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DEL.ICIO.USNothing like goring a few sacred cows to start a conversation
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
If you’re a new anti-tax, budget watchdog group, the best way to announce your presence is to mention the cultural icons that you think could stand trimming.
The Georgia Commission on the Holocaust for one. The Georgia Civil War Commission for another.
The scene was the interior of the state Capitol on Thursday afternoon. The topic was the establishment of the Georgia chapter of Americans for Prosperity.
The players all had connections to Ralph Reed, the former Republican candidate for lieutenant governor. Tim Phillips, the national president, served as the long-time, loyal right arm at Reed’s public affairs firm, Century Strategies.
Jared Thomas, the AFP’s new director in Georgia, was Reed’s campaign manager. And Virginia Galloway (who insists she is no relation to either of the above writers) was Reed’s grassroots organizer in his campaign. She’ll do the same for this new group.
The group intends to offer budgetary insight to the Republican-controlled state Capitol — in particular, some concise thoughts on a mid-year surplus estimated at somewhere between $700 million and $1.3 billion.
“The question is what you do with that money. With us it’s black and white. You either spend the money or give it back,� Thomas said. “We want to open up a dialogue about how our state is spending money. What are our priorities?�
Which brings us to the 20-year-old Georgia Holocaust Commission, with its three staff members and $278,412 annual budget. “With all due respect to the tragedy that was the Holocaust, I just don’t know if Georgia should be in the business of employing people full-time to devote to that,� Thomas said.
The civil war commission? Thomas noted that the group gets $30,000 a year from the state, then raises $2 million from private sources. “Why do you need the $30,000 from the state if you’re able to raise $2 million privately?� Thomas asked.
Those two examples aside, the Georgia chapter of Americans for Prosperity was all about diplomacy. “We’re not here to throw bombs, we’re not here to attack people,� Thomas said.
That statement had a lot of history behind it. In 2003, newly sworn-in Gov. Sonny Perdue proposed a series of tax hikes — reduced in the end to an increase in the state tobacco tax — to cope with a budget shortfall and a sinking economy.
Another, similarly named group, Washington-based Americans for Tax Reform, backed by Grover Norquist, raised holy hell over the increase. Especially since many Republican legislators — though not Perdue — had signed the organization’s pledge never to raise taxes.
The lawmakers ended up in a crossfire between the governor and Norquist. Those same GOP lawmakers were also more than a little miffed when, a year or so later, they learned that the anti-tax group was underwritten in large part by Phillip Morris, the tobacco concern.
We asked Thomas if Americans for Prosperity intended to ask state lawmakers to sign any pledges.
Not this year, he said.
One last thought on those remarks about the Georgia Holocaust Commission. We doubt they’d be endorsed by Reed, who’s very tight with Bernie Marcus, the founder of Home Depot, and several pro-Israel groups.
Comments
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By David Franklin
October 2, 2006 5:29 PM | Link to this
Noting no comment for several days here—I could not help but see Ralphie Reed mentioned. Is he part of the so-called “Gospel of Prosperity” maybe akin to “Americans for Prosperity” as nonpreached by Jesus in that “it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than it is for a rich man to inherit the kingdom of God.” Or what about the Beatitudes and Jesus’ extolling the virtures of the “poor” or even “least of these?”
By Meltdown
October 2, 2006 7:08 PM | Link to this
Think “placeholders”. Is it a wondrous coincidence that these characters are in with Grover - Ralphies’ old roommate? Ralph’s not dead yet. He just has the good sense to lay low for awhile until his name cools off. Watch for lots of home school kiddies with their pockets full of tobacco company “expense” money to come banging on your door soon. But hey, who could be against prosperity? There’ll be pie in the sky, by and by.
By David Franklin
October 2, 2006 7:21 PM | Link to this
Amen Meltdown—just like the hypocrite Ralphie fought against the Lottery in Alabama and won—Alabama rejected it—then he turns tail and says the lottery is basically a closed “deal” in Georgia and supports it. Oh Ralph Reed—how I would love to challenge you in a face-to-face debate somdeday with no doubt your probable fan pro-Scientologist State Senator of Northeast Georgia “Bible—sorry Divorce and Abuse— Belt” Georgia on your side! on your side.
By David Franklin
October 2, 2006 7:24 PM | Link to this
Not to mention pro-Scientologist Nancy and Ralphie—the so called “Bible or Divorce Belt” also has the highest number of teenage pregnancies in this “deliberately Godless Constitutional” country called the USA.
By David Franklin
October 2, 2006 7:29 PM | Link to this
That is specifically pro-Scientologist State Senator Nancy Schaefer who “purports” to represent traditional values. Oh you poor woman—do you know what Scientologists and Hollywood stand for??????
By Meltdown
October 2, 2006 8:47 PM | Link to this
Another thing that makes me a little suspicious is these die hard Publican activists in an organization that would have to end up whacking their buds at some point. Earmarks went from 4,155 in 1994 to 15,887 in 2005. Darn those tax & spend liberal Democ… oh, wait a minute. That’s right! The Publicans were in charge of both houses! So they were looting the Treasury to buy off their little playmates, and now these guys are suddenly against it. Hmmmm. Have they suddenly turned Libertarian? Will this gloss of fiscal rectitude obscure a decade of Abramoff, Reed, and Cunningham? Will purple monkeys fly out of my.. well, never mind. We’ll see.
By David Franklin
October 2, 2006 9:26 PM | Link to this
Oh— this State Republican Senator Nancy Schaefer and the so-called Christian values that she espouses with Scientologists and those who wished they could be moonshine segregationist bootleggers up here in “these thar mountains” where “the mountains are all within us”. In the neighboring county all the government asked of the couple applying for marriage that are our friends—“Are you related?” Wow—come on Floridians even some Atlantans— seems like all kinds of marriages go up here except what Republican Mark Foley no doubt envies. Here in Young Harris PERMANTENTLY since 1979 and not in either Atlanta or Washington, D.C.!!!!!