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On Balance | Georgia run-off a chance for Biden to solidify gains over Trumpism and Republicans
- Joe Biden has much to be thankful for in the final days of 2022, and Raphael Warnock holding his Senate seat would solidify his gains
- Donald Trump has endorsed Warnock’s opponent Herschel Walker and needs a victory as his control over the Republican Party looks to be waning
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With the collapse of Russia’s status as an efficient military juggernaut and China’s status as the undisputable global leader in pandemic management, US President Joe Biden has much to be thankful for as we head into the final weeks of 2022.
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The US leader got another early Christmas gift in the form of the Iranian government’s suspension of its morality police amid relentless pressure from defiant and brave women. For those who buy into Biden’s theory about the world falling into two camps – authoritarian or democratic – these globally momentous developments could be seen as a significant advance for the latter.
The final contest in US midterm elections – a run-off between the incumbent Georgia Senator Raphael Warnock and his Republican challenger Herschel Walker – would solidify this advance for Biden at home if Warnock prevails. Walker, who opposes abortion under any circumstance, appears to have as much regard for the rights of women as Iran’s now-suspended morality police.
The political strength of former US president Donald Trump, who has endorsed Walker, hangs in the balance, along with the Trumpian world view that has dominated his party since he emerged as its leader in 2016.
Never mind the anti-China rhetoric of the Republican Party under Trump. The former president’s admiration for President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin wasn’t just apparent between the lines. It was practically highlighted with a neon red sharpie.
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The vision Trump laid out in his address to the UN General Assembly in 2017 – in which he slammed “uncontrolled migration”, called for “strong, sovereign nations” and barely mentioned human rights – was one in which he, Putin, Xi, Saudi Arabia’s Mohammed bin Salman, Brazil’s Jair Bolsanaro, Iran’s clerics and the rest of the world’s strongmen could salute.
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