Warnock’s campaign overcame lengthy list of his own inflammatory comments

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Warnock projected to defeat Loeffler in Georgia Senate race

Democrats are projected to pick up a Republican Senate seat in Georgia; Brad Blakeman, Judith Miller and Sean Duffy react.

Sen.-elect Raphael Warnock was able to pull out a victory on Tuesday despite a long list of resurfaced comments and incidents that the Loeffler campaign capitalized on in the weeks leading up to the election.

Warnock, D-Ga., came under fire for, among other things, repeatedly defending controversial pastor Jeremiah Wright after his "God Damn America" sermon surfaced in the 2008 presidential election.

"I think it’s Christian preaching at its best," Warnock said in a video that reemerged at the end of last month.

His opponent, Sen. Kelly Loeffler, R-Ga., also highlighted his controversial statements about capitalism, the U.S. justice system, and other issues. Warnock came under scrutiny for, among other things, claiming someone couldn't serve God and the military, calling racism America's preexisting condition, appearing to praise Louis Farrakhan's Nation of Islam, and his previous handling of child abuse allegations at a camp he oversaw.

Amid a torrent of attacks, Warnock repeatedly maintained that Loeffler was deploying inappropriate tactics and distracting from key issues.

WARNOCK'S SUPPORT FOR JEREMIAH WRIGHT COMES UNDER NEW SCRUTINY

Warnock also accused Loeffler of "scandalizing" his name. "She’s been busy, as we say in church, calling me everything but a child of God. Lying on me, misrepresenting my record," he said at a rally this week. His campaign similarly accused Loeffler of engaging in the "lowest of the low attacks" when she criticized his role at the camp. While Warnock has been accused of being uncooperative with law enforcement, his campaign insisted he was acting out of the children's interests.

"The truth is he was protecting the rights of young people to make sure they had a lawyer or a parent when being questioned," said Michael Brewer, the campaign's rapid response director. "Law enforcement officials later praised him for his help in this investigation."

Warnock's former church, as Fox News reported, in 1995 hosted former communist dictator Fidel Castro, who received raucus applause from the audience. Warnock's campaign denied the candidate, who was youth pastor at the time, had any involvement in decisions at that time.

"Tucker Carlson Tonight" also obtained police bodycam footage showing Warnock and his wife after a domestic dispute and noted that she was accusing him of running over her foot. His wife could be seen crying while speaking about the dispute.

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"I’ve tried to keep the way that he acts under wraps for a long time, and today he crossed the line," she said at one point. "So that is what is going on here. And he’s a great actor. He is phenomenal at putting on a really good show."

In response to the video footage, he told CBS46: "I'm going to stay focused on my family, which includes their mother. And I'm going to stay focused on the people of Georgia who during a pandemic are still waiting on relief all these months later while politicians. including Kelly Loeffler, are busy playing games."