Georgia Politics, Campaigns, and Elections for June 6, 2012

The Great Pyrenees is not a dog you expect to see at the shelter, but Gwinnett County Animal Shelter has two right now. “24528” on the right is a male who is available for adoption today, and “24779” on the right is a female who will be available for adoption starting Sunday. Both are extra large, friendly, and will likely have difficulty finding homes due to their size. Please help these gentle giants survive by sharing them on Facebook with your friends.

Great Pyrs run 70 to 130 pounds as adults, so adopting one is a considerable commitment. Great Pyrenees Rescue of Atlanta has good information on the breed and also accepts donations to help them save more of these giant fuzzballs. If you make a donation, maybe you could mention these dogs in Gwinnett.

Georgia Politics, Campaigns, and Elections

We are running an online survey over at GaPundit.com and hope you’ll take a few minutes to head over there and fill it out.

Included are all five ballot questions adopted by the GOP State Convention, the actual wording of the T-SPLOST item, and both Public Service Commission seats that are up for reelection this year.

Once we have a sufficient sample size, we’ll be releasing information from the results. Also included are a few demographics questions to make the analysis more interesting. This is a non-random sample, so it’s “scientific” value will be limited, but it’s already providing some interesting and surprising information.

Robert DeMello, who ran for Augusta Commission in 2005 and lost, also lost in federal court, receiving a 58 month sentence for bank fraud. I don’t wish to cast aspersions on anyone, but is there something in the water in Augusta? Linda Schrenko, Robin Williams,  Charles Walker and this guy? Seems to be a higher percentage of corruption than the area’s numbers would predict. Or maybe they’re just better a catching them.

Federal district court Judge J. Randal Hall released his redistricting map for Augusta Commission and Richmond County Board of Education yesterday.

Using what Hall said was the “minimum change doctrine” to adjust existing district lines just enough to accommodate population shifts, the map maintains the four majority white and six majority black districts on Augusta’s existing voting map.

The plan increases the black population percentage in districts 1, 6, 8 and 10. However, the increase in District 6 was 52.97 percent to 54.26 percent black, lower than what some local black politicians wanted.

An earlier proposal that boosted District 6’s minority percentage to more than 60 percent was rejected by Republicans on the commission, school board and legislature.

The district, which became majority-black in the early 2000s, has elected a white commissioner and school board member since consolidation.

Augusta Chronicle columnist Bill Kirby wants to know how politicians will handle the fact that squirrels are responsible for nearly 11,000 power outages each year. This question should be asked of every politician you meet this year, especially candidates for Georgia Public Service Commission, as squirrel-related equipment failures will affect the cost to ratepayers for electricity. Cue Tim Echols as Elmer Fudd.

Whitfield County property taxpayers will see an increase in their bills, as the board of education voted to raise the millage rate.

DeKalb County taxpayers will see rate increases because our property is magically worth three times what it was last week. The excess property tax collections will be used to offset the obscene profit being made by some guy who swindled County CEO Burrell Ellis into paying $4000 for eight 4′ by 6′ signs touting his reelection campaign county construction programs. If $500 per sign isn’t obscene enough for you, the total cost to county taxpayers for Ellis’s reelection campaign signs will run $40k. Brookhaven voters, can you hear me now?

State Representative Mike Jacobs has an excellent public service announcement on how to appeal your property tax assessment. It walks you through the process that should be applicable no matter where you live in Georgia.

 

 

Travis Bowden, who is again tilting at windmills challenging Senator Don Balfour in the Republican Primary is calling on members of the Senate Committee on Assignments to remove Balfour as Rules Chairman. If it were me, I’d be calling on Balfour to voluntarily step aside so that a new Rules Chairman can be appointed to immediately begin auditing per diem and expense reimbursements as is required by Georgia law and bring the Senate back into compliance with the statute they passed. The best choice for a Rules Chairman Pro Tem might be a member who is not running for reelection, so that as much politics as possible can be avoided, and it won’t compete for their attention with their own reelection bid. Politically, it has the advantage that you are challenging Balfour himself to take action, and if he refuses to do so, you can bash him with that.

The Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners unanimously (4-0) rejected a bid by a private company to take over operations of county-owned Briscoe Field airport. After former Commissioner Shirley Fanning-Lasseter pled guilty to federal bribery charges, and it was revealed she wanted to sell her vote on the airport, the private company asked for a delay in the Commission vote. Homeowners who opposed the privatization pressed for an immediate vote and rejection of the proposal.

“Citizens, you made a difference,” said community leader Gaye McNeill. “We never lost sight of our goal.”

The company states that it never tried to bribe Fanning-Lasseter, and no such allegation is made. Although they are not above threatening a lawsuit here and there.

“We’re exploring our options,” referring to a possible lawsuit, said Brett Smith of Propeller Airports, which proposed adding scheduled flights at the Gwinnett County Airport. “I think the bulk of the county has been less than genuine and quite frankly outrageous.”

Attorney Doug Dillard added, “the staff report is irresponsible and unresponsive. We want a decision on the merits.”

While a U.S. attorney said in court last week that Lasseter’s vote on the airport issue was “for sale,” Smith denied ever offering a bribe. “I’m as shocked as you are, and we have done nothing wrong,” Smith said.

Ethics watchdog George Anderson is back with complaints against two sitting politicians, and this watchdog still has fleas. Anderson will hold a press conference about back taxes allegedly owed by Snellville City Councilman Tom Witts and Snellville Chief Municipal Court Judge Mark Layng.

A candidate for Muscogee County Sheriff has charged that District Attorney Julia Slater refused to prosecute a rape allegedly committed against a relative of the candidate.

Slater said she confirmed her office was never consulted by police and had no input into their investigation, which was closed as “non-prosecutable” in 2010 due to shifting statements and a lack of evidence.

In the race for Muscogee County Marshal, the budget and mission of the office itself are at question.

 The marshal’s office is primarily concerned with service of court papers, including eviction notices, and Municipal Court security.

Columbus Mayor Teresa Tomlinson will hold a public forum next Tuesday, June 12th, from 6 to 7:30 PM at St. John AME Church at 3980 Steam Mill Road.

Savannah residents who are interested in appointment to a board or commission may apply for a number of appointments.

The Peach County school board has delayed the start of school this year until September because of construction. Peach County nerds expressed disappointment.

Republican Party Purity

This year’s Republican Primary ballot includes a question on whether registration by party should be required to vote in primary elections. Weigh in on the question by voting in our online survey that includes this question, and all other statewide ballot questions. And earlier this week, a reader emailed me to the effect that while he’s happy the GOP is gaining ground at the local level through party switchers, he hopes that these switchers will ensure that their ideology is in line with that of their new party.

Party purity is also at issue in Republican Primary elections for Public Service Commission. Incumbent Republican Chuck Eaton is being challenged in the primary by Matt Reid, who has a solid Democratic voting history and who gave $250 to Barack Obama’s presidential campaign. Republican incumbent Stan Wise is being challenged in the primary by Pam Davidson who, after running in the 2008 GOP Primary and losing, endorsed the Democrat, a radical liberal, in the General Election against eventual winner Lauren “Bubba” McDonald.

Having voted at sometime in the past shouldn’t bar a candidate forever from seeking the Republican nomination, but unless he has a conversion story as dramatic as Paul’s on the road to Damascus, a very recent history might cause one to question their truthiness in seeking the nomination. After all, you don’t expect to be team captain the first time you suit up.

In Gwinnett County, Chris McClurg is courting Republican voters in his campaign for Superior Court Judge, and is even pictured on the Gwinnett GOP’s Facebook page on the cover photo with the County Party’s banner. But PoliticalVine.com has published the voter history for the candidates in this race, and McClurg appears to have voted in the 2008 Democratic Presidential Preference Primary. Maybe rather than voting for Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton, he joined Wright McLeod in voting for Bill Richardson. Gwinnett Republicans should be wary if he claims to be conservative.

Speaking of Wright McLeod’s claim of having voted for Bill Richardson in the 2008 Democratic Presidential Primary, the Savannah Morning-News finds that Richardson didn’t receive a single vote for President in McLeod’s voting precinct in that election, so McLeod’s story cannot possibly be true. The only candidates receiving votes in that precinct were Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, and John Edwards. GOP voters, and especially conservatives, will remember that Georgia hosted a spirited Republican primary for President that year with Mike Huckabee taking the race. It also casts doubt on McLeod’s explanation for having given $7100 to a statewide Democratic candidate and, frankly, on anything else he says.

Savannah River tidbits

Near Augusta, the Savannah River will be lowered three feet so that contractors can apply an herbicide to cut back on overgrowth of brush.

Residents who use river water for irrigation are advised not to water plants or lawns June 19-21 to allow the chemical to dissipate. There are no advisories related to swimming, fishing or other recreation.

If I lived near that river, I wouldn’t fear swimming in it because of herbicide, but rather because of the fear of flesh-eating bacteria, and the near-Biblical snake plague that appears to afflict our state.

Also scary at the Savannah River is that the crazy state of South Carolina is on the other side of it. In their war on Georgia and our ports, the Chief Justice of the South Carolina Supreme Court said that the state agency that granted a permit for dredging the river to allow deeper access to the Port of Savannah did so in violation of state law.

“What you ask is to be rewarded for disobeying the requirements of law that you at least involve in some way the Maritime Commission when you made the ultimate decision,” Toal told Harleston.

“You disobeyed the law when you did not involve the Savannah Maritime Commission in a settlement of this matter. … I think everybody agrees with that.”

Yosemite Sam over there ought to know that Georgia has been practicing with our cannon.