Some Things Never Change: One Year Out from Infighting Kick-Off, GOP Still Stuck in “Full-Blown Civil War”

Yet another “all-out Republcian feud” arrives for Georgia GOP right as they once again “can least afford it” in Senate runoffs

ATLANTA — One year ago today, Georgia Republicans were beginning to panic about “messy” infighting between Senator Kelly Loeffler and Congressman Doug Collins — and one year later, the GOP is still stuck in “a full-blown civil war…at a moment when Republicans can least afford it.”

After spending the previous nine months locked in “an all-out Republican feud,” Loeffler and her Republcan allies have been “plunged into deeper infighting” as “resurgent Democrats” remain energized after “flipp[ing] the state for the first time in nearly three decades.”

Already, many Republicans have “privately expressed fears that the GOP warring…risks alienating independent-leaning voters.” This situation is made even more disastrous by the fact that Loeffler has continuously struggled with independent voters throughout her campaign as a result of her “scorched-earth shift to the far right” along with her coronavirus stock trading and numerous ethical lapses — including her most recent illegal fundraising scandal.

Now, with less than two months to go until runoff day, Republicans are once again risking another “divisive 2020 battle” at the worst possible moment for their damaged runoff candidate.

Read more about Republicans’ latest all-out feud ahead of the runoff:

AJC: A GOP civil war rattles Georgia Republicans at inconvenient time

• This is not how Georgia Republicans imagined the first days of a pivotal runoff campaign would go.

• Instead of unity and bonhomie, a full-blown civil war has erupted at a moment when Republicans can least afford it. President Donald Trump is stoking the infighting, leveling false claims about the vote.

• And resurgent Democrats just narrowly flipped the state for the first time in nearly three decades.

• Now, a state party already riven by the rivalry between U.S. Sen. Kelly Loeffler and U.S. Rep. Doug Collins for much of the year is plunged into deeper infighting ahead of Jan. 5 runoffs to decide control of the U.S. Senate.

• U.S. Sens. David Perdue and Loeffler – who both rally voters to “hold the line” in the GOP-controlled Senate – led the charge to appease Trump, demanding Raffensperger’s resignation without citing publicly any evidence to justify their calls.

• Interviews with more than a dozen Republican officials and activists reflected the squeamishness.

• Most privately expressed fears that the GOP warring, along with Trump’s false claims of fraud, risks alienating independent-leaning voters who typically vote Republican but sided with Biden this year.

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