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Sunday, January 13, 2008
Now that we’ve sung ‘Kumbaya,’ it’s time to look at that veto
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
For two days last week, Georgia’s trio of Republican leadership put on an aerial show of solidarity, hopping from runway to runway with the message that last year’s meltdown was gone and forgotten.
Yes, the two-plane fly-around was by some measure a publicity stunt. But it also held out the possibility of valuable face-time between two men who still need it — Gov. Sonny Perdue and House Speaker Glenn Richardson. With Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle as a kind of referee.
Whether by plane, train or lifeboat, whenever traveling strangers are confined to the same space, there exists the possibility that the occupants will be forced to interact.
They might even speak to each other — about kids, wives, football, even public policy. The topic doesn’t really matter. The rules of social lubrication dictate that the more comfortable you become with a fellow in private, the less likely you are to knife him in public.
But the ice-breaking opportunity was never real. Richardson, a lawyer, missed the first day because of court appointments.
On the second day, the governor and the House speaker were never on the same plane. Not that conversation would have been possible.
On each leg, the governor climbed into the left-hand seat of the cockpit, slapped on the earphones, and — like Charles Lindbergh, the Lone Eagle — led both airships of state to their next destination. Richardson and Cagle were passengers.
There is a metaphor in that.
The Legislature convenes Monday morning. The drought is high on the agenda. So is Richardson’s plan to eliminate school property taxes in favor of an expanded sales tax.
But it’s nearly certain that the first order of business will be a rare override of one of the many vetoes issued by Perdue last spring.
The House speaker was made nearly apoplectic by the governor’s veto of a tax rebate that Richardson backed. But tomorrow’s rebellion will be a token one — and will not touch on that sensitive topic.
Late last week, House leaders were still searching for one bill for the purpose, two at the outside. Perhaps on budget policy — something small but substantive. Small, because lawmakers don’t want to sour the entire session. Substantive, because they want to show that their actions matter, with or without the governor.
No big speeches are planned, no bombast. Just a quick vote and a plain message.
If it’s the right bill, House Democrats say they’ll be on board. Senate Republicans — both chambers must give two-thirds approval to the override — say the same thing. But Senate Republicans are closer to the governor, and have insisted that House Republicans take the first step.
Cagle, the lieutenant governor, will be something of a bystander in the drama.
“If there’s a legitimate reason to override, we’ll override,” said Senate President pro tem Eric Johnson (R-Savannah). But Johnson said the Senate would not act out of pique over last year’s ugly finish.
Historically, the Legislature has been a tame creature, obedient to governors. The last override of a veto — two, actually — came 34 years ago this month, according to the astute research of House Clerk Robbie Rivers and his staff.
The governor’s name was Jimmy Carter. The vetoes originated in the House, where the newly sworn-in speaker was a fellow named Tom Murphy — who no doubt wanted to demonstrate that he, and his chamber, would be something to reckon with.
The bills themselves? They went directly into law after the override, and resulted in the abolition of school property taxes paid by senior citizens in two school districts, one of them Atlanta.
Sounds familiar.
The Big Guy goes to South Carolina for Edwards
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Just got a report from Mark Taylor, the former lieutenant governor, who was up in Greenville on Saturday — one of several Georgians who knocked on doors for Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards.
“We got a great response. There’s a path for John Edwards, right up the middle between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama,” said the Big Guy.
As in Georgia, polls in South Carolina have Edwards a distant third. But local newspapers reported the candidate drawing well on Saturday.
Taylor said the increased focus on the economy plays to Edwards’ strength, and that the former North Carolina senator had returned to his basic, “Two Americas” speech.
“There’s a lot of concern about the economy in South Carolina, just like there is in Georgia,” Taylor said.
After meeting at the state Capitol just after dawn, the Edwards caravan headed up I-85, and were handed a packet of 75 Democratic-leaning voters to contact. Taylor said the Georgia squad located perhaps half of them — to be expected on an unusually warm January day. They even tracked down a couple Bob Jones University students who had shown evidence of Democratic predilections.
In addition to Taylor, also making the trek to South Carolina were Steve Leeds, the state Democratic committee member; Chuck Byrd, Perry law partner with former House majority leader Larry Walker; and Macon blogger Amy Morton, who filed this report.
Taylor has kept a low profile since his lost to Sonny Perdue in the 2006 race for governor, and we couldn’t let the former lieutenant governor go without asking him about a return to public life.
The Big Guy waved the inquiry away. “Somebody told me the other day I look a lot better without a target on my back,” he said.
