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Tuesday, March 6, 2007
Signs that the CEO of DeKalb County is taking this U.S. Senate race seriously
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Vernon Jones, the CEO of DeKalb County, has just announced that he’ll lead a disaster relief team to tornado-ravaged Americus, Ga. The team leaves at 7 a.m. Wednesday.
Not to be critical, but that’s nearly a week after the event — and slower than George W. Bush.
Says the press release: “The relief team will consist of seven DeKalb County employees and equipment—including three grapplers, four dump trucks and one Roll-Off truck and container.”
More Republican opposition surfaces against mandated HPV vaccine
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The two-week hiatus by the state Legislature has become an opportunity for critics to gin up opposition to Sen. Don Balfour’s measure to mandate that girls entering the sixth grade be vaccinated against a sexually transmitted virus that causes cervical cancer.
Late Monday, Sadie Fields, chairman of the Georgia Christian Alliance, sent out an e-mail blast to supporters, urging them to ring up Balfour’s office.
And over the weekend, the board of directors of the Georgia Federation of Young Republican Clubs condemned the measure.
“We felt that the State of Georgia should not be using its police power to force all sixth grade girls to take the woefully under-tested and very expensive vaccine,” said chairman Jason Shepherd.
Shepherd has connections to state Insurance Commissioner John Oxendine, but also once served as a legislative aide for Balfour, a Republican from Snellville.
Given that Balfour is chairman of the Senate Rules Committee, S.B. 155 is sure to get a floor vote when the Legislature reconvenes.
But even before Fields and the Young Republicans stepped in, the legislation had been getting poor reviews from the GOP’s rightward contingent. Last week, U.S. Rep. Phil Gingrey (R-Marietta) came out against mandating the vaccine. On the state Senate floor, David Shafer of Duluth is likely to be one of the leading opponents. He’s posted this on his blog.
In her message, Fields said: “First, it sends the wrong message to young girls that it is okay to engage in premarital sex at a very young age.
“Secondly, it does not address all strains of the HPV virus and covers no other sexually transmitted diseases and may lull young girls into thinking they are protected when indeed they are not.
“Thirdly, and perhaps most importantly, the decision about whether or not a young girl receives this vaccine should be left up to parents, the child and the doctor.”
More national headlines for PeachCare
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Ken Edelstein, on Creative Loafing’s political blog, has picked up indications that USA Today is about to dip into Georgia’s problems with PeachCare funding.
Report: Lawyers out to loosen grip of 2005 tort law
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The Fulton County Daily Report is reporting today that a hefty alliance of state senators and lawyers have set out to tweak the 2005 changes to state tort law.
They’re saying the measure went too far in giving cover to emergency room physicians.
Says the newspaper:
The proposal, Senate Bill 286, would repeal the section of the law that requires medical malpractice plaintiffs to prove that emergency room doctors acted with gross negligence. The bill would leave intact other major portions of the tort law, such as a $350,000 cap on pain and suffering damages in medical malpractice cases.
Lead sponsor is Seth Harp (R-Midland). Other signers include Majority Leader Tommie Williams (R-Lyons) and Minority Leader Robert Brown (D-Macon).
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Blogwatch: John Edwards will join the March rush to Atlanta
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Georgiawomenvote says that, like Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama, John Edwards is headed to Atlanta.
The Edwards event is Monday, March 12. We hear Clinton will be here March 19, and we know Obama will be raising cash here on the 26th. Looks like Georgia is the place to sober up after a Sunday hangover.
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