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Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Bob Barr’s next life: Let him get his feet wet, then send him to the Middle East
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
After an unsuccessful presidential campaign, there is always the question of what to do with one’s life.
The once-famously judgmental Bob Barr, who as a Georgia congressman pushed the impeachment of President Bill Clinton, has decided to become a peacemaker. As in “blessed are the….”
A local lawyer sends us a copy of this solicitation from the former Libertarian candidate for president, who operates out of Cobb County.
The letter reads, in part:
I am keenly aware of the high cost of litigation in terms of both time and money. This realization, and a desire to be part of trying to resolve this problem, led me to explore the value of mediation to assist in resolving disputes.
As a result, I have recently been certified as a Mediator, and plan shortly to be certified as an Arbitrator. Given the experiences I have had in my life— especially in politics and the law — I respectfully invite you to consider allowing me to serve you and your clients as a Certified Mediator….
Updated at 8:55 a.m. Thursday: The following e-mail just arrived from Barr: “By coincidence, I am now in Egypt. I gave a speech this past Sunday to an Economic Forum in Cairo. You are most insightful!”
Topic of his speech? “A World in Turmoil - Can President Obama Meet the Challenge?”
Photo credit: Associated Press
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A first look at the flow chart for Sonny Perdue’s new State Transportation Authority
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
We’ve got a copy of the organizational chart of Gov. Sonny Perdue’s plan, made in consultation with House Speaker Glenn Richardson and Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle, to reorganize the state’s many transportation agencies under a single authority.
Click here to take a look at it. There’s a color PDF of this floating around somewhere. We’d be obliged if someone would take the initiative and send it in.
According to the chart, the governing board of a State Transportation Authority would be comprised of seven members: three appointed by the governor, two by the lieutenant governor, and two by the House speaker.
Board members’ terms would coincide with the terms of their appointers, which means there would be a direct line of influence to the state Capitol triumvirate — and a significant increase money and power placed in the hands of the trio.
The governor would appoint the chairman of the authority and its chief executive, who would be known as the Secretary of Transportation.
At the very bottom of the reorganization chart is the notation of “GDOT or other entity.”
More to come.
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Isakson’s homebuyer tax credit already gone?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
This was posted a few minutes ago on The Caucus, the political blog operated by the New York Times:
…We’re told that the homebuyers’ amendment approved by a bipartisan voice vote last week may be out already. Republican Senator Johnny Isakson of Georgia proposed a $15,000 tax credit for buyers of new homes within a year or so of the bill taking effect. Initially, the cost was estimated at $18.5 billion, but has now been recalculated by the Congressional Budget Office at about $35.5 billion.
That’s far more than the estimated $2.6 billion estimate for a provision in the House bill that would provide a $7,500 refundable tax credit for first-time homebuyers through July 1, 2009. Under the House plan, individual homebuyers earning up $75,000 and couples earning up to $150,000 would qualify. A reduced credit would be available for those individuals earning up to $95,000 and couples up to $170,000.
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For states, stimulus is a debate over $40 billion
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Though many Republicans in the state Capitol may not permit themselves to admit it, the tussle that begins today in Washington over the economic stimulus bill will have great bearing on what happens in Atlanta through the spring.
State governments and their budgets are treated much more kindly under the recovery bill passed by the U.S. House than the (slightly) smaller one passed Monday by the U.S. Senate.
Today’s Washington Post has a synopsis:
…For states, the differences are potentially enormous. The House included $79 billion in direct aid to states, $40 billion more than the Senate, and governors are counting on that money to help balance budgets that are billions in the red.
“If the Senate version holds, there will be very deep cuts,” said Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle (D), who added that the cost to the state and its 5.3 million residents would be $600 million. “We’re going to see teachers and firefighters and police officers lose their jobs.”
In Maryland, a legislative staff analysis found that the state would lose nearly $1 billion under the Senate version, including $454 million in discretionary funding, nearly $200 million in school construction money and nearly $100 million more for higher education projects.
Virginia lawmakers are counting on stimulus funding to help close a $3 billion budget gap. “If the Senate will just move a little closer to the House version, that will provide some very significant tax relief, funding of Medicaid and an extension of unemployment insurance,” Gov. Timothy M. Kaine (D) told reporters yesterday.
The Senate halved the $79 billion as part of a deal to win the support of centrists in both parties who doubted the value and necessity of untargeted aid to states. Some Republicans also had ideological objections, based on a belief in tax cuts and skepticism about expanding the federal government’s role in local projects such as school construction.
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Georgia Power bill headed for Senate vote
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
S.B. 31, the bill to permit Georgia Power to charge ratepayers in advance for the cost of financing two new nuclear power units, goes to the Senate floor this morning.
On his Lucid Idiocy blog, Travis Fain of the Macon Telegraph includes this thought:
There’s a new argument floating around against Senate Bill 31…
Namely: The state can’t afford it. The state of Georgia is one of Georgia Power’s biggest customers, and it’s not clear how much its power bills would get jacked up if this measure passes.
A lot of bills like this would have a fiscal note attached to them, which tells legislators how a bill would affect the state’s bottom line. This one does not, and apparently the issue was raised relatively late in the process.
“We would have considered (the lack of a fiscal note) had it been timely raised,” Regulated Industries and Utilities Chairman and state Sen. David Shafer said [Tuesday] morning.
All bets have the Georgia Power bill passing the Senate, with Democrats providing most of the opposition — thanks to some significant arm-twisting from a certain lieutenant governor.
House Republican sources indicated — at least initially — a friendly reception for the measure, which is in essence an end-run around the state Public Service Commission.
But one wonders if any House Republicans — those discomfitted by S.B. 31 — might be tempted to pull out their calculators.
