Political professor breaks down how Georgia’s Senate runoff race will impact country

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — A local political professor is breaking down how Georgia’s race will impact the country.

When President Trump first took office, the White House and both chambers of Congress were controlled by Republicans. University of Indianapolis professor Dr. Laura Wilson says this does perioodically happen.

She says there are benefits of a divided government, like hearing various perspectives of a certain issue. Dr. Wilson says the minority party will still be shown and have a voice and the majority party will have to compromise. There’s always the challenge of more legislative gridlock, but that leads to more robust policy. She says that is better for all Americans than one party passing their own legislative agenda.

The assistant director for Fellowships of the Strain Honors College says there’s a lot going on in this race that’s far bigger than the race itself.

“You talk about the role Georgia played in the 2020 election and as a state itself to flip from red to blue and the question of whether or not it will maintain in this race with the election outcome or if that was just one moment in time,” Dr. Wilson said. “The larger question of the Senate and the balance between Republican and Democrat and then the larger question of the institutions themselves. Whether or not Congress, as a whole, will the Democrats be in charge of everything or will we still have divided government?”

Dr. Wilson says there’s a lot at stake for the Biden administration. She says they’re focused on COVID-19 and not just the healthcare aspect but the economy as well. Plus, education, infrastructure and social security. She says these are longer-term issues that Democrats want to focus on.

Republicans’ big focus is the economy and helping get businesses back on their feet.