Trickle Down Lies Are Falling Apart All AroundUs

The race in Georgia’s 6th congressional district has dominated our attention for months now. It’s an important special election that could provide meaningful clues for how next year’s midterm elections will go. For years, the district was in the hands of Republican Tom Price, but when Trump elevated him to the Department of Health and Human Services, Georgia’s 6th quickly became the most-contested race in the nation this year.

Last night, Democrat Jon Ossoff and Republican Karen Handel met in one final debate before voting starts. And if you spent any amount of time on social media last night or this morning, it’s likely you’ve already heard this snippet from Handel:

Here’s a transcription (emphasis mine) if you can’t watch video where you are:

This is an example of the fundamental difference between a liberal and a conservative. I do not support a livable wage. What I support is making sure that we have an economy that is robust with low taxes and less regulation so that those small businesses that would be dramatically hurt if you imposed higher minimum wages on them are able to do what they do best: Grow jobs and create good-paying jobs for the people in the 6th district.

Now, some have argued that Handel obviously just made a gaffe when she said she didn’t support a livable wage. I’d like to counter that argument with two points:

1. The traditional definition of a gaffe is when a politician accidentally says something they really mean, which I believe is true here. And…

2. What Handel says after “I do not support a livable wage” entirely supports her claim of not supporting a livable wage. She explains the traditional lie of trickle down economics, which is that if you cut taxes and regulations and keep wages low, business will respond by creating jobs. So she doesn’t support a government mandate to create livable wages; instead, she thinks business will raise wages to livable levels on its own.

https://civicskunk.works/trickle-down-lies-are-falling-apart-all-around-us-10601ea5b00e