In nearly every public appearance on the U.S. Senate campaign circuit, Jack Kingston has emphasized one exception to demands to cut federal spending: The maintenance of a strong U.S. military.

It is something that, on the stump, separates the Savannah congressman from one of his chief opponents, U.S. Rep. Paul Broun of Athens. But it also has given him another advantage.

Kingston has become the defense industry’s candidate of choice, according to Politico.com:

The industry’s top political goal in Washington is to undo sequestration, which means it’s putting its money this cycle behind moderates and perceived deal makers in both parties. Defense contractors, according to lobbyists and industry sources, have a turn-back-the-clock political strategy. They’re attempting to rebuild the coalition of strong-on-defense centrists that has seen its numbers dwindle with the rise of the tea party.

Kingston, of course, is far from a centrist. But in a field of far-right primary candidates, he appears to be the industry’s pick.

Early in the 2014 election cycle, he has emerged as the No. 1 recipient of campaign contributions from top defense firms, according to [an] analysis of data filed with the FEC by 12 of the nation’s largest military contractors.

One thing that wasn't included in the article, but should have been, is that Kingston is the ranking member of the defense subcommittee on House Appropriations.

The same Politico article includes this near-gaffe from Broun:

The congressman, whose ideological purity appears to have come at a cost, ended his interview ... with a direct appeal for cash — almost.

“Send me the mon — well, I can’t say that,” he said. “I didn’t say that, did I? Almost.”

“I invite people to contact me,” he added.

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President Barack Obama's choice as U.N. ambassador had a surprisingly easy first day of U.S. Senate hearings on Wednesday.

Former journalist, Pulitzer Prize-winning author and human rights campaigner Samantha Power acknowledged the United Nations was unlikely to take decisive action soon to halt Syria's civil war. She also pledged to work to eliminate what she termed the organization's anti-Israel "bias."

Smoothing Power’s way were U.S. Sens. Johnny Isakson and Saxby Chambliss, who introduced Power to their colleagues. Isakson was particularly effusive, citing Power’s Georgia background – see the YouTube video above.

Though Irish-born, Power graduated from Lakeside High School in DeKalb County. She interned at WAGA-TV under sportscaster  Jeff Hullinger (whom Isakson incorrectly identifies as an employee of WSB. Hullinger's at WXIA now).

Another connection: Power wrote the book, literally, on genocide in Rwanda. And Africa was part of Isakson’s portfolio while he was a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Isakson’s wrap-up:

 “I am the Republican designee from the United States Senate to the U.N. for this session of Congress….I’ve traveled to the U.N. Security Council and watched the challenges…in dealing with those 13 members. I have no reservation or doubt whatsoever that Samantha Power will be just what her name implies – a powerful representative of the United States of America in a very powerful body, the Security Council of the U.N.”

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On a related note: Long-time Isakson ally Heath Garrett – who still advises the U.S. senator, Attorney General Sam Olens and others -- has become part of a GOP political firm whose agenda will include development of a “Hispanic strategy” for candidates.

The participants in Strategic Partners & Media: Consultants Ashley O’Connor, Russ Schriefer, Stuart Stevens, Austin Barbour and Garrett; with advertising veterans Vinnie Minchillo and César Martinez.

Recent clients of the group also include GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, and Ohio U.S. Sen. Rob Portman, the National Association of Realtors, and Hispanic Republicans of Texas.

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Not content with weighing in on the George Zimmerman  verdict, former President Jimmy Carter on Wednesday declared unchecked political contributions to be "legal bribery of candidates." He denounced a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that made possible unlimited spending by outside groups, including corporations and labor unions. From the Associated Press:

"It's accepted fact," Carter said during a speech in Atlanta. "It's legal bribery of candidates. And that repayment may be in the form of an ambassadorship to someone who has raised three or four hundred thousand dollars to help a candidate get elected."

Carter spoke at a forum where an agency of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe released its report on last year's U.S. election. The U.S. government invited the European agency to observe the process.

He said the U.S. Supreme Court made a "very stupid" decision by removing limits on independent campaign spending by businesses and labor unions, which the court found was a constitutionally protected form of political speech.

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Ed Kilgore, a former resident of this state, writes from a Democratic point of view, but points to an implied threat to Gov. Nathan Deal: The spreading anti-Common Core sentiment among members of the U.S. House, which will soon have a vote on the topic. Writes Kilgore at Washington Monthly:

[S]ince this effort is primarily symbolic, its main significance is as a symbol of where the GOP seems headed in education policy generally. And it’s especially noteworthy that the bill bans the U.S. Department of Education from doing anything (e.g., the Race to the Top program, which would be killed) to encourage adoption of “national standards,” including the state-initiated Common Core Standards that are teetering on the brink of implementation as conservatives around the country increasingly mobilize to stop it.

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Over at Roll Call, David Hawkings has identified U.S. Rep. Lynn Westmoreland, who directs House GOP redistricting efforts, as one of a handful of Republicans in Washington who could determine whether Congress revives Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act:

Given that last month’s court ruling will reorder some GOP tactics for maintaining the majority, and given that Westmoreland is now second in command at the National Republican Congressional Committee, he’s got as much incentive as anyone to be part of a solution that helps the party preserve its House strength — but also neutralizes accusations the GOP is out to perpetuate discrimination through legislative inflexibility.

The fact is, almost half of all the GOP’s House seats are in the South today, at least in part because the party has put the Voting Rights Act to work on its behalf. The VRA has helped them consolidate African-Americans in a relatively small number of black-majority districts that reliably send black Democrats to Congress, while still yielding a number of seats highly likely to be filled by Republicans.

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On that same topic, U.S. Rep. John Lewis testified on Wednesday before a Senate committee weighing the future of the Voting Rights Act.

That done, the 73-year-old Atlanta congressman headed for the West Coast and Comic-Con, where he’ll plug a comic-book autobiography of his life – a group effort with  co-writer Andrew Aydin and graphic novelist/artist Nate Powell. From the San Diego Union-Tribune:

 “Andrew has been telling me what to expect. He said to be just be myself. He suggested I wear my old backpack and trench coat,” the Congressman said with a laugh. “In my advanced years, I have seen humans from other planets, so I know I’ll be comfortable.”