America Needs Mitch McConnell To Lose His Senate Seat by Robert Covington Jr.
Mitch McConnell is arguably the most dangerous cancer of a human being in American politics. He has the charm of a trashcan, the compassion of dried cement and the empathy of barbed wire. Over the past ten years, he has worked tirelessly to corrupt American institutions, exacerbate partisan divisions and weaken democracy with the power vested in him. McConnell has been unrepentant in his actions of putting racist and unqualified judges on courts across this land. He has spoken with great pride in destroying precedent when it comes to the process of judges getting on the Supreme Court and he has been Trump’s biggest accomplice in his authoritarian and fascist aims to the detriment of our nation.
Although much has been written about McConnell’s robotic ruthlessness, perceived tactical prowess and enjoyment of being disliked by Democrats and the liberal elite, the essence of his political existence is the desire for individual power that is guided by a set of principles that he can maneuver and manipulate, depending on the circumstances. And those principles are appeals to white identity politics for political gain, a white male conservative vision that fundamentally disdains diversified power and resource sharing and corporate protectionism by any means necessary.
Jane Mayer, from the New Yorker magazine, wrote an excellent piece on McConnell discussing some of the interplay of these principles in his quest to reshape the Senate and democracy in his image. For McConnell, the ends justify the means in all of his political calculations — so it was inevitable that the interests he’s worked so hard to protect, would come into conflict with a multiracial democracy clamoring for justice, redistribution of wealth and equal opportunity. The ascendance of former president Barack Obama and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi made it clear to McConnell that the propaganda of democracy can no longer provide him the cover to continue the exploitation of its flaws and assumptions of good faith that he disregards when it suits his political needs. Now it was all out in the open.
Mitch McConnell’s unyielding, yet predictable enabling and subservience to Donald Trump has accelerated the overall destabilization of democracy. Both men are guided by their destructive character and narcissism. Both men have placed their own interests above the country. McConnell can ignore election security bills and support foul play in our upcoming election because his interests are Trump’s interest. McConnell can support Trump’s constant violations of the constitution because he determined long ago that his survival and hold on power rested on his bended knee to Donald Trump and placating every aspect of his wretchedness as a human being and as president.
That being said, regardless of what happens to Donald Trump reelection bid in November 2020, if there is any chance that democracy can be resurrected and undergo the transformation that is necessary, Mitch McConnell needs to lose his Senate seat. McConnell’s presence in the Senate is beyond toxic at this point. The power of his narcissism has only been elevated by the Republican Senate being full of spineless cowards with no principles worthy to be written on toilet paper. McConnell runs his caucus with the iron fist of a mafia boss and demands loyalty at the cost of Senatorial independence, cross party alliances and legislative action. And none of this will change until McConnell is removed from the Senate.
However, removing McConnell will be no easy task. For decades, McConnell and his vast political machine, along with large majorities of white Kentuckians have laughed at polls portraying him as unpopular and predicting his pending demise. McConnell understands the psychological and emotional power white identity politics has on his constituents voting against their human interest.
His opponent in the Kentucky Senate race is Amy McGrath, a moderate Democrat with a military background. Her only chance of winning is for mass mobilization that is spearheaded by Democratic governor Andy Beshear using his political capital to help defeat McConnell with early voting mechanisms in place throughout the state and aggressively campaigning for McGrath while highlighting McConnell’s abysmal record with regularity. The governor can also help by doing everything possible to protect absentee voting and making sure polling places are available throughout the state. The rising progressive political star Charles Booker will need to energize his base and coordinate with the governor and Amy McGrath with an unprecedented voter registration drive in black, brown and asian communities.
Mitch McConnell is a symbol of everything that is wrong in America. He is callous, lacks genuine care for others, and does not have a healthy vision for the country. His pathetic leadership has helped create a democratic crisis and if he is reelected, the Senate will remain paralyzed and dysfunctional. Democrats in Kentucky must first believe that McConnell is beatable, then campaign like democracy depends on it, because it does.
Follow me on twitter: @robcovingtonjr
