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Sunday, April 23, 2006
Smaller races that could make big waves
In South Georgia, the Reed-Cagle race could turn on the chamber president vs. the dental hygenist
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Today, hundreds of men and women will ignore common sense, their wallets, and half-choked pleas from their spouses.
They will declare themselves political candidates.
TV cameras at the state Capitol will pick out a few Democrats and Republicans as they sign their lives away. Most will toil in relative anonymity, on the edge of exhaustion and insolvency — just for a whiff of popular approval.
And yet some of these smaller races could have a tremendous impact on who rules this state.
Point your eyes south and east to House District 178, where state Rep. Hinson Mosley of Jesup is retiring after 14 years. The district occupies three counties, one layer away from the Atlantic coast: Pierce, Brantley and Wayne.
Mark Williams, a Jesup real estate broker and former chamber of commerce president, will be here first thing Monday morning to sign up for the House seat in the Republican primary.
Interested in the same post is Kay Godwin of Blackshear, a dental hygenist, part-time lobbyist and Republican activist. She’s close to Sadie Fields, chairman of the Georgia Christian Coalition.
Godwin is a fervent, unflinching supporter of Ralph Reed in the GOP race for lieutenant governor.
Mark Williams has endorsed no one in that contest. But his biggest backer is Senate Majority Leader Tommie Williams of Lyons. (No relation between the two.)
Tommie Williams has quietly lined up behind Reed’s rival, Casey Cagle.
More than anywhere else, South Georgia is a bastion of Christian conservatism — and viewed as an area that Reed must carry if he’s to win in July.
This lone House race and the contest for lieutenant governor are likely to depend on each other. A vote for Godwin, the dental hygenist, is odds-on to produce a vote for Reed.
A vote for Williams — either the senator or the land broker — is just as likely to produce a vote for Cagle.
And in the famous 4th District
A challenge to Cynthia McKinney may have some cash behind it
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Also Monday, DeKalb County Commissioner Hank Johnson will don his armor to run against U.S. Rep. Cynthia McKinney in the Democratic primary.
One could term his quest quixotic, except for two things: 1) McKinney’s recent, national theatrics with a Capitol Hill cop in Washington; and 2) the fact that Johnson has contracted the fund-raising expertise of Kristin Oblander.
“She’s on board with the campaign,� Johnson confirmed Friday.
Yes, “she� is that Kristin Oblander, the prominent hunter-gatherer of political cash. The one who’s feuding with Bobby Kahn and the state Democratic party over her involvement in Georgians for Truth.
But put that internecine fight aside for a moment, to focus on the one in the 4th Congressional District.
One of the great truths in politics is that big fund-raisers rarely dabble in hopeless, small-dollar causes. The presence of a big fund-raiser, who lives on commissions, implies that someone has concluded that money is ready to flow in this race.
Perhaps like it did with Denise Majette in 2002.
One assumes that the first question check-writers will want answered is whether Johnson, an attorney and former magistrate (an eery Majette parallel), has any ambition to run for the U.S. Senate in 2008.
Johnson has already matched McKinney in money. As of March 31, he had $17,791 in cash on hand. McKinney, famous for running word-of-mouth campaigns, had $15,729.
If big cash rallies behind Johnson, and the contest becomes real, the impact on the Democratic primary for governor could be tremendous — and enhance DeKalb County’s already substantial weight in determining the winner.
Mark Taylor, one of two Democratic candidates for governor, has been endorsed by McKinney. A competitive primary in the 4th District would tie McKinney to her home base, and prevent her from becoming a statewide advocate for the lieutenant governor — though her value in that role has probably already been squandered.
The question for Taylor could become whether he can cherry pick support on both sides of a 4th District fight. Or whether Democratic rival Cathy Cox, who polls well among African-American women, can dip into the anti-McKinney sentiment.
Blut und Boden auf dem Potomac
A (beer-soaked?) report on U.S.-German political diplomacy
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Jason Shepherd, a member of state Insurance Commissioner John Oxendine’s staff, sends this report from the next generation of politicians:
“Approxiately 200 Young Republicans and YR alumni were hosted at the German Embassy house for two hours of German beer, hor d’ouvres and politics. The hosts talked about a new spirit of cooperation between the Bush administration and the government of Angela Merkel who will be visiting DC in less tham two weeks. YR National Chairwoman Nicolee Ambrose talked about how much the CDU has in common with our party as opposed to the SPD under Schroeder.
“With Germany the fourth largest economy in the world, continued economic cooperation is vital for both economies.”
