Eyes now turn to the Peach State

The Nov. 3 elections gave Democrats control of the White House and continued control of the House. Now, two U.S. Senate runoffs in Georgia in January will determine whether the party makes it a sweep. The stakes are high.

Republicans hold 50 seats, after GOP incumbents won in races called this week in North Carolina and Alaska. A 50-50 split would give Democrats control of the chamber because Kamala Harris, as vice president, would cast any tie-breaking votes.

The Georgia seats are held by Republicans David Perdue and Kelly Loeffler. Perdue won 49.78% of the vote in his race, falling just short of the 50% plus one vote needed to avoid a runoff. Loeffler, appointed to finish the term of retired Sen. Johnny Isaakson, finished second in a large field of candidates.

Veteran political observer Michael Barone wrote last week that regardless of the outcome, it is unlikely the Senate would pursue plans favored by some Democrats to add justices to the Supreme Court or admit Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia as states. Yet Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., told a rally Saturday: “Now we take Georgia, then we change the world. Now we take Georgia, then we change America.” That isn't exactly a call for moderation.

Although the Supreme Court and statehood issues might recede, a Democratcontrolled Senate could grease the skids for a repeal of the Trump tax cuts, an end to the filibuster rule, the new administration's climate change agenda and other sweeping proposals.

A flip in party control would mean Republicans would lose their top posts on Senate committees. That means Oklahoma's Jim Inhofe, a staunch champion of the military, would lose some of his clout on the Armed Services Committee.

The Wall Street Journal's editorial board outlined some other potential committee ramifications.

“Joe Biden deserves the Cabinet he wants in most cases, but a GOP Senate could deter appointments like Elizabeth Warren at Treasury,” the Journal wrote.

“… Bernie Sanders would run Budget, which means a squeeze on the Pentagon. Sherrod Brown of Ohio would run Banking, and Ms. Warren would run the financial institutions subcommittee. Have fun, bankers.”

Ron Wyden of Oregon would become Finance Committee chair. Wyden “supports the $4 trillion Biden tax increase plus he wants to tax even unrealized capital gains as ordinary income,” the Journal wrote. “That means taxing the appreciation in the value of assets even if they aren't sold during the year.”

During a post-election conference call of House Democrats, several members complained about the everleftward shift of the party. But Kate Bedingfield, chief of Biden's communications team, said Sunday on “Meet the Press” that Biden “campaigned on an incredibly progressive and aggressive agenda” and that, “He's going to make good on those commitments.”

A Republican-controlled Senate could blunt some of those efforts. Thus, all eyes will be on Georgia come Jan. 5.