Home > Political Insider > Archives > 2007 > July > 16
Monday, July 16, 2007
Notes from a Republican breakfast
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The Georgia Republican Foundation had a breakfast meeting in Cobb County this morning, the first hosted by the new state GOP chairman, Sue Everhart.
The gathering was worth a few notations:
— The Foundation is a collection of reliable GOP donors, and attracted many of the same people who would truck down I-75 later in the morning for the Saxby Chambliss fund-raiser with Vice President Dick Cheney.
All except one, perhaps.
That was state Supreme Court Justice Robert Benham, who was seated at the same table with Chambliss and his colleague in the U.S. Senate, Johnny Isakson. Benham is up for re-election next year, just like Chambliss, and — while his seat is non-partisan — he’s clearly trying to blunt any GOP-sponsored effort to unseat him, like that faced by Justice Carol Hunstein in ’06.
— Chambliss urged attendees to pick up a CD that explained his stance on issues, including immigration, which is still a touchy subject. “You sent us to Washington to solve problems, not to let problems hang out there for the next generation to solve,” he said.
— Isakson gave a brief rundown on the situation in Iraq, dividing his remarks into “good news and other news.”
He and Chambliss would vote against any effort to revisit Iraq strategy before the well-advertised date of Sept. 15, Isakson said. “When you let the world know what your game plan is, the dumbest thing in the world you can do is change it.”
— On the federal program known nationally as SCHIP, and in Georgia as Peachcare, which provides health insurance for the children of the working poor: Isakson faulted the Bush administration for waivers that allowed the program to spin out of control, but also condemned Democratic attempts to widen the program.
Current Democratic plans, he said, are a backdoor attempt at a national health insurance program that would expand eligibility to anyone within 400 percent of the federal poverty level “whether or not they have children.”
“It’s a dangerous, precipitous path that we’re on,” Isakson said.
Isakson said he and other Republicans are working on an alternative plan that would give every American a $4,500 tax credit for private health insurance policies they purchase.
The poor, who don’t pay that much in taxes, would receive a $4,500 voucher with which to purchase insurance.
Cheney: ‘Veni, vidi, I raised $200,000’
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Vice President Dick Cheney dropped in at the north Atlanta home of Aaron Rents founder Charlie Loudermilk on Monday afternoon, as the main draw for a fund-raiser that netted U.S. Sen. Saxby Chambliss a cool $200,000, according to his re-election campaign.
The press was barred, except as witnesses to the fact that Cheney did in fact touch down at Dobbins Air Reserve Base near Marietta.
About 120 Republicans attended the event, including U.S. Sen. Johnny Isakson, Gov. Sonny Perdue, Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle, and U.S. Reps. Phil Gingrey of Marietta and Tom Price of Roswell. We were assured that no furniture was trashed or damaged in the frenzy to shake the vice president’s hand.
Cheney’s visit was more about status than a fervent need for cash on Chambliss’ part.
In federal campaign disclosure documents due to be posted today, Chambliss will report $3.3 million in cash on hand for the ‘08 race. His target is $5 million by the end of the year.
Democrat Dale Cardwell reports just over $50,000. We’re still waiting on Democrat Vernon Jones’ numbers.
Georgia by the numbers: In the race for the White House, the New Yorkers aren’t doing so well
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Here’s a pretty cool New York Times site that allows readers to track presidential contributions from Dec. 3 through June 30, state by state.
The designates North Georgia as Zip Codes 30000 through 30999. In that area, the leading fund-raisers over the past six months or so were Democrat Barack Obama, with $721,900, and Republican Mitt Romney, with $694,763. Democrat John Edwards was third in North Georgia, taking in $465,813.
The New Yorkers didn’t fare as well. Democrat Hillary Clinton was fourth, raising $383,015, followed by Republican Rudy Giuliani, with $340,100.
Says Broun: Apologizes for his wife’s comments about Whitehead and religion, but says his campaign wasn’t involved
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Just got an e-mail from Paul Broun, one of two Republican candidates in tomorrow’s run-off for the 10th District congressional seat.
In the note, Brown disavowed an e-mail he says that his wife Niki sent out to Christian friends — and said he would apologize to rival Jim Whitehead for portions of the message that raised questions about Whitehead’s faith.
In the e-mail first published at peachpundit.com, Niki Broun wrote:
It is not my place to judge Jim Whitehead’s spiritual condition but I’ll just tell you that a pastor in Hartwell invited Paul and Mr. Whitehead to speak at his church.
Paul accepted gladly, as he has in many churches. Mr. Whitehead said he felt uncomfortable speaking in churches and didn’t think you should mix church and state.
In this morning’s note, which references this post, Paul Broun wrote:
The facts are these:
The Paul Broun Committee absolutely did not send that e-mail.
Independent of the campaign, in a loving attempt to help me, my wife e-mailed a few of her friends. She was basically asking them to pray for us and to do what they could to get their friends to turn out and vote. This is a wise thing in a mid-summer special run-off election projected to have low voter participation. Niki never meant for her email to be for widespread distribution.
I am glad that Niki, my wife of almost 23 years, loves me and was trying to help. The portion of the e-mail that shares our testimonies [and which you did not include] is accurate.
However, in her zeal to be helpful, and feeling the pressures that come with a political campaign (which may be tougher on the spouse than the candidate), she went beyond what she should have. Appearing to question Mr. Whitehead’s spirituality was inappropriate. She and I have discussed this matter. We feel an apology to Jim and Peggy is in order. And I do apologize to them.
I make no apology for being a Christian or for representing the Christian perspective on issues when such issues arise. However, I have a genuine commitment to fairly represent every citizen and every community of the 10th District. That commitment, indeed, that responsibility, goes beyond political party, ethnicity, socio-economic status or place of residence.
We talked to John Stone of the Whitehead campaign this morning. He said the Broun campaign has made no contact with the Whitehead campaign, but says Whitehead in fact appeared at the Hartwell church in question, on Father’s Day — but only to speak about his father.
Campaigning for votes in church does, in fact, make Whitehead uncomfortable, Stone said. He quoted his candidate as saying, “I just feel it’s the money-changers-in-the-temple thing.”
Vernon Jones jumps into the U.S. Senate race on Saturday
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Added at 12:45 p.m.: Here’s the announcement on Vernon Jones’ campaign blog.
Haven’t gotten confirmation yet, but Georgia Politics Unfiltered is reporting that DeKalb County CEO Vernon Jones will jump into the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate on Saturday morning.
The locale is said to be the Marietta Square in Cobb County.
.JPG)
-1.JPG)
Services »
