Roy Moore's Loss in Alabama Means Decency and Common Sense Won

Alabama's voters have spoken -- but not with a harmonious, unifying voice.That U.S. Senate race between the GOP's Toxic Kid, Roy Moore, and the Rocky Balboa of the Democratic politics, Doug Jones, exposed anew America's racial divide.There's a gender split, too, but it's nothing compared to the chasm between white voters and black voters in Alabama.Long story short: Black voters, especially black women, were the tipping point for Jones in a state that hasn't elected a Democratic senator since 1992.Like Texas, which hasn't elected a Democrat statewide for a quarter-century, Alabama is a GOP stronghold.Black women, who make up 17 percent of the electorate, cast 98 percent of their support for Jones. That's slightly more than the 95 percent that voted for Barack Obama as president. I don't know what was wrong with the other 2 percent, who apparently didn't take issue with Moore's history of cavorting with teenage girls or his public longing for the good-ol' days when blacks and women couldn't vote.More shocking than the Jones victory was the level of support Moore maintained with white voters. Only 30 percent of white voters cast their lot with Jones. Not surprised that about 72 percent of white men hitched their wagon to the throwback candidate.But when 63 percent of white women still find Moore appealing, that reveals an eye-popping truth: Partisan loyalty trumps decency and civility.Worse still, white women, as they did with the election of President Donald Trump, have shown once again that they are willing to overlook and excuse racist, misogynistic, homophobic and xenophobic behavior.Trump is on the road to becoming a tragic political figure. While several prominent GOP officials distanced themselves from Moore, the president stuck his neck out for him.He's a divider, not a uniter, which is a reverse of both the slogan and style employed by former President George W. Bush.  Continue reading...