Home > Political Insider > Archives > 2007 > August > 07
Tuesday, August 7, 2007
Surprise. Your governor’s a Unix geek who hates decisions based on emotion and politics
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Hmmm. On one day, Dick Pettys with Insider Advantage posts an article with this headline: “All of a Sudden, Glenn Richardson seems to be the ‘idea man’ in Georgia.”
On the next, Gov. Sonny Perdue rolls out a program to help small businesses provide employees with health insurance. It’s the first peep we’ve heard out of him in a while. The timing is extraordinary.
Even more extraordinary is the cutting loose of a long-held secret by the governor: He’s a Unix nerd who — back in the day — often edited his own code. It says so in a forth-coming article on the governor in CIO, a trade magazine for information tekkies.
See it here, but we offer this excerpt from a Q&A below:
CIO: What made you think that running state government like a business was a good idea? And what does IT have to do with that?
Perdue: The primary business principle I wanted to bring [to state government] was fact-based decision-making. Heretofore, I think our state had been run on a lot of emotional, political, “who’s-in-power” decisions rather than on data.
I don’t consider myself particularly gifted from an intuitive standpoint. Therefore, I have to rely on data and facts to make decisions.
I look at data as a compass, not as a map. We know that we want a more educated, healthy, growing and safe state, but what are the data points that we need to achieve those things?
The metrics in our state were in very poor shape. The very fact that a state — now, it’s a $20 billion business — did not even know how many automobiles it had, who was driving them, what were they being used for; that we had no consolidated database of the property we owned-from the perspective of a CEO or manager, if you don’t know where your fixed assets are and what their return on investment is, you have no basis on which to make decisions for the future.
I think the voters of Georgia felt disenfranchised. They believed that decisions were being made capriciously and arbitrarily based on politics rather than on sound principles. I think that was a distinction that I offered: a commitment to make decisions that would be customer-friendly, results-driven, data-driven, and serve people.
Gingrey to Iraq: The feet of U.S. troops aren’t nailed to your ground
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Bob Kemper, our guy in Washington, fielded a phone call from U.S. Rep. Phil Gingrey (R-Ga.) today from Pakistan.
Gingrey had just finished up his fourth trip to Iraq, and said he warned Iraqi leaders that American weariness with war may soon force a downsizing or withdrawal of U.S. troops, leaving the Iraqis with little time take control of their own security and government.
“I told them they didn’t have a whole lot of time left to make these benchmarks,” Gingrey told Kemper. “Just because of war fatigue and politics … they’ve got to be sure they can defend their country.”
Gingrey, a Marietta Republican and supporter of President Bush and the war, said he’s seen increased cooperation from Iraqi militias and progress in the training of Iraqi police and its new military. “Things are better,” he said.
Rep. Jack Kingston (R-Ga.) was on the trip with Gingrey, but the Savannah congressman was still flying home Tuesday and unavailable for comment.
Kemp has $10K in his pocket, and no clear intentions
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Former state senator Brian Kemp of Athens has raised more than $10,000 — but still hasn’t decided whether he’ll run against Republican incumbent Ralph Hudgens in next year’s primary.
“I haven’t decided yet,” he told the Banner-Herald newspaper. “Some people sent along checks anyway trying to encourage me.”
Kemp had begun making preparations to enter the state senate early this year, after Hudgens announced his intention to run for the 10th District congressional seat.
But Hudgens later backed away from that race, leaving Kemp and many others more than slightly grumpy.
Another courtroom showdown for voter ID law
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
State Republican officials have gotten their wish — a speedy, semi-resolution to one of the legal fights over Georgia’s voter ID law.
U.S. District Court Judge Harold L. Murphy has ordered up a trial for Aug. 22 to judge the merits of a federal lawsuit, according to today’s Rome Tribune.
A state lawsuit was ordered dismissed in June. Secretary of State Karen Handel has stated her intention to implement the law, which requires voters to present a government-issued photo ID when they vote, for the Sept. 18 special elections.
Think of the federal trial as a middle chapter in a not-so-good book. Both sides are sure to appeal a contrary decision.
