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Friday, February 13, 2009
Isakson to announce 2010 re-election bid
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Fresh off his vote against President Obama’s stimulus package, U.S. Sen. Johnny Isakson will kick off his 2010 bid for re-election with a Tuesday rally at the state Capitol.
Isakson’s to be joined by his Senate colleague Saxby Chambliss, Gov. Sonny Perdue, House Speaker Glenn Richardson, Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle, and anyone else who can squeeze into the camera frame.
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Utah’s Republican, Mormon governor backs civil unions for gay couples
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Here’s something different on the Republican front, from the Salt Lake Tribune:
Gay-rights proponents and opponents ramped up their rhetoric for and against Jon Huntsman Jr. on Wednesday — two days after Utah’s Republican governor revealed that he backs civil unions and other rights for same-sex couples.
“After that initial shock, I was incredibly impressed with him,” said gay-rights advocate Jacob Whipple, who staged a candlelight vigil outside of the Governor’s Mansion on Wednesday night to show support for Huntsman.
But earlier in the day, at the Capitol, opponents criticized the governor’s stance, which includes support for traditional marriage but also rights for same-sex couples.
“He is simply dead wrong on this issue,” said Frank Mylar, an attorney who belongs to the Utah Coalition for Traditional Families.
Photo credit: Associated Press
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The other three GOP candidates for governor on the Georgia Power bill
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
If you want to gauge how uneasy some Republicans are about S.B. 31, the Georgia Power bill, consider the spectrum covered by the 2010 candidates for governor.
As passed by the Senate this week, the bill would permit the utility to pass financing costs for two new nuclear units on to ratepayers in 2011, although the extra generating capacity wouldn’t be available until 2017.
Though he said little publicly about the measure, Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle was one of the forces pushing S.B. 31 through the chamber.
But three other GOP candidates for governor — the ones who hold public office — have yet to gather behind it.
To summarize, Secretary of State Karen Handel remains cautiously neutral. State Rep. Austin Scott (R-Tifton) says the timing is wrong. And state Insurance Commissioner John Oxendine says the whole deal “stinks.”
Says Matt Carrothers, a spokesman for Handel:
“Secretary Handel is a strong proponent of nuclear energy, but also has some questions about the bill she hopes will be addressed by the legislative process. She plans to have talks with both opponents and proponents of the legislation.”
Said Scott, the only gubernatorial candidate who will have to cast a vote on the bill:
“I’m not going to support it. It’s not that I’m opposed to the concept as much as it is I’m opposed to the timing. The American household, certainly the Georgia household, has less disposable income today than it has had in a long time.
“The idea of voting to raise people’s power bills in this economic time is just — I’m not voting for it. This is not the time to be taking what little disposable income people have left.”
Scott also pointed out that higher power bills would also apply to school systems and local governments that are already stretched.
As for the concept of advance payment for high-ticket nuclear power, Scott said he approved “as long as there’s absolute transparency in the handling of the money. It should not in any way, shape or form to increase their margin.”
Oxendine clearly was the most vociferous. Said the insurance commissioner:
“I’ve got two concerns. One issue is the legislative involvement. And that bothers me. We have the mechanism under the [state] Constitution of where there are people with expertise that are elected by the citizens to review issues like this.
“You don’t change the rules — it almost smells like you’re making special rules because you want to be able to guarantee what the outcome is. It really smells of Georgia Power saying, ‘I want a specific outcome.’
“That is just wrong. That’s what’s wrong with government. That process on its own stinks. I’m not disputing the Legislature’s right to intervene, but I am strongly disputing the appropriateness. And I’m saying it smells of politics.
“What to me that is out-and-out reprehensible is Georgia Power and the Senate — and I would throw in the presiding officer there, as well — playing games.”
As for ratepayers making advance payments, Oxendine said he could support the approach “if there were no other way to come up with the financing. My understanding is that it was not necessary.”
Oxendine said he couldn’t imagine granting an insurance company a rate hike to pay for a computer upgrade in advance. “I would probably throw an insurance executive out of my office if he said that,” he said.
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The cost of economic stimulus is down to $791 million a page
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Late last night, OpenCongress posted the full text of the 999-page, $789.5 billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.
That’s $791 million a page.
The U.S. House could vote as early as today. You’ll be able to spot the proofreaders — their lips will be a blur of bilabial fricative.
U.S. Rep. Tom Price (R-Roswell), now a member of House GOP leadership, has been producing some interesting YouTube clips on the topic. Below is something he posted this morning. You’ll note that he has 74 more pages than the OpenCongress site. Not sure what that’s about.
One of the casualties of the House-Senate conference committee was U.S. Sen. Johnny Isakson’s $15,000 homebuyer tax credit, designed to juice the U.S. housing market.
Elsewhere in today’s AJC:
Isakson said Thursday he will continue to push for the tax credit in a separate, stand-alone bill, and hinted that the idea may be gaining support among Democrats, too.
“Quite frankly there is so much outward support for what we did … that I wouldn’t at all be surprised if you didn’t see it come back in some form with a Democrat’s name on it,” he said.
U.S. Sen. Saxby Chambliss was less sanguine.
“That’s the kind of thing that really makes you angry about politics, because that was a bipartisan effort, something that Democrats stood up and really supported. Then it gets into the conference committee that’s controlled by the Democrats and they pulled it out,” Chambliss said this morning, on WGAU (1340AM) in Athens.
Listen here to the entire sound clip kindly sent by radio host Tim Bryant.
