Much of
Yet Abrams isn't one of those men: The Yale law graduate and former state legislative leader is a black woman from
"Most radical liberal to ever run for governor," one
The outcome of the nation's most closely watched governor's race this November may well turn on which version of Abrams a rapidly diversifying
"She's a brilliant woman ... one of the smartest people I've ever met," said state Rep.
Peake said he's wary about Abrams' policy agenda, but characterized her as "pragmatic" and avoided broadsides about socialism.
"She did always try to find solutions," he said, noting the state budget passed nearly unanimously during Abrams' tenure because she corralled her caucus to engage with the
Abrams also brought
Some see racial overtones in labeling a black woman as a radical.
The RGA says it has used "radical" as an attack on five Democratic nominees so far this year, but nearly all of the others hold positions — full-throated advocacy for single-payer health care and abolishing the ICE federal immigration agency — that are further left than what Abrams advocates.
The effort to portray Abrams as a radical is also notable because, during the primary, her work in the legislature exposed her to attacks from the left. Former state Rep.
While some of the Republican dichotomy about Abrams is simply campaign rhetoric, it is true that Abrams is asking voters to move state government to the left, even if not to a "radical" degree. It's part of a needle-threading strategy: Abrams must maximize turnout among liberals — non-whites and young voters of all demographic groups — but add to them at least some older, white moderates who generally vote Republican.
Her Medicaid expansion proposal aligns with at least 17 Republican governors who have widened the government insurance coverage under the 2010 Affordable Care Act. Deal was among the Republican governors who said his state couldn't afford Obamacare. Abrams is making the argument about economics, pointing to at least a half-dozen rural
Abrams opposes "religious freedom" laws that allow private businesses to refuse service based on religious beliefs, which aligns her with Deal, who vetoed such legislation. She wants to expand
Her support of abortion rights and LGBT rights is standard Democratic fare. Abrams' call to ban certain weapons essentially reflects the Brady gun law that President
On immigration, she disagrees with state policy blocking people in the country illegally from getting in-state tuition or even admission at some
In
"I answered that question in the context of 'what do I believe,'" Abrams said, recalling that the inquiry came in 2017 after a white supremacist rally in
Anyone who wants her to abandon her beliefs and her biography, she said, "should not want me to be the next governor of
Such answers may not fit into 30-second ads. But Peake, Abrams' Republican friend in the legislature, said her willingness to engage should give his party pause. "If the
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