From The Hill
While the radical right rejoices over the victory in the Alabama Republican Senate primary of Roy Moore, who advocates mass impeachment of federal judges who do not put his theological conservatism over the Constitution in their rulings, the eyes of Alabama and the nation now turn to Doug Jones, his Democratic opponent in the Dec. 12 election.
Jones is an enormously qualified and appealing candidate who was born in Fairfield, Ala., and worked in the Senate for the widely respected former Sen. Howell Heflin (D-Ala.). He was named U.S. attorney by President Bill Clinton and confirmed by a Republican Senate.
As U.S. attorney, Jones successfully prosecuted two members of the Ku Klux Klan for their role in the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing decades earlier, in 1963. He also served as court-appointed special general master in a major environmental clean-up case in Alabama.
Doug Jones has a chance of defeating Moore in the December election because his appeal and credibility are so strong, and Moore's politics are so extreme, that there will be some moderate Republicans, centrist Republicans and Republican-leaning independents who will quietly vote for Jones or refuse to vote for Moore on Election Day.
While Jones is an underdog in the race, he has a fighting chance to win because special elections are notorious for low turnout numbers. In the primary this week that nominated Moore, only 14 percent of voters turned out. If general election turnout by supporters of Jones is above average for a special election, and the number of Republicans and Republican-leaning independents who refuse to support Moore is above average, which is likely, Jones could pull off a shocker in a squeaker.
My hope is that the gigantic number of patriotic small donors who care deeply about the future of Alabama and America will now begin a massive surge of small donations to the Jones campaign.
My message to patriotic small donors and socially enlightened larger donors is to move now, move fast and move decisively to give Jones a powerful lift beginning today.
Every group that would be hurt by Moore's election, and lifted if Jones is elected, will be communicating to their members and supporters in Alabama that they must vote on Election Day.
Will black voters who have huge stakes in this election provide a surge of voter turnout? Will seniors and others who would be devastated by Moore's reactionary views of health care, and lifted by the election of Jones, vote in larger than average numbers on Dec. 12? Will working people, who have much to gain because Jones supports the higher minimum wage and equal pay for women that Moore opposes, be inspired to vote for Jones? Many will, and if enough do, Jones can win.
To paraphrase a famous saying, it's the turnout, stupid. Those who oppose the dark vision of politics that Moore represents, and support the unifying vision that Jones stands for, have it within their power to elect Jones on Dec. 12 if they care enough to vote and fight hard enough to win.
Doug Jones has spent a lifetime battling for the values of our Pledge of Allegiance, which reads: "I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands. One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."
For voters who want an indivisible nation, where we are united with each other rather than divided against each other, their candidate is Doug Jones, not Roy Moore. For voters who want the bells of liberty and justice to ring for every citizen regardless of race, religion or gender, their candidate is Doug Jones, not Roy Moore.
For all who are appalled and disgusted by the repellant direction our politics has taken, they have the power to take a stand and change the world by confounding the experts, defeating Roy Moore and electing Doug Jones.
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