Trump-Backed Candidates Who Doxxed Rape Victim, Attended White Nationalist Gathering Lose in Idaho Races for Lieutenant Governor, Governor

     There were a lot of positive results from the May 17th, 2022, primaries in Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Idaho, Oregon, and Kentucky. In Pennsylvania, Lieutenant Governor John Fetterman won the nomination for Senate; Fetterman, the former mayor of Braddock, was hospitalized just days before the primary with a stroke, joining the current Democratic senators from Maryland and New Mexico who have suffered strokes this year. The shorts-wearing, swearing giant gained notoriety for taking on Trump and for his mix of progressive values and blue-collar mannerisms. The GOP primary is too close to call: I hope Dr. Oz wins, as he is the easier target in spite of his Trump endorsement.

     In North Carolina, Representative Madison Cawthorn was defeated not because of his support for Nazis or the January 6th insurrection, but because of the images and videos showing him wearing a lingerie and humping his cousin as well as his "cocaine orgy" remarks. I predicted last month that he would be a problem for the party and should be primaried, and his district actually did it. In Senate news, Cheri Beasley, considered a contender for President Biden's Supreme Court nominee, will take on Republican Ted Budd in the November election. In Oregon, Tina Kotek, as expected, won the Democratic nomination for governor and will almost certainly be the next to hold the office. In Kentucky, Charles Booker will work to unseat the white supremacist, Russia-loving incumbent, Senator Rand Paul.

     The results in Idaho are also telling. Last month, Aaron von Ehlinger, a former state representative, was convicted of raping a teenage legislative intern. Several lawmakers, all female, stood up for the rapist and tried to intimidate his victim into silence. None took it further than Priscilla Giddings, who was vying for the Republican nomination for lieutenant governor and was censured and stripped of a committee assignment for doxing, i.e. sharing the name and address of, the rape victim. Giddings lost her race for lieutenant governor. Meanwhile, Janice McGeachin, who appeared with Three Percenters in support of domestic terrorist Todd Engel and spoke at a white nationalist conference hosted by Nick Fuentes (storming off whenever questioned by reporters about the latter incident), lost her bid for governor to incumbent Brad Little. McGeachin lost because she attempted several times to usurp power from Little, signing executive orders banning mask and vaccine mandates without the governor's consent while he was out of state and publicly opposing his efforts to stop coronavirus through restrictions and encouraging vaccinations. Both were endorsed by Trump.

     Cheri Beasley, Charles Booker, Val Demings, Mandela Barnes, and Raphael Warnock are a chance to build a more diverse Senate, and they, along with John Fetterman, Mark Kelly, Tim Ryan, and Evan McMullin, are our chance to expand our lead in the Senate and abolish the filibuster. They are our chance to build a better America: it's up to we, the voters, to take action.