DSCC spokesperson Helen Kalla released the following statement on unelected Senator Kelly Loeffler finishing in second place to advance to the runoff in the Georgia Senate race:
“Senator Kelly Loeffler began her term as ‘a walking conflict of interest’ and has been unable to escape the fallout from her decision to dump stocks and invest in a company that makes PPE as the pandemic was taking hold. Loeffler has revealed herself to be out-of-touch with the issues Georgia families care about. After the ugly and divisive Republican feud, Loeffler hobbles into the runoff weakened and unpopular, and Georgia voters are going to ensure her short tenure as a temporary, unelected senator comes to an end in January.”
Unelected Senator Kelly Loeffler has spent the last year locked in a “brutal feud” with Congressman Doug Collins, with Collins framing Loeffler as a “greedy insider” who “profited off the pandemic” because she’s “looking out for herself.” And Loeffler’s approval ratings show just how much the messy primary battle cost Republicans –– the vulnerable incumbent has underwater favorability numbers with Georgia voters and is underwater by double-digits with independent voters. Loeffler’s pandemic stock trade scandal has severely damaged her candidacy and drawn criticism from within the GOP, with “several high-placed Republicans” saying “she should consider dropping out” and other party leaders calling the scandal “an issue” that she’s “going to have to answer” for. And Republicans worry Loeffler’s continued touting of an endorsement from Q-Anon believer and Georgia U.S. House candidate Marjorie Taylor Green will be “devastating to her in a runoff.”
Loeffler’s unelected year in office has been plagued by bad headlines –– check them out:
Daily Beast: Sen. Kelly Loeffler Dumped Millions in Stock After Coronavirus Briefing
AJC: Loeffler reports more stock sales, denies wrongdoing
CBS: NYSE boss sold his own stock ahead of coronavirus market meltdown
Bloomberg: Georgia Senator Kelly Loeffler Sold Travel Stock Before Ban
AJC: Loeffler faces backlash over stock trades after coronavirus briefing
McClatchy: Loeffler stock sales could scramble Georgia Senate election
CNBC: SEC warns on coronavirus insider trading after stock sales by NYSE chair, his wife Sen. Loeffler, 3 other senators
AJC: Georgia Sen. Loeffler’s financial disclosures put her wealth on paper
AJC: Collins invokes insider trading complaints in TV attack on Loeffler
AJC: QAnon-promoting candidate Greene endorses Loeffler’s Senate bid
Salon: Sen. Kelly Loeffler helped big banks get offshore tax relief after the Great Recession
New York Times: How Kelly Loeffler Went From Atlanta Elite to Trump Loyalist
The Hill: Doug Collins questions Loeffler’s trustworthiness in first TV ad
AJC: Loeffler and Sprecher’s $31 million year
AJC: Loeffler to face ‘minefield’ of potential ethical issues in Senate
New York Times: Loeffler Got Lucrative Parting Gift From Public Company en Route to the Senate
AJC: Kelly Loeffler faces new controversy about her pre-Senate payout
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