I'll be walking a parade tomorrow morning, and then I'm getting out of town for a few days. But before I go, and in what is becoming a tradition, I'd like to raise my glass and toast Peter Tondee on this most special day in the history of our country.
...But his role in the final few years of Georgia's brief span as a province accounted for the place his name holds in the history of the state. Tondee's Long Room, which stood at the northwest corner of Broughton and Whitaker streets in Savannah, became center stage for the political drama that brought a fledgling province into the ranks of the war for American liberty, and it served for several years during and after the Revolution (1775-83) as the seat of government for the new state.
It's been reported here and at the Tavern that Vernon Jones has put out a mailer with Barack and him. I hear it was sent to only African Americans across the State - about 200k households.
Since I'm not near my mailbox I had someone transit what was on the mailer:
The front cover: Picture of Barack speaking and the caption says "Barack Obama for U.S. President and a picture of Vernon next to him speaking with a caption that says "Vernon Jones for U.S. Senate for Georgia". The picture of the two of them next to each other. Above them it says "Yes WE Can!" People are fading in an audience are faded in the backgroud, as if both of them are speaking to a crowd.
The Back cover: Left side says: Like Barack Obama, Vernon Jones Wants to...
* Bring Down the Cost of Gasoline and Food * Create Jobs at Home for Us * Protect Homowners from Foreclosures * Improve Education by Preparing, Retaining, and Rewarding Teachers * Bring Prompt Resolutions to the War in Iraq and Afghanistan * Provide Economic Development to Save Small Towns and Rural Communities * Ensure Affordable and Accessible Healthcare Coverage for All
If Obama can get Vernon to support him then he should have no problem with getting the rest of Georgia's conservative Democrats to vote for him. That's a mjor coup. You know Georgia has such a large population of Black conservative Democrats.
I guess Cardwell know understands why fundraising is important. As many times as Cardwell mentions Barack's name at the drop of the hat - his love for Obama can only be heard when he gets free teevee. Now if he had raised money he could have sent out a mailer professes his true man-crush love.
I know there is an ongoing debate about the overall competitiveness of Georgia in the general election. The sentiment seems to range from "this is a head fake to draw McCain into spending money" to "Obama really believes he can win Georgia".
Well, whatever level of seriousness you might happen to subscribe to, I've pretty much made up my mind.
Tonight, in the reddest county in Georgia, an Obama fellow showed up with at least 6 other volunteers to work the Cumming Fairgrounds before the fireworks show. They were all young, good looking, well dressed people. And they came toting clipboards.
Aside from the general freak-out factor I witnessed from some of the hard nosed R's in the crowd (which was delicious, btw). These young kids plastered dozens of people with Obama stickers and otherwise fanned out to register voters and sign up volunteers. Let's just say they didn't come up empty. The fellow was on his second signup sheet when I left. Who knows how many others got signed up. It was professional. It was a clinic.
I'm not sure I can even adequately describe how completely foreign this is to Forsyth County. Yet, there they were, delivering a bit of presidential campaign reality to a place that gave Kerry little more than 18% of the vote in 2004.
And hits one deep into the gap in left center. More like this please.
From the mailbag:
"I'm pleased that Gov. Perdue has such faith and confidence in Sen. Cowsert, though I'd like to get a copy of the crystal ball he used to make such a forecast. Last time I checked, it's hard to make such bold predictions when your candidate hasn't even survived the primary yet, let alone the general election. Seems to me that it sure would be hard to be a floor leader for the governor if you're not actually serving in the State Senate next year. Then again, judging by the lack of action taken by the General Assembly the past few years, perhaps the governor's already got such a strategy in place."
Is for the 4th District PSC. Since we haven't really talked much about it (though I think Jim Powell was mentioned as one of the Tavern's finest), I thought I'd drop a little PSC science on you guys. The two candidates, Bob Indech and the aforementioned Powell debated at GPB this afternoon.
It's worth a peek on the GPB website. Consider it 30 minutes of your time well spent. PSC is a lot more important than the low-profile nature of the race would indicate. These are the guys that have a lot of effect on your power bill, your phone bill, and your natural gas bill. They also are going to have a big say in what kind of power plants Georgia builds in the future.
I don't want to get into a huge discussion of the candidates; you should watch the debate online and you should definitely visit the candidates' websites.
Here's my take on the two, and I'll preface by saying I've already decided to vote for Jim Powell. So, take anything I say with a grain of salt.
On July 2, the Democratic candidates for U.S. House District 12 (Congressman John Barrow & State Senator Regina Thomas) will face off at 7 p.m.
On July 8, the Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate will debate at 7 p.m.
Both debates will be held at Ogeechee Technical College in the Joe Kennedy Building Auditorium and will be moderated by Herald editors.
Grift mentioned this in the comments and at his place the other day, but I'm running a bit behind. It's nice to see Democrats actually participate in a debate somewhere other than the Atl.
Jones 25%
Cardwell 22%
Martin 17%
Knight 14%
Lanier 6%
Cardwell is keeping it close and continues to show strength with no money or discernable activity. Martin is still looking lackluster, and Rand is inching up. The undecided vote is starting to move down a bit from the 40's to the mid-teens.
Maybe.
...adding later. Picked up from Pye, the 12th Congressional APC Debate.
His reputation is for exceptional competence. In 1979, Gov. George Busbee appointed him secretary of state, to fill a vacancy created by the death of the legendary Ben Fortson. Before that, he’d served as an assistant in the attorney general’s office, as deputy revenue commissioner and as commissioner of the Department of Medical Assistance.
In 1982, he was defeated in the Democratic primary by Max Cleland. Cleland, later a U.S. senator, was magic with crowds, just as Barack Obama is today...But in 1982, Poythress’ superior competence as an administrator was no match for Cleland’s patriotic appeal and his ability to inspire audiences.
Just before he retired last November, I heard Poythress speak. He is close now to being what Max Cleland was then.
Wooten then goes on to mention the need to capture those mythical Reagan Democrats and reminds everyone of why he is a poor pundit.
I have no doubt that Poythress is an exceptional bureaucrat and supremely qualified, however, he has tried to go to the big dance a few times and lost. Maybe he would fare differently when subjected to all of Georiga, and not just Democrats.
That said, I think he would be an excellent candidate.
Yet another reason that in my opinion we should be fostering the development of better open carry laws. Concealed carry debates often descend into the mindless grandstanding we see here from both Bearden and DeCosta.
It is arguable that the most highly concentrated presence of law enforcement these days exist at the airport. Bearden is overheating over a concern that doesn't seem to be a problem.
Likewise, DeCosta is being an autocratic jerk. In 2002, I decided to fly up to South Dakota for my annual pheasant hunting trek. As soon as I pulled my silver mossy oaks gun case from the trunk of my car in the parking lot, I could feel a thousand eyes on me all at once. Walking through the doors, arriving at the ticket desk, and pulling out my firearms for inspection was even more intense. I felt the entire room stop for a second to see what I was packing.
Is that scenario even possible if Hartsfield-Jackson is a "gun free zone"? How could you even lawfully transport a gun via air travel (which, btw, is a perfectly legal thing to do)?
What was interesting about that trip in '02, is that when we finally landed in Pierre, SD - a 1 gate airport terminal smaller than my home - the airport crew unloaded cases of guns stacked up taller than the hunters getting off the plane. The crew laid them right out on the terminal floor for the enthusiastic hunters to gather up. I remember thinking to myself that this was one of the things I missed about living in smaller towns; nobody really cared much about your guns (whether they were in a case or strapped to your hip for everyone to see).
If people are so determined to wear a pistol in the non-secure places of the airport, they should have to strap on a holster and open carry it. Today that can be done by getting a license for any handgun. I get frustrated with these modern day citizen detective types. If you want to carry... then freaking carry. Right on your hip like it's always been for hundreds of years. Some people don't like open carry because of the attention it draws, but isn't that what Bearden is so desperately craving here?
Suppose you were in a crowded primary. Suppose there wasn't much separating any of the candidates. Suppose no one was really getting any traction. Suppose you were looking to D.C. for help in the race, namely getting a congressman's endorsement.
If you were doing that in Georgia and running for Senate, you would be sorely disappointed.
Just put in a call to Georgia's six congressional delegates and all but one said they won't be endorsing. Couldn't get an official statement from Sanford Bishop's office (will get one tomorrow and update the post) but it sounded as if he would pass. Jim Marshall's office had the most interesting comment.
The statements from their offices when asked "if he has or will endorse":
John Barrow: "He is not". Sanford Bishop: See above Hank Johnson: "No and I don't think he will anytime soon." John Lewis: No and no. Jim Marshall: "If you call back in about two weeks, maybe." David Scott: "He has not endorsed anyone in any local races."
It's obviously very admirable for one to have "accepted Jesus as my lord and Savior", but that doesn't provide a public domain free pass for whatever it is you did. You might have the bases covered in the afterlife, but that acceptance doesn't punch a ticket in the public domain (or at least it shouldn't). It seems the only difference now with the Broun details is that, as a Congressman, Paul is no longer considered "fringe".
Check out the new campaign commercial for Malik Douglas. He is interesting and I think that he will be good in Georgia politics. That District 93 race should be an interesting one to watch, since there will be thousands of voters coming out instead of just 500.
I'll be walking a parade tomorrow morning, and then I'm getting out of town for a few days. But before I go, and in what is becoming 
