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Tuesday, September 2, 2008
Certain takes the stage
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
By Aaron Gould Sheinin asheinin@ajc.com
Minneapolis — The Rev. Robert Certain’s moment at the Republican National Convention came moments after U.S. Rep. John Boehner (R-Ohio) banged down the gavel to begin the convention’s second day.
Certain, pastor at The Episcopal Church of St. Peter and St. Paul in Marietta, delivered the invocation for the day.
Certain asked God to “grant wisdom and grace” to President Bush and other U.S. leaders and that John McCain and Sarah Palin, and other candidates, to be granted the “courage to face the rigors of the campaign, honesty and integrity to cast a vision of unity, progress and liberty.”
Finally, Certain asked God to “teach our people to rely on your strength, and to accept their responsibilities to their fellow citizens, that they may put country first, elect trustworthy leaders and make wises decisions for the well-being of our society.”
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Bob Barr goes to Minneapolis
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
ABC News caught up with Bob Barr in Minneapolis this afternoon.
The Libertarian presidential candidate, who was in Denver last week, stopped by Ron Paul’s “Rally for the Republic,” but told the news outlet he’s not ticked off by Paul’s refusal to make an endorsement in the November general election.
Wrote the network’s blogger:
Barr, a former [Georgia] GOP congressman, told ABC News he respects Paul’s intent not to make an endorsement in the general election, and is “here today because there are thousands of people who believe we need to shrink the power, the size, the scope of the federal government…..”
“Ron has chosen to work within the Republican Party, I’ve chosen to work through the Libertarian party through the electoral route, but we all want the same thing,” he added.
Barr will be hanging around the Republican National Convention the rest of the week. His campaign says the Libertarian has a 9 a.m. appearance tonight on Fox News’ “Your World with Neil Cavuto.”
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Republicans making phone calls for Obama
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The Barack Obama campaign in Georgia says that tonight it will host groups of Republican converts to the Democratic presidential candidate.
They’ll be participating in phone banks, speaking GOP to potential voters.
See the list of metro Atlanta gatherings on the jump.
Golden Spoon Jamaican Cuisine Restaurant
1360 Dogwood Drive
Conyers, GA 30013
6pm
Campaign For Change field office
3245 Lawrenceville Suwanee Road, Suite S
Suwanee, GA 30024
7 pm
Paccino’s Pizzeria
4081 Redan Road
Stone Mountain, GA 30083
6:30pm
Campaign for Change field office (this is also an office opening)
1200 Cobb Pkwy North, Suite 700
Marietta, GA 30062
6:30 pm
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The Sarah Palin Chronicles
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
A compendium of instant literature on Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin:
— A NYT piece on Palin and the Mommy Wars.:
“How is this really going to work?” said Karen Shopoff Rooff, an independent voter, personal trainer and mother of two in Austin, Tex. “I don’t care whether she’s the mother or the father; it’s a lot to handle.”
— A Washington Post article on federal earmarks secured by Palin as mayor of Wasilla, Alaska:
Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin employed a lobbying firm to secure almost $27 million in federal earmarks for a town of 6,700 residents while she was its mayor, according to an analysis by an independent government watchdog group.
— A Chicago Tribune column by John Kass on keeping the kids out of it:
Have American presidential politics become so hateful that a pregnant 17-year-old girl has to have the intimate details of her life exposed to the nation by character assassins?
— A Washington Post column by Ruth Marcus on why you can’t keep the kids out of it:
As a parent, I sympathize. But as a parent in the media, I also know that the Palins assumed this risk. Anyone who watched coverage of the Bush twins’ barroom exploits knew that the avert-your-eyes stance toward candidates’ children has its limits.
— An article in The Politico on the fact that a pregnant 17-year-old isn’t news in Alaska:
“I heard that rumor a long time ago,” said Pat Forgey, political reporter for the Juneau Empire, a few hours after Palin’s statement that her daughter was five months pregnant. “I probably would not have wasted any time on it.”
— Marc Ambinder of the Atlantic Monthly on the four-hour media-training session the Alaskan delegation in Minnesota underwent on Sunday, before news of Palin’s grandmotherhood broke on Monday.
— A Newsweek interview with Palin — the date of the comments is not clear — on her discomfort at the way Hillary Clinton flinched under press scrutiny, has now been posted on YouTube. It can be seen below:
Says Palin:
“I think fair or unfair — and I do think it is a more concentrated criticism that Hillary gets on so many fronts, I think that’s unfortunate — but fair or unfair, I think she does herself a disservice to even mention it. You’ve got to plow through it….
“When I hear a statement like that coming from a woman candidate with any kind of perceived whine about that excess criticism or you know maybe a sharper microscope put on her I think, Man that doesn’t do us any good.”
Links to other articles are certainly invited.
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Chambliss: Palin fixes ambivalence
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
By Aaron Gould Sheinin asheinin@ajc.com
St. Paul, Minn. — U.S. Sen. Saxby Chambliss (R-Ga.) on Tuesday acknowledged that some Republicans had “ambivalence” toward John McCain’s presidential campaign, but said his choice of Sarah Palin as running mate has electrified the party’s base.
Speaking to the Georgia delegation here for the Republican National Convention, Chambliss said the governor of Alaska was a great pick for the GOP ticket.
“When he made that choice, wow,” Chambliss said. “Man did the enthusiasm rise to the level of where now people are feeling good about where we are.”
Chambliss also said he is taking nothing for granted in his re-election campaign this year and feels the need to reintroduce himself to Georgians.
“Believe it or not, since 2002 we have had a million new voters come into our state,” he said. “You take those million new voters, plus the Obama factor, which we don’t know what that’s going to be, and you combine that, there’s every reason for us to be concerned about our campaign. We are concerned about our campaign.”
Chambliss faces former Democratic lawmaker Jim Martin in November.
“Georgia is a red state, not because we have that many Republicans,” Chambliss said. “Georgia is a red state because we believe in conservative values.”
On a lighter note, Chambliss said everyone back home is watching Tropical Storm Hanna. Chambliss hopes that sucker comes right to Georgia.
“We hope Hanna comes our way, but only after the winds die down to about 15 mph and drives that rain directly to Lake Lanier,” he said.
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The Republican platform and the damage left by Katrina
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Even before Hurricane Gustav, Republicans headed for Minnesota were sensitive to the legacy of Katrina.
On Monday, the Republican National Convention formally passed its platform, which includes a section on disaster response. The language dealing with the topic of Katrina was overseen by House Speaker pro tem Mark Burkhalter of Johns Creek, and is a stiff rebuke to President Bush, who is expected to address the crowd via satellite tonight.
It reads:
Americans hit by disaster must never again feel abandoned by their government. The Katrina disaster taught a painful lesson: The federal government’s system for responding to a natural calamity needs a radical overhaul. We recognize the need for a natural disaster insurance policy.
State and local cooperation is crucial, as are private relief efforts, but Washington must take the lead in forging a partnership with America’s best run businesses to ensure that FEMA’s Emergency Operations Centers run as well as any Fortune 500 company. We must make it easier for both businesses and non-profits to act as force-multipliers in relief situations. We believe it is critical to support those impacted by natural disasters and to complete the rebuilding of devastated areas, including the Gulf Coast.
Read the entire platform by clicking here.
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Denver and St. Paul: A word about security
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
By Aaron Gould Sheinin asheinin@ajc.com
St. Paul, Minn. — It’s thus far difficult to make an accurate comparison between last week’s Democratic National Convention in Denver and this week’s Republican event here, because of the impact Hurricane Gustav has had on the GOP’s party.
But even before Republicans moved to truncate Monday’s opening session, some things were clear.
Both Denver and the Twin Cities have done tremendous jobs to welcome the tens of thousands of people descending for the conventions. But there have been differences. In Denver, for example, the police presence was overwhelming. Platoons of officers in all-black riot gear were stationed across the city and were a concentrated presence at the Pepsi Center, the convention hall.
Here, it’s been a bit different. There appear to be less police, even near the Xcel Center. This is interesting, of course, given Monday’s protest that turned violent.
Maybe there were was less violence in Denver because of the police presence, or maybe it’s completely unrelated.
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David Poythress and the long tail of history
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The inestimable Dick Pettys at InsiderAdvantage reminds the world of this bit of bygone that Democrat David Poythress may have to grapple with as he fleshes out a 2010 race for governor:
When Labor Commissioner Sam Caldwell was forced to resign from office in 1984, then-Gov. Joe Frank Harris turned to Joe Tanner to dismantle the machine Caldwell had built and restore it to its original mission. When Miller was elected governor in 1990, he asked Tanner to return to the Department of Natural Resources and appointed an old pal from his Senate days, Sen. Al Scott, to the labor helm.
Whatever other qualities Scott may have had, he was not your typical glad-handing, outgoing politician. Far from it. But Miller, then in the early days of his term, was putting his full power behind Scott’s bid to keep the job in the 1992 race. Poythress had let it be known he would challenge him, and the issue of race quickly arose. Poythress is white. Scott is black.
Poythress won, but failed to parlay that victory into a 1998 nomination for governor.
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A word about Georgia’s seats
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
By Aaron Gould Sheinin asheinin@ajc.com
St. Paul, Minn. — You might remember there being some question as to the quality of the seating arrangements for Georgia Democrats in Denver. They turned out to be pretty good.
But Georgia’s Republicans’ are enjoying an even better view at their convention here.
Georgians are located right behind Arizona, home to nominee-to-be John McCain, and are just to the left of the stage. It’s going to be a pretty nice view once this thing gets back to full speed.
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