The Library of Congress was founded on April 24, 1800 and is the largest library in the world today.
Jack Kingston was born on April 24, 1955. He was elected to the Georgia House of Representatives in 1984 and served four terms and in 1992 was elected to the United States Congress.
“Georgia On My Mind” became the official state song on April 24, 1979, when Governor George Busbee signed legislation designating it.
IBM introduced the Personal Computer Model 5150 on April 24, 1981, though some authorities date the introduction to April 12. It sported an Intel 8088 processor at 4.77 Mhz, a whopping 16k of RAM, which was expandable to 256k, and a clicky keyboard. The initial price tag was $1565, equivalent to more than $4000 today.
Elections
The City of Locust Grove, Georgia has called a Special Election to fill the City Council seat vacated by the death of City Council Member James Rosser.
The special election will be held on June 16.
Qualifying for the special election shall be held at the Locust Grove City Hall, 3644 Hwy. 42, Locust Grove, Georgia, beginning at 8:30 a.m. April 27 and ending at 12:30 p.m. April 29. Each candidate shall file a notice of candidacy in the office of the city clerk of the city of Locust Grove and must meet the qualifications of the charter of the city of Locust Grove, as well as all applicable state and constitutional laws.
Pursuant to O.C.G.A. §21-2-131 (a)(1), the qualifying fee shall be three percent of the total gross salary of that office paid the preceding calendar year. The qualifying fee for councilmember is $252.
Several of the folks who are mulling a run for Mayor of Macon-Bibb in 2016 could wear t-shirts that say, “I lost an election to Robert Reichert and all I got was this lousy t-shirt.”
Earlier this year, Mayor Robert Reichert announced he’ll seek re-election again next year. A few days later, perennial mayoral candidate David Cousino said he would seek the top elected office for the fourth time. Cousino bowed to Reichert in the last three mayoral contests.
Former Mayor C. Jack Ellis dropped a couple of mayoral contests to Reichert as well. Ellis confirmed Wednesday that he’s considering running for public office again in 2016, and he’s been mentioned as a possible candidate for mayor and sheriff, but declined to say which office he plans to seek.
Macon attorney and former Commissioner Lonzy Edwards has been mentioned as a possible mayoral candidate. So has state Rep. James Beverly, holder of Georgia’s District 143 seat. Beverly defeated Edwards last year in a hard-fought contest for the District 143 position.
Beverly stops short of saying he’ll run for mayor, but he acknowledges the prospect has crossed his mind. Beverly says he’ll be considering his options, whether to see re-election or the mayor’s office, over the next few months. Meanwhile, Beverly said he’ll continue to serve the people in his district the best he can.
Ava’s Law
Governor Nathan Deal is expected to sign Ava’s Law on Wednesday, April 29, 2015 at 11:30 AM in the Georgia State Capitol.
WSAV in Savannah has a story about the legislation and its adorable namesake.
Georgia will soon become the 41st state to mandate insurance for children with Autism.
38 states have Autism Insurance laws. Six states including Georgia have passed Autism bills. Ohio is thinking about it, and five states have no plan to pass any autism bill.
Georgia’s bill is named for Ava Bullard of Lyons.
Ava’s family led an aggressive campaign to persuade lawmakers.
At age 2 Ava Bullard was trapped in a dark world, unable to speak.
Her parents took their life’s savings and money from fundraisers in Toombs County to get treatment for her Autism.
“I was told put her in Special Ed by the pediatrician. Put her in Special Ed, but I have family and a community that believed in her potential.” says Anna Bullard, Ava’s mother.
8 years later Ava is a therapy success story.
“When I started working with her it was in kindergarten and she definitely had trouble in a larger group of children,” said Holly Brant, Early Autism Project Clinic Director. “(She) worked with social skills and even some language development and even being able to work in a larger group without becoming too worried or too anxious.”
Ava’s been in a regular classroom unassisted since first grade.
“She is able to complete academics,” explains Brant. “She’s able to function in that larger group environment. She’s got friends. She’s able to communicate and maintain those friendships in a great way.”
“The future is really bright and the potential is there for kids with autism to now access treatment that can teach them how to talk,” explains Anna. “And that really is why I fought every day,” [said Bullard.]
“And with the passing of Ava’s Law this is going to do nothing but bring families closer to be able to receive the treatment that they need,” explains Holly Brant. “That’s gonna benefit all l the families in this area. Regardless if they’re with our clinic or another clinic.”
Autism Insurance in Georgia has a $35,000 annual cap up to six years old.
Brant says the commitment to improve the lives of children with autism will mean more jobs.
DeKalb County
Channel 2 Action News reports that several sources have confirmed being interviewed by the FBI in an investigation against DeKalb County Interim CEO Lee May. The allegations amount to this:
• After a sewage pipe backed up into the May home in December 2010, he called the county and workers were sent.
• Later, Water Removal Services, a private company came out to perform repairs. Lee May knew Doug Cotter, an employee of the company.
• May didn’t pay the bill for $2,500 to Water Removal Services.
• Water Removal services later billed DeKalb County and was paid $6,495.
• When the former owner of Water Removal Services checked his old files, he found a $4,000 check made out to May, personally.
• “Absolutely, I plan on having a conversation to figure out what the hell was that that was done, excuse my French. For someone to benefit off my name, that’s inappropriate that’s illegal, and they need to be dealt with,” said May.
So the $4,000 question is why a check was cut to Lee May, who received it, and what happened to the money. On those answers probably hang potential fraud charges. Or whatever the federal term for “kickback” is.
An important follow-up question is what happens to DeKalb County if enough members of the County Commission eventually get indicted to prevent the remaining unindicted Commissioners from forming a quorum.
So far, DeKalb County is down one Commissioner of seven, as Lee May’s District 5 seat is vacant but still warm while he occupies the iCEO position.
Questions have been raised about P-card spending by Commissioner Sharon Barnes-Sutton and her aide.
The top spenders on the county debit card were District 4 Commissioner Sharon Barnes Sutton and her aide Judy Brownlee. The pair spent more $75,583 on their purchasing cards since 2011. That’s more than three times what Rader’s office spent.
“I didn’t even know that we were supposed to keep receipts,” said Sutton. “Because I thought we had a record every time you swiped the card.”
That’s not true, according to a 2011 audit, during which Sutton and District 1 Commissioner Elaine Boyer were both warned about their lack of receipts.
Sutton had no recollection of a $130 speeding ticket paid with her county debit card.
And P-card spending led to a recent state-level indictment of Bob Lundsten, former Chief of Staff to former Commissioner Elaine Boyer.
Last year, the name of Commissioner Stan Watson surfaced in a South Carolina corruption case, and Watson is alleged to have voted on county contracts for Vaughn Irons while a consultant to Irons and without disclosing the relationship.
I’m not saying I expect any further indictments of DeKalb County officials, but I know a ham sandwich when I see one.
In any case, I’m petitioning the Oxford English Dictionary to include under their definition of “conspiracy” any group that includes two or more DeKalb County elected officials.
The Art of Campaigining
National level campaigning is in a constant state of flux as new technologies and new campaign finance loopholes drive politicians outreach.
On the money front, we are seeing new leadership from a member of the Bush Political Dynasty. In 2000, George W. Bush became the first candidate to decline public-financing and the accompanying spending limits in the primary elections. In 2008, Barack Obama became the first candidate to do the same in the General Election. Now, Jeb Bush is poised to jettison the traditional model of the candidate-led campaign being the most prominent player in a presidential election.
The traditional presidential campaign may be getting a dramatic makeover in Jeb Bush’s bid for the White House as he prepares to turn some of a campaign’s central functions over to a separate political organization that can raise unlimited amounts of money.
The concept, in development for months as the former Florida governor has raised tens of millions of dollars for his Right to Rise super PAC, would endow that organization not just with advertising on Bush’s behalf, but with many of the duties typically conducted by a campaign.
Should Bush move ahead as his team intends, it is possible that for the first time a super PAC created to support a single candidate would spend more than the candidate’s campaign itself — at least through the primaries. Some of Bush’s donors believe that to be more than likely.
The architects of the plan believe the super PAC’s ability to legally raise unlimited amounts of money outweighs its primary disadvantage, that it cannot legally coordinate its actions with Bush or his would-be campaign staff.
“Nothing like this has been done before,” said David Keating, president of the Center for Competitive Politics, which opposes limits on campaign finance donations. “It will take a high level of discipline to do it.”
This is the natural progression of the Citizens United paradigm, and that story is worth reading in its entirety. It also means that wooing major donors like the Koch brothers and Sheldon Adelson will be even more important.
Earlier this week, The New York Times reported that the Koch brother “appear to have a favorite in the race for the Republican presidential nomination: Gov. Scott Walker of Wisconsin.” That idea has since been walked-back and may have been over-eager reporting.
Koch insiders dismissed that conclusion, saying the brothers have made similar comments about several of the candidates, and are far from settling on a favorite. “It’s really early, and a lot is going to happen,” the aide said. “We wouldn’t want to take options off the table by getting behind one of them now.”
David Koch said in a statement to POLITICO’s Ken Vogel: “While I think Gov. Walker is terrific … I am not endorsing or supporting any candidate for President at this point.”
In recent weeks, Adelson, who spent $100 million on the 2012 campaign and could easily match that figure in 2016, has told friends that he views the Florida senator, whose hawkish defense views and unwavering support for Israel align with his own, as a fresh face who is “the future of the Republican Party.” He has also said that Rubio’s Cuban heritage and youth would give the party a strong opportunity to expand its brand and win the White House.
Winning the backing of the 81-year-old Adelson would give Rubio a serious boost in his quest for the 2016 Republican nomination. His campaign is predicated on the idea that he can appeal to a broad swath of primary voters and stay in the race long enough to outlast well-funded establishment favorites like former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush and Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker. To do so, he’ll need the support of deep-pocketed contributors like Adelson, whose $32 billion net worth makes him the nation’s 12th-richest person, according to Forbes.
In 2012, Adelson’s financial support allowed former House Speaker Newt Gingrich to stay in the presidential race long after other donors gave up on him.
Adelson’s attraction to Rubio is in no small part centered on the Florida senator’s outspoken support for Israel, an issue near and dear to the billionaire’s heart. Rubio has reached out to Adelson more often than any other 2016 candidate, sources close to Adelson say, and has provided him with the most detailed plan for how he’d manage America’s foreign policy.
The quote of the week comes from another article in Politico. It’s worth writing down and pinning to the wall behind your desk if you’re following the GOP Presidential Primary with bated breath.
“The Republican nomination is wide open,” said Ana Navarro, a Miami-based strategist who is close to Bush. “We’ll try many flavors of the month before we settle on one.”
Yet another fawning article about GOP digital wunderkind Vincent Harris contains this especially important line:
Cool new apps aside, good old email remains, as any digital strategist will attest, the primary way of soliciting donations and “activating” a candidate’s supporters.
The Unemployment Bump that Wasn’t
Remember the fight last year between Governor Nathan Deal and wannabe Gov Jason Carter about unemployment figures for Georgia? Here’s what it sounded like at the time. From an Associated Press story published September 9, 2014.
The unemployment rate overtook education as the top issue in the campaign Thursday as state labor officials announced that Georgia’s unemployment rate has risen to 8.1 percent.
Deal’s campaign spokesman Brian Robinson questioned the statistics collected by the federal government that determine unemployment rate. Robinson says the Deal campaign thinks the numbers are wrong because the rate has been adjusted in previous months.
Carter told reporters that Deal is making excuses to cover the state’s fundamental problems. He says investment in education will have long term impact.
This morning, Georgia News Network is reporting that the feds have since walked-back the 2014 labor numbers after having overstated unemployment in the Peach State.
Labor Commissioner Mark Butler remembers. It happened again in September and October with unemployment numbers of 7.9 and 7.7 percent…way higher than the national average. All this right before the election. Now the federal government has come back and reduced the numbers by a full percentage point for August and September and .9 of a percent for October.
The federal government now says there was no spike at all, that Georgia’s rate was slowly improving just like the rest of the nation. Butler says maybe the feds need to revisit how they come up with the numbers.
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