Georgia Politics, Campaigns, and Elections for June 8, 2012

“24810” ain’t nothin’ but a hound dog, who will be available for adoption from Gwinnett County Animal Shelter on Monday. Gwinnett County. Gwinnett County has a ton of dogs right now, including a number of puppies. Adoptions are critical at this time of the year to prevent euthanasia. Despite their best efforts, Gwinnett County was forced to euthanize 1858 dogs last year.

On Tuesday, June 26th from 5 PM to 8 PM, join a fundraiser at Stars & Strikes Family Entertainment Center, located at 1700 Winder Highway at GA-316, benefitting Operation Second Chance and the Society of Humane Friends. Call Virginia at 770-355-8286 for more information.

Operation Second Chance is a program of the Gwinnett County Sheriff’s Department that provides career training to selected inmates and saves dogs slated for euthanasia. Operation Second Chance is lowering its adoption rate from $150 to $50 for June, and the cost includes full vetting and the dogs are very well-trained. Visit www.jaildogs.org to learn more.

Preliminary results of our online survey

We’ll be closing our online survey once we hit 400 respondents, but as of this morning, we have 369 responses, and can tell you the following:

• 79.4% of respondents will vote against the T-SPLOST, with 15.99% supporting it and only 4.61% undecided
• Requiring party registration to vote in primary elections garners the support of 47.15% of respondents and is opposed by 42.82%

This is not a random-sample; it is self-selected but based on our readership, we think it’s a fair representation of a segment of Georgia Republican political activists. Think of it less as a poll than as a sort of focus group of conservative Republicans who are highly involved in the party and highly motivated.

Georgia Politics, Campaigns, and Elections

Last night, Governor Deal, Attorney General Sam Olens, Secretary of State Brian Kemp, Agriculture Commissioner Gary Black, and Public Service Commissioner Chuck Eaton, along with seemingly every candidate for a six-county radius, appeared at the Walton GOP Barbecue hosted by Roy Roberts.

Gov. Deal also spoke with WABE’s Denis O’Hayer about a recent trade mission to Turkey,  proposed ethics legislation, and the HOPE Scholarship. The interview clocks in at nearly thirteen-and-a-half minutes, but is worth listening to.

Deal reported yesterday that May state government revenues were up 2.1 percent over May 2011 and net revenues for eleven months of FY 2012 are $14.5 billion, a $700 million increase over the previous period.

“With only one exception, we’ve had positive year-over-year growth for more than 20 months,” said Deal. “Although these numbers are not as strong as April’s, they continue to maintain a steady pattern of growth.”

Six graduates of Gwinnett County’s drug court program will hear from Governor Nathan Deal, Gwinnett County Chair Charlotte Nash, and Supreme Court Chief Justice George Carley at their graduation ceremony today. Gwinnett County Superior Court Judge Billy Ray will preside over the graduation, as he has over the drug court for seven years since its inception. Ray is on the shortlist for appointment to the Supreme Court when Justice Carley retires this year.

Republican Congressman Paul Broun is taking partial credit for luring Caterpillar to Georgia:

“I was privileged to initiate the process of Caterpillar moving to Clarke and Oconee counties by touting the benefits that our state has to offer and connecting them with our governor’s office,” Broun said. “This is something that I do every time I have the opportunity to meet with company representatives.”

Senator Bill Heath is challenging one of his Republican Primary opponents’ residency in the district and his truthiness.

Heath said, “The facts are clear. Bill Carruth is not a resident of the 31st Senate District. He would have us believe that he and his family have moved from a million dollar mansion where they have lived for a decade into a $100,000 starter home they are renting and that is their permanent residence? Carruth has a legally filed homestead exemption on his million dollar mansion swearing it is his permanent residence. Facts are stubborn things and facts don’t lie like Bill Carruth has.”

“Worse than his violation of residency laws is the $2.35 million dollars Bill Carruth owes to the taxpayers of the United States of America. A federal court has issued a judgment against him and ordered federal authorities to seize his assets for not paying his debts to the FDIC, a federal agency. Yet he contributes $110,000 of his own money to his political campaign? Carruth wants the taxpayers to bail him out while he runs for political office. Obama isn’t even this shameless, “said Heath.

“The hardworking citizens of west Georgia deserve better than this. They deserve a rock solid conservative Senator they can trust. They deserve leaders who follow the law and pay their bills, and not doing so should automatically disqualify anyone from seeking public office. I hope the legal process will work as intended and honor the trust of the citizens of our great state.”

The Kennesaw City Council is considering eliminating the $100 per month stipend for Planning Commission members.

The Human Rights Campaign, a lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) civil rights organization, has endorsed Ken Britt for State House in the Democratic Primary against former Rep. “Able” Mable Thomas for the seat being vacated by State Rep. Kathy Ashe.

Kevin “Big Kev” Westphal announced that he has been endorsed by his mustache` in the General election against the winner of the GOP Primary between Rep. John Carson and challenger Martin Hawley.

A sign vendor has agreed to offer discounted yard signs to GaPundit readers. One-color yardsigns on corrugated plastic with an included metal H-stand cost less than $3.00 each and two-color signs with included stands for less than $3.50 each. Shipping is not included but will be calculated before you order. Email us for more information.

Ends & Pieces

Blueberries have eclipsed peaches for their economic impact on Georgia. I heard it on WABE this morning and will bring you a link when I can find one.

 

Errata

In yesterday’s morning news, I inadvertantly left off the link/citation to the story about Attorney General Sam Olens filing suit over alleged violations of the Open Meetings act by the Mayor of Cumming.  I read of the lawsuit at ForsythNews.com.