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Monday, August 25, 2008
Georgia revisited: Not too bad, actually
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
By Aaron Gould Sheinin asheinin@ajc.com
Denver — We wrote earlier about how Georgia was stuck in the rafters at the Democratic National Convention.
Well, that was based on an obviously not-to-scale map of the inside of the Pepsi Center released by the DNC.
Today we finally got inside the arena itself and … let’s just say Georgia’s doing all right. The home team is much closer to the podium than it looked on the map.
Take a look for yourself. Here is a photo of the main podium from the delegation’s section.
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He doesn’t understand you like I do, John McCain tells Hillary Clinton supporters
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The Denver rift between Obamites and the Clinton clan remains wide and deep, according to thepolitico.com.
Bill Clinton’s assigned topic is national security. Says Politico:
The former president is disappointed, associates said, because he is eager to speak about the economy and more broadly about Democratic ideas — emphasizing the contrast between the Bush years and his own record in the 1990s.
Meanwhile, that ol’ John McCain, he just keeps smiling his best come-hither smile at Hillary Clinton followers. Here’s one of his new ads:
In the hours before the first evening session, the Clinton-Obama split is the hot topic. Whether things are patched up by Friday will be a key measure of the convention’s success.
Here’s the take in The Fix at the Washington Post site:
Polling seems to suggest that the rift is deeper than simply a clash of personalities. In a new CNN/Opinion Research Corporation poll, roughly two thirds of self-identified supporters of Hillary Clinton in the primary are now backing Obama while 27 percent say they will vote for John McCain in the fall. A survey done last week for NBC and the Wall Street Journal showed an even clearer divide with only 52 percent of Clinton backers siding with Obama in the general election.
And what did Hillary Clinton say about the above ad? According to the Associated Press:
“I’m Hillary Clinton and I do not approve that message!”
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On tap today for Georgia
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Denver — With breakfast over, Georgia’s delegates are picking up their credentials and then most of them have a little free time until it’s “gavel down” at the Pepsi Center at 3 p.m. (5 p.m. back in Atlanta).
But not everyone has time to rest. Coming up at 12:30 p.m. here, Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin and Georgia Labor Commissioner Michael Thurmond will participate in a DNC Black Caucus panel discussion entitled, “Urban Renewal: Quality Education and Job Creation.”
DNC Chairman Howard Dean and U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) are also on the panel. It’s from 12:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. in the Wells Fargo Theater, a few blocks from the Pepsi Center.
Once everyone is settled in the convention hall itself, Georgia’s big moment will come sometime before 7 p.m. when former President Jimmy Carter speaks. The folks running this shindig are not giving a lot of details on timing, so somewhere in that four-hour window the man from Plains will talk.
— Aaron Gould Sheinin
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Shuler gets booed — on request
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Denver — U.S. Rep. Heath Shuler (D-N.C.) spoke this morning to a combined breakfast gathering of Alabama and Georgia Democrats and got the rude welcome he requested.
Shuler, of course, might be better known among this crowd as the former University of Tennessee quarterback.
Dressed casually in a blue polo shirt and khakis, Shuler got the awkwardness out of the way up front.
“A Tennessee quarterback comes to Georgia and Alabama — you’ve got to give me one big boo!” he said, and the crowd obliged.
“Man, I feel at home in this group,” he said. “But we’ll always keep it in the family and support the SEC.”
Turning to the business at hand, Shuler praised U.S. Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.), who was not at the breakfast, and urged the delegates and activists noshing on scrambled eggs, bacon and french toast to work hard to elect Democrats in the fall.
Oh, and in case you’re wondering, Georgia fans in the audience had more reason to boo than most. In Shuler’s career at Tennessee, he went 0-2-1 against Alabama, but torched the Bulldogs for a 2-0 record in 1992 and 1993.
— Aaron Gould Sheinin
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Paul Broun on his fiscal problems: Nothing’s wrong, and it won’t happen again
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Gov. Sonny Perdue has taken up a shovel to help dig U.S. Rep. Paul Broun out of his financial hole.
The governor will attend a Wednesday barbecue lunch in Augusta for the Republican congressman, Broun’s campaign office announced this morning. Tickets are $25, but the people at the door will certainly take more if offered.
Last week, a congressional report declared that Broun has spent more than 80 percent of his annual office budget. Almost half of his spending went toward mailings to constituents — at the time, the freshman congressman was being outraised by a well-financed Republican challenger.
Broun defeated state Rep. Barry Fleming of Harlem in the July 15 Republican primary.
Broun’s spending totaled $1.139 million through June 30, the AJC has reported. Based on an annual budget of about $1.38 million, that leaves the congressman with just $241,000 to pay essentials — including office rent, salaries, equipment and his travel through December.
Some staffers have already transferred to Broun’s re-election campaign, where they are paid with funds raised from political donors — like the people who will come to Wednesday’s barbecue.
Broun’s general election opponent, Democrat Bobby Saxon, has made the congressman’s financial problems a campaign issue, saying that 10th District voters are being shortchanged.
As for Broun — the congressman now comes close to blaming his former chief of staff Aloysius Hogan for the mess, though not by name. Hogan resigned last month.
On Friday, Broun was on WGAU (1340AM) in Athens. Host Tim Bryant sent this sound clip.
Bryant asked about reports that field offices may be closed, and that consituent services might be trimmed. Broun said:
”All those claims are blatantly false. All the offices are open. They will remain open through the entire year. We have caseworkers there form 9 to 6, Monday through Friday, and they will continue to be there, to continue to serve the public.
“Nobody’s being fired, no office is being closed, no constiuent service is being curtailed in any manner whatsoever. And neither are the legislative services that we’re doing in Washington.
“We’re continuing business as usual and will continue to provide the service to the public that they deserve. Any claims counter to that are just blatantly false. In fact, it’s fear-mongering by the press that’s going on here, and frankly I think that’s irresponsible journalism. It’s not what journalists are supposed to be doing.
“Journalists are supposed to report facts, and not try and put in speculation, and even some speculation where I bought flat-screen TVs and leased Lexus cars and things like that were put in the press. And all of that is irresponsible journalism as far as I’m concerned.”
And how did he get in this fix?
”I’m not a micro-manager. I hire people. I expect them to do the job, I expect them to make good decisions, I expect them to report to me appropriately and let me know exactly what’s going on.
“And sometimes people don’t do that. In this case, that’s what’s happened. I did not know that there was any problem until the article comes out. So we spent a little more money on mail than I would have done if I had made the decision myself.
“But it’s still within the parameters of a budget where we’re going to be able to continue every bit of the services that people deserve. We’re not closing offices, we’re not curtailing services, we’re not cutting anything that makes any difference to any of the constituents.
“We’ve tightened our belts a little bit. There was a decision or two made that I would not have made by my staff. But I’m the captain of the ship, so I take full responsibility for it. I’ve learned from it, and we’ve put in place things that will make sure that this won’t happen again. And it’s actually a mistake I made as a freshman member of Congress.”
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Coming up next: The new rules for the 2012 presidential campaign
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Stateline.org reports that both Republicans and Democrats are looking to slow down the presidential nomination process in 2012.
Republicans are expected to vote on their plan in Minneapolis. Democratic changes would come further down the road.
Says Stateline.org:
While all sides agreed that this year’s historic run for the White House energized voters, as evidenced by record voter registration and primary turnout, many are concerned that this cycle’s very early start was unfair to candidates and state officials who actually administer the primary contests — and in the end, to voters.
“The formal primary process teeters on the brink of chaos,” said Don Means, director of the Open Caucus Institute, a nonprofit, nonpartisan group that advocates a change in the nominating process.
Presidential candidates were forced to start campaigning at Thanksgiving, giving what critics say was an unfair advantage to highly funded candidates with name recognition. States had to scramble to get ballots ready and train poll workers. And many voters didn’t really get a chance to get to know the various contenders, because by March, the field of candidates was essentially narrowed to U.S. Sen. John McCain for the GOP and Obama and U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton for the Democrats.
The goal of the commission that the DNC and the Obama campaign are forming is to ensure that no primary or caucus is held before the first Tuesday in March 2012, except for approved “pre-window states,” such as Iowa and New Hampshire, whose contests would fall in February 2012….
Here’s what’s happening on the Republican side:
“I believe we are closer to getting some kind of meaningful reform than ever before,” said David Norcross, who chairs the Republican National Committee’s Rules Committee. His panel on Aug. 27 will take up a proposal called “the Ohio plan” that would continue to give Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina and Nevada the opening shots, but then voters in three groups of states would then follow later on a rotating basis. The “Ohio plan” originally would have had the country’s smallest states go first, but Norcross said that idea could be dropped because of opposition by larger states such as California and Michigan.
The RNC panel also will consider the “Texas plan” that divides the country into four groups based on a balance of convention delegates, electoral votes and the proportion of “red” and “blue” states and another proposal that Norcross called a “do-nothing” plan that essentially promises only to hold the primaries no early than the first Tuesday in March.
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