The United States government took out its first loan on September 18, 1789, the proceeds of which were used to pay the salaries of the President, and First Congress. On the same day, future President Thomas Jefferson wrote a letter to E. Rutledge in which he requested that a shipment of olive trees be sent via Baltimore.

President George Washington laid the cornerstone of the United States Capitol on September 18, 1793.

We know from that newspaper article, and from Masonic ritual, that Washington placed an inscribed silver plate under the cornerstone at the southeast corner of this building. However, we do not know whether that meant the southeast corner of the Senate wing, the first section of the building to be completed, or the southeast corner of the whole building as intended, which would locate it over on the House side. Two centuries later, the Architect of the Capitol is still searching for that cornerstone. Metal detectors have failed to locate the silver plate.

President Millard Fillmore signed the Fugitive Slave Act on September 18, 1850, requiring that slaves be returned to their owners even if they were in a free state.

General Robert E. Lee retreated from Antietam Creek on September 18, 1862, following the bloodiest day of fighting in the Civil War.

On September 18, 1973, Georgia Governor Jimmy Carter filed a report claiming that he saw an Unidentified Flying Object in the sky above Leary, Georgia in 1969.

Carter was preparing to give a speech at a Lions Club meeting. At about 7:15 p.m (EST), one of the guests called his attention to a strange object that was visible about 30 degrees above the horizon to the west of where he was standing. Carter described the object as being bright white and as being about as bright as the moon. It was said to have appeared to have closed in on where he was standing but to have stopped beyond a stand of pine trees some distance from him. The object is then said to have changed color, first to blue, then to red, then back to white, before appearing to recede into the distance. Carter felt that the object was self-luminous, but not a solid in nature. Carter’s report indicates that it was witnessed by about ten or twelve other people, and was in view for ten to twelve minutes before it passed out of sight.

Click here to view a copy of the report, allegedly on file at the Carter Center.

The Georgia General Assembly approved a new state Constitution on September 18, 1981, which was placed on the 1982 ballot and after approval by voters, went into effect in 1983.

On September 18, 1990, Atlanta was announced as the location for the 1996 Summer Olympic games.

Ted Turner announced on September 18, 1997 his intent to donate $1 billion to the United Nations.

Wales and Scotland

On September 18, 1997, 50.3% of voters in Wales cast ballots in favor of independence from the United Kingdom.

Today, September 18, 2014, voters in Scotland head to the polls to vote on independence from the United Kingdom. From the New York Times:

If the “yes” campaign seeking independence for Scotland secures a majority, the outcome will herald the most dramatic constitutional change in the relationship between the two countries since they united in 1707. The repercussions would be enormous, creating the world’s newest state and ending a union that once oversaw an empire and triumphed in two world wars.

Almost 4.3 million people — 97 percent of the electorate — have registered to vote, including 16- and-17-year-olds enfranchised for the first time. Analysts have forecast a record turnout in excess of 80 percent at about 2,600 polling places stretching from urban centers to remote and sparsely populated islands. Voting began at 7 a.m. local time, and the polling stations are set to close at 10 p.m.

Opinion surveys before the vote left the result on a knife’s edge, too close to call. Despite the intensity of the debate, some key issues remain unresolved, such as the currency to be used by an independent Scotland if there is a “yes” vote.

The question on the ballot paper is brief and simple: “Should Scotland be an independent country?”

A yes vote in Scotland may lead to renewed calls for Welsh independence.

In 1979 Wales votes against devolution by four to one but by 1997 was agreeing – by the narrowest of margins – that a devolved assembly was the way to go. The national assembly began work two years later. By 2011, when Welsh people were asked if they wanted more powers in Cardiff, the answer was a resounding yes.

A Wales bill is currently going through parliament that will allow the assembly government to raise some taxes and borrow for major infrastructure projects. Plans are afoot to set up a Treasury in Cardiff and control of the police and legal system could follow. “Who knows where we’ll be in 10 years especially if Scotland becomes independent, said Wyn Jones. “These are exciting, fast-moving times.”

Lee Waters, the director of thinktank the Institute of Welsh Affairs, sounds gloomier about the future of Wales, especially if the independence vote is won. If Scotland does leave the UK, Waters points out that the English population will form more than 90% of the remainder of the union, making it harder than ever for Wales and Northern Ireland to wield influence. And the loss of pro-European Scotland would make it more likely that the English who want the UK to pull out of Europe would succeed.

Georgia Politics, Campaigns & Elections

Jason Smith goes to Atlanta

Fox News has a TV segment on the Georgia Governor’s race that’s worth watching, and I was quoted in the accompanying print story.

On one hand, analysts say Carter’s gains in fundraising and the polls are thanks to the surname. “If his name was Jason Smith, nobody would be talking about him,” Georgia Republican strategist Todd Rehm said. “He would not have had a cakewalk through the gubernatorial primary of his party without opposition. He would not be raising significant amounts of money.”

But with the family name comes the inevitable pitfalls of that legacy. Carter’s grandfather left office with approval ratings in the 30’s, and while his popularity has seen a boost since then he continues to antagonize the right with his positions on Israel and other touchy subjects.

“Republicans in the state are not fans of former President Jimmy Carter. Having the grandfather — the name recognition … I think it’s very useful for Jason to be able to separate himself and not simply be Jimmy Carter’s grandson,” said University of Georgia Political Science Professor Charles Bullock.

Rehm, who thinks Carter has an “uphill” battle, said the controversy over Carter’s Middle East positions are “causing Jason some heartburn among some Jewish voters who have traditionally been considered a heavily Democratic demographic.”

Bullock suggested that even if Carter loses in November, he could run again.

“There’s an old adage in southern politics, ‘You run first to get known, and second to win.’ Even if Jason does not win in 2014, he might run in 2018. And if Governor Deal gets reelected, there will be an open seat — arguably giving a Democrat an even better shot at it,” Bullock said.

In other news, Jason Smith Carter tried to take the fight to Governor Deal’s turf, criticizing Deal for failing to spend enough of other people’s money in front of a group of business executives.

Democratic gubernatorial candidate Jason Carter criticized Republican Gov. Nathan Deal Wednesday for signing a budget containing no money for a state-run venture capital fund.

Carter, a state senator from Decatur, and his Senate colleagues put $10 million into this year’s $20.8 billion budget to jump-start Invest Georgia, a VC fund authorized by the General Assembly last year.

But legislative conferees negotiating the final version of the spending plan removed the money, marking the second year in a row the legislature saw fit to let the newly created VC fund go without funding.

Starting a VC fund and then failing to fund it hurts Georgia’s credibility with investors, Carter told a group of CEOs during a luncheon in Dunwoody, Ga., sponsored by Atlanta Trend, an online news and professional networking venue for senior executives.

The Deal campaign could be heard crying, “please don’t throw me into the briar patch.”

Jim Galloway, writing in the AJC, called Carter’s move a “pivot to the economy,” but a pivot requires you to plant a foot and move in a different direction. This was more of a flailing stumble, par for the course with the Carter campaign.

Sam Olens on “Pill Mills”

Attorney General Sam Olens has released a new TV ad on the subject of fighting “Pill Mills.”

Also this week, Attorney General Sam Olens launched the statewide “We’re Not Gonna Take It” video contest for Georgia teens to help raise awareness about prescription drug abuse.

The contest challenges Georgia high school students to make a brief video explaining why they maintain a healthy lifestyle and choose to reject the abuse of prescription drugs. The contest takes place from Sept. 15 – October 31. Prizes will be awarded in multiple categories – winner, runner-up and the people’s choice award winner.

This contest is part of Olens’ ongoing effort to protect Georgians from the negative impact of illegal pill mills and prescription drug abuse. In 2012, he championed a law that licenses and regulates pain clinics and shuts down narcotic trafficking “pill mills”. The new law has reduced prescription drug abuse and related deaths in our communities, while licensing and regulating honest doctors who practice responsible medicine.

Style tips for Republican Men

Republicans wear blue plaid jackets this year. If you didn’t get the memo, you’re not on the right list. If I’m still going when I hit 80, I’ll start emulating President Bush’s choices in socks.