and Abrams needs national experience, so it would have helped her career if she won.

[InAbLuEsTaTe]

2. I don't get it either, or the others' decisions not to run... disappointing to say the least.

Bernie & Elizabeth 2020!!!
Welcome to the revolution!!!

[Celerity]

3. I think she is going to jump in the POTUS race, how that turns out will be interesting

[Lochloosa]

6. Not well. That is a big leap.

[StarfishSaver]

12. How is that any bigger a leap than Beto running for president?

[comradebillyboy]

14. Beto was amember of the US House of Representatives, Abrams was

in the Georgia legislature. It's a much bigger step from the state legislature to the White House. Both are hobbled by having lost their last elections.

[StarfishSaver]

18. It's no bigger a step than going from reality television to the White House

And a few years - or even many years - in the U.S. House is not a solid stepping stone to the White House as proven by the dearth of nominees or presidents who went straight from the House to the White House.

But we seem more comfortable with white men believing they're entitled to make such leaps than minorities and women doing so. In this context, even though white men can't jump any better than black women, we don't tell them not to try or hold it against them when they do.

[comradebillyboy]

20. That worked out well didn't it.

[Lochloosa]

16. It's not and the polls reflect that. I don't see Beto making any headway.

[Rambling Man]

17. How is that any bigger a leap than Trump running for reelection?

[Deb]

4. I hope some are in wait for probable impeachment damage to weaken opponents

A girl can dream.

[NewJeffCT]

5. Unless Biden promised the VP slot to Abrams

I don't see why she wouldn't run for Senate. Are there other Democrats in Georgia that have her level of name recognition that could challenge for the Senate? John Lewis is 79, so is probably too old to switch over to Senate.

Lucy McBath? but, that seems a quick jump from winning a House seat and then moving already to the Senate.

[Celerity]

7. top alternatives to Abrams

https://www.ajc.com/blog/politics/georgia-2020-who-could-challenge-david-perdue-for-senate/Y0JBvUsi5X2LvQqGmTBD7O/

the top 4

Former Columbus Mayor Teresa Tomlinson

Former congressional candidate Jon Ossoff

Sarah Riggs Amico, business executive

Michelle Nunn


Democrats who have ruled themselves out: Former gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams. Ex-acting Attorney General Sally Yates (Yates was another big decline). State Sen. Jen Jordan.

[NewJeffCT]

9. Nunn lost a tough race to him last time around

if I recall. She's a conservative Dem like her father, but it's better than a rubber stamp for Donny Dollhands.

Just read the wikipedia page for Tomlinson - seems impressive - I liked the story of her saving her alma mater. Plus, a JD from Emory is a plus.

[Celerity]

10. 2 of Biden's aides floated the idea of Joe picking Abrams as a pre-packaged P/VP ticket

and it blew up in their face. Abrams herself issued an non-denial denial, saying that VP was not 'a major topic' when they met. Her camp was really pissed (I think a lot had to do with it was insulting to her and Biden was in the middle of the 'handsy' thing at the time).


https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/21/us/politics/joe-biden-2020-election.html

snip

But none would carry the impact of naming a running mate early or vowing to serve just one term.

Two of Mr. Biden’s closest advisers, Steve Ricchetti and Mike Donilon, have floated both possibilities in recent weeks. And they have been egged on by some Democratic lawmakers, who have urged the Biden associates to strongly consider the one-term pledge to immediately defuse the question about his age.

Mr. Donilon has also, though not recently, discussed the general concept with Mark Salter, who was John McCain’s chief of staff and unsuccessfully lobbied Mr. McCain to make a similar vow when he ran for president at the age of 72 in 2008, according to people familiar with the conversation. “It was about country first,” said Mr. Salter, recalling Mr. McCain’s slogan. “Biden could do the same thing now with the country in even more desperate straits.” (Mr. Salter did not recall discussing the matter with Mr. Donilon.)

But Mr. Biden is uneasy with the prospect of pledging up front not to seek re-election, believing that it would make him a lame-duck president before he even takes office and cripple his ability to get anything done, according to some of his aides. He is more open to the idea of picking a vice president well before the customary time frame, which would be around the party’s nominating convention next year.

Some of his top advisers, speaking on the condition of anonymity, believe that naming a running mate before he is the nominee could not only mollify voters concerned about his age but also send a message about the sort of administration he would put in place. They have been interested in this strategy on and off for months, and CNN recently reported the conversations were stirring again. With a younger but still accomplished vice-presidential nominee at his side, Mr. Biden could hope to demonstrate his commitment to diversity and to restoring stability to Washington.

Among the people Mr. Biden’s close allies have discussed for the role are Stacey Abrams, the former Georgia House minority leader who narrowly lost a race for governor last year, and Ms. Harris and Mr. O’Rourke, if their campaigns appear to flag in the coming months.

snip


a couple articles about the Abrams reaction

https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/darrensands/joe-biden-stacey-abrams-2020-rumors

https://splinternews.com/another-giant-self-own-for-joe-biden-1833635067

[Celerity]

11. yes, Tomlinson and Ossoff probably are the front runners atm

[DAMANgoldberg]

21. Tomlinson is in...

Like her chances better than anyone else mentioned. Has executive experience.

https://t.co/BE3le9aJMk

[StarfishSaver]

13. Maybe she doesn't WANT to run for Senate?

[NewJeffCT]

15. I understand

but, US senate is still a big step up from the Georgia House of Representatives.

Normally, when you're selected to give the response to the SOTU speech, you're somebody that is possibly going to make that step up to the next level, be it governor, senator or VP. (Unless the speech bombs... like nobody has heard of former GOP rising star Bobby Jindal since his Obama SOTU response was widely panned)

With over 20 other candidates running for president, she's not going to have a big impact running for president, I don't think.

[StarfishSaver]

19. The Senate and White House aren't her only options.

[Rambling Man]

8. Maybe they think if Trump can win

anyone can.

I don't blame them.

[Duppers]

22. K & R

Troubling.

[Celerity]

23. If we win back the WH, but not the Senate, and a SCOTUS

justice dies or retires, even if it happens the day after our Dem POTUS is sworn in, McTurtle will not allow a vote on a replacement until we either lose the WH or we take back the Senate. I see a distinct possibility that we may never see a Rethug Senate confirm a Democratic SCOTUS nominee again.

It is a huge issue going forward, especially if Trump wins again and he replaces RGB, Breyer and Sotomayor with hardcore RWers. Maybe even Thomas might play it safe and allow the orange bloat to replace him. 8-1 hard right for a loooong time.

The Senate is going to get harder and harder to to win, as within 10 to 20 years only 30% of the population will control 70% of the seats, and that 30% is older, whiter, less educated, more fundie and rural and RW than the 70%.

We need to add DC and PR as states, and possibly split my state, California, into 2. That's 6 new Democratic Senators and order restored. We also need to add 6 new SCOTUS justices, for a total of 15. Even if all 6 are liberal, and if Trump really does get to make it 8-1 hard RW, that still leaves the Court 8-7 RW, albeit far greater chance of a fairer outcome on cases.

Adding new states is probably the only truly long term fix for the Senate, IMHO, short of a lot of LW people from profoundly Blue States moving to small population RW Red States and simply swamping them demographically.

[Duppers]

24. Well said!

I wish we could swamp red states demographically! Because we're not going to change those stuck in the 1850s stubborn idiots.

I'm moving back "home" anyway but with great intrepidation.
(One big reason there are so many liberal folks living in red states here on DU is that we can't find the camaraderie where we live.)

[Celerity]

25. 2% of the total US population strategically moving from solid Blue to 8 small Red states would crush

the Rethugs. Notice my map doesn't even include some other states that are swing or could be (AZ (someday), GA (someday), TX (someday), PA, FL, OH (see MO), MO (tougher unless we had Dems move in there too, but it is much larger), and yet still smashes any Rethug in the EC.

62-38 perm Dem Senate too (or more and we would surely start to split or take both or have already split AZ, GA, FL, PA, OH as well), Just take one from each of those 5 and we hit the magic 67.



There is some outside the box thinking. It certainly could be done with a decade or two's worth of coordinated effort, and some truly patriotic billionaires/multimillionaires pitching in to help save the nation. The infrastructure build-out needed would produce millions of well paying jobs as well and turbo-charge the economy, plus relieve population pressures in places like California.

[Duppers]

30. 👍👍

[kysrsoze]

26. Even if we gain the Presidency, we're screwed without the Senate. There will be no judges/justices

confirmed and there will be almost no bills passed. This is just as critical to taking the country back from the GOP as the Presidency.

[sarabelle]

28. I don't understand the thinking behind this either. Abrams has a good shot at being Senator.

It doesn't help the party to have all the best and brightest running for President and no one running for Senate. I don't get it.

[Salviati]

27. Not that winning the presidency in 2020 isn't vital...

... but as a rule, Democrats put too much importance on the presidency, to our detriment.

If you want long lasting progressive change, change that can't be taken away at the whim of an executive order, then we need to take the legislature.

[Vinca]

29. If Mitch McConnell remains in control of the Senate it will be gridlock for a Dem POTUS.

Some of these candidates need to face the reality that everyone can't be President.

[Hotler]

31. Everyone wants to be the star of the show and not...

a supporting actor. Sad. I have not hope. I see no future. All darkness ahead.