In the land of Democrats, losing is actually a success – one that should lead to bigger and better things.
Former U.S. Rep. Robert “Beto” O’Rourke applied that logic when he recently announced his run for president in 2020 after an embarrassing loss to Ted Cruz for a U.S. Senate seat last year, and it’s seemingly contagious.
Stacey Abrams, a former minority leader in the Georgia House of Representatives, told CBS This Morning on Wednesday that her losing bid for governor of Georgia last year proves she has the right stuff to take on Trump – or that she’s at least as qualified as other Democrats in the race.
“I think the success I had in our election… positions me to be just as capable of becoming the President of the United States as anyone running. My responsibility though, is to make sure I’m running for the right reasons and at the right time.” — @staceyabrams on a 2020 run pic.twitter.com/8ZZq9wW0v2
— CBS This Morning (@CBSThisMorning) March 27, 2019
“I am deeply appreciative of those who have encouraged me to run for a variety of offices. I would say the presidency wasn’t top of mind to begin with, but I think the success I had in our election, transforming the electorate, the work I’ve done as a business leader, as a civic leader, as a political leader, positions me to be just as capable as becoming the president of the United States as anyone running,” Abrams said.
Liberals and the media have fixated on Abrams’ status as the first black female major-party gubernatorial nominee in U.S. history, despite her relative lack of experience. The 45-year-old was first elected to represent Georgia’s 84th district in the state House in 2007, and eventually became minority leader before leaving office in 2017.
Abrams narrowly lost to Republican Brian Kemp in Georgia’s 2018 gubernatorial election, though Kemp’s 1.4 percentage point margin of victory – 54,723 votes – was more than enough to avoid triggering a runoff.
Regardless, Abrams filed a federal lawsuit alleging state election officials “grossly mismanaged” the election by discriminating against minority voters, PBS reports.
Democrats rewarded Abrams’ political failure by raising her profile as leader months later, when she delivered the party’s response to President Trump’s State of the Union address to Congress.
Recent news reports suggest former vice president Joe Biden has considered Abrams as a potential running mate should the 76-year-old ever decide on running in 2020. Abrams made it clear to CBS This Morning that she’s pondered the possibility of running for the job herself, though she danced around whether it’s a real possibility.
“My responsibility … is to make sure I’m running for the right reasons and at the right time,” she said.
Folks on Twitter aren’t buying Democrats’ upside-down logic.
“The success of a second place in an election?” Dert Difig wrote. “Oh. Wow. Okay. Sure. I hope all Democrats running in 2020 might find the glory in the success of a 2nd place finish. Because clearly that’s an amazing thing to achieve.”
“OMG … is losing an election considered a great success?” Mary West questioned. “Please explain how.”
“She sounds like Hillary,” Steve added. “Two delusional candidates who’ll never be President.”
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