Democrats’ Abrams hits back at Trump

STACEY Abrams harnessed the frustration of Democrats on Tuesday with a sharp rebuke of President Donald Trump for abandoning working Americans and fomenting partisan and cultural discord.

Just months after narrowly losing her bid to become America’s first black female governor, the Georgia Democrat stepped onto the biggest stage of her political career to deliver her party’s rebuttal to Trump’s State of the Union address. She was the first black woman to deliver such an address and used the high-wattage event to blister Trump on everything from education and school safety, to being out of touch with the middle class.

But she was especially stinging when it came to Trump’s role in the 35-day partial government shutdown over his demands for a wall at the US-Mexico border.

“The shutdown was a stunt engineered by the president of the US, one that defied every tenet of fairness and abandoned not just our people, but our values,” Abrams said.

In choosing Abrams to deliver the Democratic response to Trump, party leaders acknowledged the power and influence of women – especially black women – in anchoring the Democratic base. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer is trying to persuade Abrams, 45, to run for Senate in 2020, sensing the opportunity to flip a Republican-held seat and bolster turn-out in Georgia, which could become a presidential battleground.

Some potential 2020 Democratic presidential contenders were quick to praise her performance.

In her speech, the Yale-educated attorney traced her personal story to her parents, who were raised in segregated Jim Crow Mississippi. She recalled how her family and neighbours overcame adversity by relying on each other and valuing education.

“These were our family values: faith, service, education and respon- sibility,” she said, crediting her parents, both of them United Methodist ministers. “We do not succeed alone,” she added.

“Let’s be clear: voter suppression is real,” she said, arguing that the issue must be solved before the government will be capable of addressing matters from climate change to expanding health-care access. “This is the next battle for our democracy, one where all eligible citizens can have their say about the vision we want for our country. The foundation of our moral leadership around the globe is free and fair elections, where voters pick their leaders – not where politicians pick their voters.”

“I’m disappointed by the president’s approach to our problems,” she said. “I still don’t want him to fail. But we need him to tell the truth.”