Home > Political Insider > Archives > 2007 > June > 13
Wednesday, June 13, 2007
Lawmakers tell Perdue there’s no such thing as a small budget change
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Our colleague James Salzer tells us that House and Senate leaders made it clear Wednesday morning that they won’t be rubber-stamping even routine budget requests made by Gov. Sonny Perdue and state agencies anytime soon.
It took the Legislative Fiscal Affairs Committee close to three hours to consider and approve a few dozen changes Perdue requested in the fiscal 2007 budget, most of them basic bookkeeping shifts from one program to the next.
Typically, Fiscal Affairs meetings are low-key affairs, the kind of get-togethers where it’s hard to tell if the attendees are breathing until it’s time to vote.
Usually, the governor requests money to move around to make sure the bookkeeping lines up or to pay for a program that cost a little bit more than expected. Typically legislators approve the transfers without raising a peep.
The governor appoints half the members of the committee, so the odds are generally in his favor.
But times have changed, as Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle said during this morning’s meeting.
Perdue just vetoed $130 million in spending approved by lawmakers and essentially told agencies to ignore the wishes of the General Assembly on other spending items.
So legislators asked questions about most of Perdue’s proposed changes, lambasting state agencies for spending money and then coming to the Fiscal Affairs Committee to “approve” the money they’d already spent, a fairly common practice among agencies.
The committee also killed one of the transfers requested by Perdue: $145,000 to pay for food stamps given to Vietnamese, Haitian and Cuban refugees. The federal government had previously paid for those food stamps, but the state spent a little this fiscal year, which ends June 30.
House Speaker Glenn Richardson said the agency that runs the food stamp program, the Department of Human Resources, shouldn’t be coming to the committee less than three weeks before the end of the fiscal year asking for money for a program that the state had never before funded.
Richardson said his aim was to “send a message” to state agencies that the committee would be taking a much closer look at the changes in funding they — and Perdue — request in the future.
On a special session: Richardson says he’s patient, Cagle says case not made yet
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Our colleague James Salzer was there when House Speaker Glenn Richardson said Wednesday that there is no timetable for when lawmakers would consider calling themselves back into special session to override Gov. Sonny Perdue’s budget vetoes.
Legislative leaders talked about doing so last week during a meeting at a St. Simons Island resort.
As expected, whether it happens or not depends largely on the Senate, which has been reticent to go against Perdue’s wishes over the past five years.
“I feel that the House members support it overwhelmingly and a lot of senators do — but I don’t know if enough senators support it,” Richardson said.
In his first comments on the matter, Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle, the Senate’s president, said, “There have been no official steps taken by senators to move in that direction. The case has not been made [for a special session] at this point.”
Says Rogers: ‘I’m flattered, but no thanks. Not right now’
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
As the rented PT Cruiser was pointed to Savannah for the Georgia Press Association meeting, state Sen. Chip Rogers called with the relatively predictable conclusion of the day.
He’s not running against Saxby Chambliss next year. He likes him, even. And Johnny Isakson, too.
But the Republican from Woodstock, who headed up the 2006 state assault on illegal immigration, didn’t deny that he’d had plenty of dissatisified people ask him.
“I am humbled and flattered by the support of many who have asked me to run for United States Senate. My efforts in elective office have been solely focused on doing all I can for Georgia. I will continue to do exactly that - as a state senator,” he said in a statement issued Wednesday afternoon.
Rogers’ candidacy had been suggested that morning by John Konop, a fellow Cherokee County Republican. (See below for details.)
Rogers cited two reasons. First, a young family that includes four kids. And a respect for the guys already up there.
“I have great personal respect for both Senators Isakson and Chambliss. And while we may not agree on every issue, there is far more that unites us than separates us,” he said.
One of the things that separates them on the immigration issue is George Bush. Rogers was on PBS on Tuesday, calling President Bush’s efforts a joke. Chambliss and Isakson met with Bush’s lieutenants on Wednesday morning — in the Dirksen Senate building, not the White House, as Chambliss said in a report we posted below.
Fred Thompson wants your money
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The current speculation is that Fred Thompson will jump into the Republican race for the White House on the Fourth of July.
Two days later, he’s got a fund-raiser scheduled in Atlanta. It’s the usual $2,300 for close contact, $1,000 for distant longing. Peachpundit.com was the first to collar the invite.
Check out the host list.
Rumors and such about Chip Rogers
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
We’ve already told you about the appearance Tuesday by state Sen. Chip Rogers on PBS’ “The News Hour with Jim Lehrer,” to discuss immigration reform.
It was a 12-minute segment, and Rogers acquitted himself forcefully.
This morning, John Konop — a Republican who challenged U.S. Rep. Tom Price (R-Roswell) in last year’s primary — is fueling talk that Rogers is being pressured to run against U.S. Sen. Saxby Chambliss in next year’s GOP primary.
Don’t jump to conclusions. We’ve got calls into Rogers, a Woodstock Republican who was behind the state’s 2006 immigration reform package. We’ll keep you apprised.
Chambliss and Isakson have a chat about the immigration bill at the White House today
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
U.S. Sen. Saxby Chambliss was on WGAU (1340 AM) in Athens this morning, talking about the immigration reform bill and his non-relationship with Ted Kennedy.
Chambliss may have actually made some news.
Talk host Tim Bryant sent us a sound clip.
The senator begins by distancing himself from Ted Kennedy, the lead Democratic negotiator on the issue.
“Ted Kennedy and I are at opposite ends of the spectrum, philosophically. We share nothing in common when it comes to politics. I don’t hang around with the guy,” Chambliss said. “But there are times when you can’t pick and choose your partner on the other side, and Kennedy just happens to be the guy who’s leading the negotiations for the Democrats on this issue, because he chairs the Judiciary subcommittee on immigration.”
But it also sounded like our Georgia senators and the White House are getting pretty tight. You’ll recall that, on Tuesday, Chambliss and U.S. Sen. Johnny Isakson suggested that President Bush use an emergency spending bill to prove to critics that he’s serious about beefing up border security.
Said Chambliss: “We’ve got a meeting with the White House this morning. This bill was put on hold until Johnny Isakson and I work with the white house to try to craft a provision that will put border security first.”
Chambliss isn’t the only political figure hitting the airwaves on the immigration reform.
State Sen. Chip Rogers (R-Woodstock) was one of two state lawmakers who appeared on a 12-minute segment of PBS’ “The News Hour with Jim Lehrer” to debate the issue.
Rogers was the angry guy. On the opposite side was Ben Miranda, a Democratic state lawmaker from Arizona.
Here’s the transcript. A video link is in the same neighborhood.
Said Rogers about the bill: “It is a joke. This president has been a joke on this issue. [Miranda], he continues to talk about labor needs, labor needs, labor needs. I talk about what’s best for the American people, not what’s best for multinational corporations.”
