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Saturday, April 5, 2008
Video alert: Bob Barr announces his exploratory bid for president on YouTube
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Former Georgia congressman Bob Barr has put up a YouTube video announcing his formation of an exploratory committee to determine if he should run for president as a Libertarian.
Barr calls Barack Obama an “empty suit.” As for Hillary Clinton, he’s “crossed swords” with her in the past. “She’s no leader,” Barr said.
And John McCain? “He’s on a first name basis with every lobbyist you run into,” Barr said. “He’s part of the problem, part of the status quo.”
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Blogwatch: Audio of Richardson on Cagle and the death of the tax cut deal
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Jason Pye, the inestimable Libertarian contributor to Peach Pundit, has isolated the sound of House Speaker Glenn Richardson calling out Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle on the collapse of the tax cut deal. Listen to it here.
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Sales tax for transportation dead. Trauma network dead. And tax cuts dead.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The sales tax for transportation package died in the last minutes of the 2008 session of the Legislature, near midnight on Friday — three votes short of the necessary two-thirds majority in the Senate.
With it died two other major efforts — a measure to fund a statewide trauma network, and dueling efforts to cut taxes.
The most prominent legislation passed Friday, other than the budget, may have been the measure to allow licensed concealed weapons in restaurants, on MARTA trains and in state parks.
The finish of the session was one of the most subdued in memory. No governor was at the Capitol to send legislators back home. Sonny Perdue is still time zones away.
Usually, the House and the Senate try to coordinate their cries of “Sine Die.” This time, House Speaker Glenn Richardson gaveled his chamber to a close five minutes before the Senate.
Senate President pro tem Eric Johnson (R-Savannah) captured a piece of the ennui in an e-mail:
“It is hard to call this session a resounding success. We reformed Georgia’s antiquated CON laws, but failed to provide long-term funding for trauma care.
“We passed a sweeping expansion of charter schools and tuition tax credits, but left children in chronically failing schools. We provided almost $500 million in property tax relief in the budget, yet failed to stop backdoor tax increases.
“We could have done better.”
The confetti of laws passed and dead are on the floor. There’s much to sweep up, literally and figuratively. Good night.
