When Democrat Mayor Ted Terry of Clarkston yesterday announced his 2020 candidacy for the U.S. Senate seat held by incumbent David Perdue, R-Ga., it sparked worries among some prominent Democrats that he is too far-left to be electable. Former Columbus Mayor Teresa Tomlinson is already running for the Democrat nomination to face Perdue. Yet she announced a weak $520,000 fundraising haul, also stoking Democrat concerns about her electability.
Perdue, on the other hand, has reportedly raised $1.9 million during the latest reporting period and has approximately $4.9 million in available cash.
Who exactly is the Clarkston mayor and what does he stand for? First and foremost, Terry has a long record of advocating extreme left-wing causes. This is especially evidenced when he egged on his City Council to shield illegal aliens and foreign refugees from Immigration and Customs Enforcement criminal warrants. Terry has also joined the radical Party of European Socialists and retweets socialist Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez pronouncements, including her advocacy of an expensive “Green New Deal” that even Democrat U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi believes is impractical.
Some Tomlinson supporters wanted her to strike a more moderate tone as a contrast to any potential rivals for the party nomination. But last week in a Mother Jones profile, Tomlinson admitted her embrace of everything from open borders to big government and big spending programs could lead some to describe her as a “socialist.”
The Perdue camp, led by savvy state campaign chairman Derrick Dickey, may like what it sees this week. “Ted Terry’s entrance to this race is proof that Georgia Democrats are abandoning the center and embracing radical candidates who are eager to campaign on a left-wing socialist agenda,” says Georgia Action Fund Executive Director John Burke. Burke and Dickey are banking on moderates and independents abandoning Democrat candidates who attack economic freedom in favor of socialism and who advocate an open borders policy that undermines the rule of law.
