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Friday, July 14, 2006
A somber note from a campaign
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Jim Martin, one of five Democratic candidates for governor, is closing his campaign with the emotional grabber of the season. It’s a 30-second TV spot in which he recounts the 1980 kidnapping of his 8-year-old daughter, Becky.
She was walking the two blocks home from Morningside Elementary School in Atlanta, when a man pulled up to her and asked her for directions. The man grabbed her and drove off — but threw her out of the car shortly afterwards.
“I’ll never forget the way she trembled when she faced her kidnapper in court. That’s one reason I fought so hard for crime victims, and to lock up violent criminals,” Martin says to the camera.
The ad’s posted here at Martin’s web site.
Zell weighs in for Ralph Reed, again.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Matt Towery’s Insider Advantage poll has Ralph Reed bouncing back a bit in the Republican race for lieutenant governor. He’s now tied with Casey Cagle, 43-43 percent.
Comeback efforts include the Friday release of this radio ad featuring Zell Miller, in which the former governor and U.S. senator proclaims his trust in Reed’s “values and his character.�
The line that matters: “Ralph will fight those who seek to trivialize the pro-family values that are the foundation of our country,� Miller says in the ad.
Let’s ponder on Towery’s contention that this race will be a 1,000-vote contest. If that’s so, then it won’t be over until Cobb, Cherokee and north Fulton counties weigh in.
Remember that it was Jared Thomas, as campaign manager for Tom Price, who pulled the upset of 2004 with a primary victory in the GOP race for the 6th Congressional District. Which covers exactly that territory. Thomas, of course, is now directing Reed’s campaign.
Slipped over the transom
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Someone has slipped us a digitalized sheet of paper with a Waffle House letterhead, over the signature of Don Balfour, who is both a corporate vice president and chairman of the powerful Senate Rules Committee.
The letter informs district and division managers that Ralph Reed, the Republican candidate for lieutenant governor, has permission to put a yard sign “at every Waffle House in the state of Georgia.”
The signs weren’t allowed to go up until July 7. “No political yard signs are allowed at Waffle House without a letter from me. If other political signs go up, please take them down,” Balfour wrote.
Balfour confirmed the authenticity of the document for us, but said it does not amount to an endorsement on his part. He oversees “advocacy” and government relations, and all such letters go out over his signature. “Neither is it an endorsement by the corporation,” Balfour said.
So that’s what the letter is not. Although you might keep in mind that Joe Rogers, president of Waffle House, is a Reed supporter. And what the boss wants….
It’s an impressive gift, and gives Reed a terrific skeleton for a sign network. Waffle House is legendary for its success in selecting locations.
Oh, and for you young people. A transom is that little window above a door that’s cracked open for ventilation. Seen mostly in 1930s detective movies.
Georgia Equality says vote Democratic, but skip governor’s race
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The state’s largest gay rights organization wants to see more votes cast in the race for lieutenant governor and other downballot contests than in the gubernatorial races.
The plan is to use the difference to give a firm measurement of their clout in November. Read the group’s complete statement below.
Don’t vote for governor in next week’s primary. Vote in your own party’s primary but stay away from the gubernatorial race in the voting booth. Vote for every other candidate you support, but make your vote for governor count by not casting it.
The race for governor this fall will be close. No candidate will be able to take any vote for granted. In precincts with large numbers of LGBT voters, a boycott of the gubernatorial primary will show how many votes are at stake. With hard numbers to point to, our community’s conversation with the candidates will change.
None of the major candidates – Cathy Cox, Sonny Perdue and Mark Taylor – earned the votes of LGBT Georgians. Their behavior during the just-concluded court battle over the 2004 constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage proved it.
After Judge Constance Russell invalidated the amendment for violating the state constitution, Perdue sensed an opportunity to enhance his reelection chances by exciting conservative voters to go to the polls.
He took the extraordinary step of threatening to hold a special session of the General Assembly to put a new marriage amendment on the November ballot if the Georgia Supreme Court failed to overturn Russell’s ruling.
The Justices wasted no time in reinstating the amendment. After the decision, Perdue generously noted that gay and lesbian Georgians are “free to work and live their lives� in the state “they’re just not free to marry.� Thanks, Sonny.
Cox, the secretary of state long thought to be a supporter of civil equality for gay and lesbian Georgians, fell all over herself to support Perdue’s call for a special session and announce her support for civil marriage discrimination. And then she stunned supporters by renouncing support for civil unions.
Taylor, the lieutenant governor, has simply been silent, other than to quietly reaffirm his support for civil marriage discrimination.
On the fundamental issue of whether gay and lesbian Georgians and their families deserve basic legal protections, all three candidates fall far short.
So keep your vote for governor in your pocket, but vote for every other fair-minded candidate down the ticket, especially lieutenant governor. Pay close attention to legislative races, as well.
Returning Karla Drenner – the state’s only openly gay member of the state legislature – and electing Allen Thornell to the General Assembly will send a powerful message. Make sure we also return our staunch legislative allies.
Georgia Equality has thoroughly screened candidates and carefully selected those who merit your support. A list of those candidates is at www.georgiequality.org.
Voting in your party’s primary – whether Democratic or Republican – ensures that other candidates who deserve your support get it.
Some have argued that LGBT voters should take part in the Republican primary to support Casey Cagle against Ralph Reed for lieutenant governor, but that tactic might mean fair-minded Democratic candidates will lose votes – and maybe elections. You can’t vote against Reed in the Republican primary and for a good candidate in the Democratic primary or Democratic primary runoff.
And there’s no way to measure the effect of LGBT crossover votes in the Republican primary. If we all vote in our own party’s primary, but skip the governor’s race, we can show where more votes were cast for “down ticket� races than for governor. And that will make a difference this fall, and in the future.
So here’s the strategy: Check out Georgia Equality’s candidate endorsements or the endorsements of any LGBT-friendly organization or person you respect.
Do vote in your party’s primary and vote for the candidates you support.
Don’t vote for any candidate for governor.
Do vote for lieutenant governor, state House, state Senate and local candidates.
And take a few friends to the polls with you when you go. Pass it on. Make your vote count!
