Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp officially tapped Kelly Loeffler, an Atlanta businesswoman and co-owner of WNBA team Atlanta Dream, as Georgia's next U.S. Senator, filling the seat that will be vacated by an ailing Sen. Johnny Isakson at the end of the year. Loeffler got the nod despite the fact that Donald Trump demanded that Rep. Doug Collins get the seat instead.
This is one instance in which Senate Majority Leader Moscow Mitch McConnell decided to buck Trump and embrace this total neophyte, despite the long list of more experienced politicos whose names had been floated. Now we know why: Loeffler's very big bucks.
She's announced that she's going to spend a massive $20 million of her own money to keep the seat next November. That's enough to scare plenty of potential primary opponents away. But more importantly for McConnell, it means that the National Republican Senatorial Committee isn't going to have to spend big on this seat while it's fighting to protect so many other seats. That's got to be a very big part of his enthusiastic endorsement of Loeffler.
“It seems to me like the governor of Georgia made a terrific appointment," he said. "I'm going to be behind her, and I'm confident that someone we're working with every day will enjoy total support from the Republican conference."
Loeffler is a Republican mega-donor. Her husband, Jeffrey Sprecher, is the chairman of the New York Stock Exchange. So, yeah, of course she'll be embraced. Nothing speaks louder to McConnell than a filthy-rich Republican who can pay for their own seat (see Mitt Romney, Rick Scott)—except maybe Putin.
Georgia is not a safe place for Republicans in 2020. Stacey Abrams proved that in 2018 with her close run for governor. McConnell knows that very well, too.
So do we. Please give $1 to our nominee fund to help Democrats, including in Georgia.