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DEL.ICIO.USTaylor claims role in creating HOPE scholarship
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
THE AD
The television ad opens with Mark Taylor, leads to a teacher overlooking a child and notes that Taylor was endorsed “by Georgia’s teachers because he’s a real innovator.” It touts his backing of the HOPE scholarship and pre-kindergarten classes, saying he sponsored the law creating HOPE. It then says that his Democratic opponent, Cathy Cox, “opposed the law creating HOPE scholarships.” It says Cox admitted voting against the lottery, which funds HOPE scholarships, and includes a shot of a 13-year-old newspaper article in the Miller County Liberal that quotes her on the issue. “Rep. Cox stated that although she did not vote for the lottery, she would be watching how the $139 million anticipated to come in the first year would be spent.” It ends with another shot of Taylor and the phrase, “On education, only Mark Taylor has always been there.”
SPONSOR
Mark Taylor for governor campaign
THE REALITY
Taylor has been endorsed by the Georgia Association of Educators and the Georgia Federation of Teachers. While Taylor pushed the bill that created the lottery as an assistant floor leader for Gov. Zell Miller in the Senate, the proposed lottery amendment that passed the General Assembly was sponsored by the House, not Taylor and the Senate. Cox was not a legislator at the time.
Cox said Saturday that she voted for the lottery at the polls in 1992 and that Taylor’s claim is false. Her campaign provided a statement from Terry Toole, author of the article cited in the ad. In the statement Toole, who is editor and publish of the Miller County Liberal, said the Taylor campaign took the quote out of context.
He said Cox, who was speaking to the Lions Club as a freshman legislator, was referring to the fact that she didn’t vote for HOPE in the Legislature because she wasn’t a lawmaker when it passed. Toole could not be reached for comment Saturday.
“The facts here are crystal clear: This is a big lie from the ‘big guy,’ ” Cox said.
Rick Dent, Taylor’s spokesman, said he believes the ad is accurate. “She joined [Gov.] Sonny Perdue in trying to kill the education lottery,” he said.
Perdue initially opposed the lottery, but he has funded HOPE and pre-kindergarten as governor and, while serving in the Senate, voted for budgets that funded the programs.
ONLINE
Check out Taylor’s claims: www.coxrecord.com
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