ATLANTA — Stacey Abrams knows what it’s like for people for whom life handed the fuzzy end of the lollipop. Eternally optimistic and thoroughly versed on government policy, the Democrat running for governor of Georgia paints a picture of what’s doable for people with determination — of which she has plenty.
Holding degrees from Atlanta’s Spelman College, the LBJ School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas, and Yale Law School, Abrams is educated and highly intelligent, but she doesn’t talk about it. It’s obvious from the way she handles herself. Occasionally, she will mention “my opponent” while not dwelling on the negative or sending out bad vibes. She talks about things political advisers tell her to steer clear of. Like her tax payment plan with the IRS.
Abrams owes the taxman about $50,000 because, she said, she deferred tax payments in 2015 and 2016 because she was helping pay her family’s expenses. She also owes about $170,000 in student loan and credit card debt, according to her financial disclosure. Critics say that reflects poorly on her. Supporters maintain she knows what life is like for folks not born with a rich daddy.
If elected, she would be the first black female governor in the country. That alone inspires some to work for her but she doesn’t make it a key talking point on the campaign trail. President Obama endorsed her as did Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., another prominent African-American some think has the White House in his future. “Right now in Georgia we have a rare chance to launch a woman to a high seat,” Booker told a cheering crowd.
Booker, whose parents lived in Atlanta for about 20 years, came here to stump for Abrams, making several appearances including one at a barber shop owned by a man named Booker, no relation. He told the adoring crowd his father, from North Carolina, said he was so poor that he couldn’t afford the whole word, so he said he was “po”. I covered Booker since he was mayor of Newark. He is, like Abrams, a combo of smart, well educated, and humorous with an ability to relate to common folk. When he announced he was running for the U.S. Senate, I asked him from the front row if he could name three things he did as mayor that would qualify him to be a senator. Without pause he responded, “You going to limit me to three, Bob?” One of the best comebacks ever.
Booker spoke about how tax money from legalized marijuana sale could benefit the states. And he said Republican Brian Kemp, Abrams’ opponent and also Georgia secretary of state, is using his position to suppress thousands of voters, “most of them black Americans.”
Abrams smiled and seemingly enjoyed watching Booker address the crowd, at times sounding like a Southern country minister. Her strength became apparent when she tossed it to the barber shop audience, taking on any and all questions. She didn’t flinch, she didn’t reflect, she didn’t ignore. She took them all head-on and demonstrated an uncommon knowledge of policies and laws local, state and federal and an ability to explain it in everyday language.
When a young woman identified herself as a LGBTI community member, in tears asked about the uncertain future, Abrams said “my plan is this, first and foremost, to be the strongest ally I can be. That is why I marched in Pride last week and it wasn’t my first time. When I ran for office in 2006 before everyone evolved and changed and realized and came of age I said I believe in same-sex marriage because love is love.”
She spoke about homeless veterans and the need for expanded health care. She said expanding Medicaid is a top priority because it will help save struggling health care facilities in small towns without breaking the budget since the Affordable care Act requires the federal government to pay 90 cent of the cost.
Abrams supports in-state cultivation of marijuana for medical purposes. When asked about recreational use, she said she would decriminalize some offenses and supports a maximum $75 fine and no mandatory jail time for small amounts.
(Bob Ingle is a New York Times Best Selling Author, TV and Radio news analyst and award-winning journalist.)
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