After ‘Callais’ & Virginia, Democrats don’t need to cut corners

The Ron Show, airing weekdays at 8am and 4pm on Georgia Now.

After the ‘Callais’ decision by the US Supreme Court, Democrats were already bracing for ‘confederate’ states to hastily re-draw Congressional maps to eliminate majority black districts, clearly showing southern conservatives having moved on from ‘racism’ (note: sarcasm). Then came the Virginia Supreme Court deciding that state’s hasty left-leaning gerrymander ran afoul of state law (by a 10-1 vote – not even close).

So naturally, Democrats initially started ⁠grasping at an ‘audacious and far-fetched’ idea⁠ to salvage at least the Virginia gerrymander. To that I say “no. Stop. Don’t do this in a fit of desperation.”

Why?

Well it isn’t just to take the “high road” that’s cost Democrats ground the last few decades. No, it’s about seeing an issue a vast majority of Americans agree on: gerrymandering just needs to go away, period. Democrats have tried legislating it away and watched as the Roberts’ Supreme Court punted on its opportunity to get rid of it, too. It’s a campaign issue. Use it. Use it in 2026. In 2028. In 2030 if necessary. Keep hammering at it until Republicans realize how much the American people are behind it or are so outnumbered they can’t stop it.

Any chance Democrats have at taking the House this cycle won’t improve greatly by “far-fetched” scheming that’ll only make them look as conniving as Republicans. Fine; maybe we don’t win the House. I mean, maybe thanks to GOP ‘dummymandering,’ and Democrats overperforming this and last year anyway, you still do win it. There is that theory that this ⁠push to gerrymander is just putting ‘safe GOP’ districts within reach for insurgent Democratic candidates.⁠

Also, ⁠the Senate is in play⁠ and MAGA can’t re-draw state lines. So you’ll have to use gerrymandering again in 2028. Perhaps again in 2030.

Plus, any gains the GOP made with black voters will be washed away. Trump’s (and Stephen Miller’s) overplaying their hand using ICE to demonize Hispanic people will do damage to the party’s prospects with that bloc, too.

“The ads write themselves.”

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Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez was in Atlanta last weekend and ⁠took the podium at Reverand Senator Ralphael Warnock’s home church⁠ – New Ebenezer Baptist. I’m unsure if she’s putting presidential feelers, but she’s definitely striking a chord with soon-to-be-again marginalized black voters.

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Lastly, while Virginia’s Supreme Court is on folks’ minds, it’s not hard for us to forget that Georgia’s 9-body high court is supposed to be filled with non-partisan candidates, but that former Governor Nathan Deal and current Governor Brian Kemp have seated eight of the nine due to maneuvering early retirements out of jurists to seat fresher bodies. So the (air quotes) “non-partisan” candidates Miracle Rankin and Jen Jordan have the full-throated support of former President Barack Obama, who makes the valid point that “state supreme court justices play a critical role in defending your rights and freedoms, which is why the election happening in Georgia right now is so important.”

In case we weren’t already patently aware.