The nation's largest abortion rights group today will launch a public, national campaign in opposition to state Court of Appeals Judge Michael Boggs to a federal district judgeship, nominated by President Barack Obama. From Buzzfeed:
Updated: Here's a link that NARAL is directing to its supporters.
Boggs is one of several Georgia appointees to the bench named by the White House after extended negotiations with U.S. Sens. Saxby Chambliss and Johnny Isakson. On the House side, Democrats John Lewis and David Scott, both of Atlanta, have raised public objections to what they see as a lack of diversity in the appointees.
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The above is in marked contrast to Tuesday remarks at a Florida university by Clarence Thomas, in which the associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court lamented a society that is more race-conscious than when he grew up in segregated Georgia. From Yahoo News:
"Now, name a day it doesn't come up. Differences in race, differences in sex, somebody doesn't look at you right, somebody says something. Everybody is sensitive. If I had been as sensitive as that in the 1960s, I'd still be in Savannah. Every person in this room has endured a slight. Every person. Somebody has said something that has hurt their feelings or did something to them — left them out.
"That's a part of the deal," he added.
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The U.S. House raced ahead of the wintry weather to pass a bill Tuesday suspending the debt ceiling into March 2015 without any strings attached. It was a total win for Democrats, who could boast that they finally broke the tea party demands of spending cuts tied to debt ceiling increases.
But not every Democrat was pleased. Red-district Rep. John Barrow of Augusta was one of just two Democrats to vote “no.” Here’s what he had to say on his Facebook page:
"Just voted no on legislation to raise the debt ceiling. Washington has a spending problem, and this bill does nothing to address what it is that got us into this mess in the first place. We need folks from both sides of the aisle to commit to working together on a bipartisan plan that will cut spending and put us on a long-term path to deficit reduction."
All of Georgia’s Republicans were firmly in the “no” column, on a bill that garnered just 28 Republican “yeas” That included the three Senate-seekers in the bunch, and Karen Handel wanted to lend her name to the chorus of denunciation. She did so by pointing out the increase in the national debt since Jack Kingston, Phil Gingrey and Paul Broun came to Washington:
"My opponents sure talk tough during campaign season, but a look at the spending and debt increases during their time in congress shows that they've been part of the problem -- not the solution."
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One Democratic and six Republican candidates for U.S. Senate will particpate in a Turner Field roundtable next Tuesday before an audience of small business owners. The event is the work of the National Federation of Independent Business.
Confirmed are Republicans Paul Broun, Phil Gingrey, Karen Handel, Jack Kingston, David Perdue and Eugene Yu; and Democrat Branko Radulovacki.
Democrat Michelle Nunn was invited but declined. No mention of whether Democrat Steen Miles or Republicans Derrick Grayson and Art Gardner were invited.
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Washington has been astir with the awkwardness of a formal visit by French President Francois Hollande, whose marriage has recently fallen apart. Hollande, who arrived at a White House dinner last night without an escort, sat between President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle.
What you might not know is that Stacey Abrams, the state House minority leader from Atlanta, was also at the dinner – with former NAACP president Ben Jealous.
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U.S. Rep. John Barrow, D-Augusta, has found himself one of many targeted with a bogus campaign website set up by the National Republican Congressional Committee. Click on the site, which has a misleading headline, and you're invited to contribute to a campaign against the Georgia congressman. From a note Barrow sent to supporters:
"[T]he reason they resort to these tactics and intentionally try and deceive supporters is because I'm too big a challenge for them to fight fair. They don't like the fact that I break the mold by reaching across the aisle and working together to get things done for our state and for our county. But we've shown them – time and time again – that ours is the kind of common sense approach that folks in Georgia are looking for."
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Don't look for much coming out of the state Capitol today. An executive order signed by Gov. Nathan Deal has closed much of state government today.
This time around, state superintendent John Barge is giving begrudging kudos to Deal’s response the weather.
Barge, who is challenging Deal in the GOP primary, criticized Deal for waiting until hours after federal forecasters upgraded the storm threat on Jan. 28 to send state workers home. And he said an early emergency order from the governor could have prodded school administrators to cancel classes.
This time around, emergency orders were issued early and often, and most schools canceled classes. Barge said the detailed information that Deal’s administration is sending to superintendents has helped.
“I think we see school districts, when supplied with reliable information in advance, typically make the right decision on whether to close,” he said. “Responses all around were more appropriate this time.”
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