Georgia’s Runoff election will take place on January 5th. It is a close race between David Perdue (R) and Jon Ossoff (D) in determining which party will hold the U.S. Senate Majority. With everyone’s attention on the economy, let’s take a look at how Ossoff plans to put Georgia families first if elected.
Ossoff’s plan for Georgia’s Economy vs. Perdue’s
While Senator Perdue has focused on helping the unemployed by reopening parts of the economy, Ossoff has pushed for direct relief to working families, small businesses, and those in financial distress.
Perdue, like other Republicans, believes adding extra benefits to the unemployed during the pandemic will only incentivize people to not work. He believes that most families are making more money on unemployment than they would be if working, creating a population that does not want to return to work.
This is simply untrue. Millions of people in Georgia are out of work through no fault of their own and are looking to their political leaders to help keep food on their table and a roof over their head during the toughest modern health and economic crisis.
At the beginning of the pandemic, most people laid off from their jobs believed they would be back to work in a few months. Eight months later, the virus continues to spread across the country, and about half of people unemployed believe their position will be permanently gone. Also, a new report by Yale economists found no evidence that extended unemployment benefits create an incentive for people to stay unemployed.
Not only does Ossoff understand how seriously affected families in Georgia are by COVID-19, but he also has urged incumbent Perdue to take responsibility for his role in the damage it has caused.
Ossoff has repeatedly asked Perdue to publicly apologize for downplaying the severity of the virus and its economic effects. He has also urged the Senator to extend Georgia’s unemployment benefits, but Perdue holds the best thing for the economy is to get people back to work.
Perdue tries to make Ossoff out to be a radical socialist, but that just is not the case. Ossoff wants what is best for Georgia and plans to represent his constituents, not special interests, in Washington. Ossoff has repeatedly said that politicians should be letting health officials lead the country out of this pandemic and that economic relief for working families and small businesses should be put ahead of special interests and huge corporations.
“When it’s been many months since the first and only round of stimulus checks, when the PPP small business lending program has been expired since August, when the extended unemployment insurance has been expired since August—Congress, Senator Perdue, and President Trump have abandoned the economic relief effort.”
-Jon Ossoff
Ossoff accuses Perdue of systematically misleading the people of Georgia during this pandemic while adjusting his stock portfolio and working with insurance companies. Ossoff has strong beliefs on the corrupting influence of corporate money in politics and argues he will be a public servant leader. He is neither radical nor socialist and Ossoff’s ideas are popular throughout Georgia.
If Ossoff is elected into the U.S. Senate, he plans to bring jobs to Georgia through large infrastructure and clean energy bill. He also supports raising the minimum wage to $15 by 2024. Georgia’s current state minimum wage is $5.15/hour and the federal minimum wage of $7.25 has not responded to increases in the cost of living over the past decade. Currently, about half of Georgia workers make less than $15/hour.
Before entering public office, David Perdue served as CEO of Dollar General, a chain that has been accused of several worker rights violations and that profits from economic downturns. Jon Ossoff only wants to represent the interests of Georgians and rebuild a damaged state. Don’t forget to go out and vote on January 5th for the candidate you can trust to keep your family financially secure and healthy!
Support Jon Ossoff
Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock's run-off elections in January are the ONLY chance left to flip the senate. We need to do everything we can to support their efforts.
To volunteer for Ossoff's campaign, click here.
To read more about Jon Ossoff’s and David Perdue’s finances click here. To see our coverage on the debate between Ossoff and Perdue, click here. To compare Ossoff's and Perdue's healthcare policies, see here.