Georgia Politics, Campaigns, and Elections for October 20, 2015

The United States Senate ratified a treaty with France on October 20, 1805, closing the deal on the Louisiana Purchase.

On October 20, 1905, President Theodore Roosevelt stopped in Roswell to visit his mother’s girlhood home at Bulloch Hall.

Lewis Grizzard was born on October 20, 1946 at Fort Benning, Georgia.

On October 20, 1977, a small twin-engine plane carrying members of Lynyrd Skynyrd from Greenville, South Carolina to Baton Rouge, Louisiana crashed in a swamp in Gillsburg, Mississippi. Singer Ronnie Van Zant, guitarist Steve Gaines, vocalist Cassie Gaines, assistant road manager Dean Kilpatrick, pilot Walter McCreary and co-pilot William Gray died in the crash.

Georgia Politics, Campaigns, and Elections

Yesterday, the Washington Post inadvertantly pushed “Publish” on a story that wasn’t quite ready.

The Washington Post published an item Monday evening to its website with the headline “Biden to launch a presidential campaign.”

Post congressional reporter Paul Kane, whose byline appeared on the article, was quick to tweet out the details. It seems this wasn’t news published before it was ready—just a “shell” story prepared so that the Post could push the button faster in case Biden did announce.

“Earlier tonight, a technical glitch caused publication of a just-in-case/when-we-kno story of VP running for president,” he told his 10,000 followers on Twitter. “It happened when editors were embedding video file. It carries my byline. I regret that it was published accidentally. Deep apologies.”

That sounds like something Joe Biden would do.

Both FoxNews and NBC are reporting that a decision by Biden is expected in the next 48 hours.

The Feds are moving to require registration of most drone aircraft.

The Obama administration — in a bid to start tracking personal drones and address safety concerns in advance of a holiday season when the industry projects thousands more will be sold — announced Monday it will require the registration of drone aircraft, even for “consumers and hobbyists.”

The decision is meant in part to address the growing number of reported close calls and incidents that pose safety risks. Pilot sightings of drones have doubled since last year, including sightings near planes and major sporting events.

Federal Aviation Administration chief Michel Huerta said registration will increase pressure on operators to fly responsibly, adding “there will be consequences” when they don’t.

Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx stressed that the DOT is “bullish” on technology in the transportation sector, noting drones are helping farmers, entrepreneurs and even the movie industry. But citing the “astounding” growth in the industry and the safety issues, he said: “We’re going to require operators of drones to register their aircraft just like commercial drone operators do currently.”

Newt Returns

Newt and Callista Gingrich will be touring Georgia to promote his new book, Duplicity: A Novel, which was released last week.

You can join them next Tuesday, October 27, 2015 with the Fulton County Republican Party at the City Club of Buckhead, 3343 Peachtree Rd #1850, Atlanta, GA 30326. Tickets are $30 and include breakfast. Pro-tip: the City Club of Buckhead is in the Atlanta Financial Center and is not the same as the Buckhead Club.

Later that day, at 6:30 PM, they’ll appear at Fox Tales Book Shoppe, 105 East Main Street, #138, Woodstock, GA 30188. You can reserve your signed copy of Duplicity and pick it up and have it signed at the store. Fox Tales is a fantastic store, and I encourage my friends to shop there when you’re able – they have great book signing events and all of the conservative authors seem to do signings there. I suspect they may also have copies of some of Callista’s books if you’re getting Christmas shopping done early this year.

On Wednesday, October 28, 2015, Newt and Callista will appear in Columbus at the AAFES PMG Main Exchange,  9220 Marne Road,  SD-C/2, Ft. Benning, GA 31905. For information on attending the book signing at Fort Benning, check out the entry requirements and FAQs.

State Representative Jason Spencer has endorsed Texas Senator Ted Cruz for President.

Via email, Spencer wrote:

Today, I am officially endorsing U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Tx) for the presidency of the United States, and I ask all liberty loving conservatives to stand behind him.

It is time for conservatives to unite behind a true conservative that can win. That conservative is Sen. Ted Cruz.

Senator Cruz stands for the very principles that our country was founded upon. I am impressed with his loyalty and conviction, as well as his superb intellectual and linguistic command to communicate the conservative message.

The U.S. Secret Service will start providing 24-hour security for Dr. Ben Carson and Donald Trump, if Congress approves.

The agency sent letters Monday to key leaders in Congress who have to sign off on the proposal, which Fox News is told would involve a rotation of 260 Secret Service agents. Congress traditionally approves such requests.

The development comes after an aide to Carson met with the U.S. Secret Service’s Dignitary Protection Division to request protection for the candidate as threats against him have grown, according to a source familiar with the conversation.

The source told Fox News that a representative for Trump’s campaign also made contact with the Secret Service on Friday.

Trump last week was outspoken in calling for Secret Service protection, saying that while he has a private security team, his rallies have gotten large.

“We’re getting the biggest crowds,” he told Fox News’ “On the Record with Greta Van Susteren” last Thursday, acknowledging his team has been speaking with the Secret Service while suggesting a double-standard was at play for Republican and Democratic candidates. “If I was a Democrat, they’d have it but it’s really up to them. They know what they’re doing, and I assume they’re doing the right thing. I would hope they are doing the right thing.”

You’ve already read that the Peanut Poll became the largest “straw poll” in the nation, but that may be related to the Georgia National Fair, which hosted the Peanut Poll, hitting record attendance this year.

The Augusta Chronicle is doing a great job covering the election on SPLOST 7, on the November ballot.

Bainbridge will have a new City Council member as Luther Conyers is not running for reelection after more than 30 years; three candidates are in the race.

Tonight at 7:30 PM, candidates for Mayor and City Council in Brookhaven will meet the voters in a forum at Oglethorpe University.

On Thursday, October 22d, former Atlanta Fire chief Kelvin Cochran will speak to the Georgia Tea Party, 900 Roswell St, Marietta, GA 30060, from 7-9 PM.

When you walk into the Governor’s Office in the Georgia State Capitol and set fire to the trash can, of course everyone is going to step away from the flames. Expect no less when you deliver a culture fight with inflammatory language on both sides. In the case of whether to honor Dr. King at Stone Mountain, Gov. Deal appears to be backing up from a fight he didn’t pick, according to AJC Political Insider, Greg Bluestein.

Gov. Nathan Deal sought to distance himself from the uproar from civil rights groups and Confederate enthusiasts united in opposition over a planned monument to Martin Luther King Jr. on Stone Mountain.

The governor, who initially approved the idea for the memorial, said Monday he wants to hear more debate over the idea before making up his mind.

“I thought it was a unique idea. But like any good idea, unless you have people to buy into it, what may be a good idea may not prove to be so good after all,” Deal said in his first comments about the proposal.

“That’s not really for me to say,” Deal said when asked whether he’s hopeful an MLK memorial will one day crown Stone Mountain.  “Obviously it could be legislatively required, and there’s some talk about revisiting that … Let’s see how all of the voices that are weighing in on this, let’s see what the final conclusion of this cacophony on this difference of opinions turns out to be.”

In Austell, 26-year incumbent Mayor Joe Jerkins will face Chris Djonis on November 3d. An open seat for Mayor of Powder Springs has drawn three candidates, a current member of City Council, a former member, and a business owner.

Rome City Commission candidates meet in a forum on Thursday from 4-7 PM at the Jo-Ann Harbin Collins Community Room, 560 Division Street.

Also on Thursday, the Lowndes County Republican Party will host candidates for Valdosta City Council at a forum at Austin’s Cattle Company. Social time begins at 6 PM, with a 6:30 start for the forum itself.

Seven candidates are running for three open seats on the Hampton City Council and responded to questions from the Henry Herald. The Clayton News Daily has Q&A sections with candidates in College Park and Lake City.

Incumbent Dunwoody Mayor Mike Davis and his three challengers (City Council member Denis Shortal, Chris Grivakis and Stephen Chipka) answered questions at a candidates forum.

Voters in the May 2016 General Primary election in Rockdale will vote on a SPLOST that would begin in 2017 if passed. Meanwhile, the Rockdale County Board of Education is considering a new vehicle for the Superintendent, and it may get an upgrade because of a citizen comment.

The Muscogee County Board of Education voted 6-3 to ask local legislators to put Columbus Mayor Teresa Tomlinson’s “tax freeze thaw” proposal on the ballot for the 2016 General Election.

Incumbent Savannah Mayor Edna Jackson and challenger Eddie DeLoach have both broken the $100k mark in fundraising for the November 3 election.

The City of Grayson, in Gwinnett County, has adopted a citizen input policy, according to the Gwinnett Daily Post.

During each meeting following the approval of the agenda, citizen input and public comment are featured.

Each citizen desiring to address the council will have three minutes for comment, as has been the practice in the city. “The Citizen Input Session will be a maximum of 30 minutes and is limited to topics regarding the safety and concerns of city residents,” the policy reads. “Verbal attacks and abusive language will not be tolerated.”

The policy also states that a council meeting is not a forum for the council or staff “to respond to comments given that there would not be sufficient time to consider and deliberate comments …”

The City of Oakwood, GA has approved the same property tax rate going forward, which will result in higher property taxes for some, due to rising assessments.

Add this to the preview of the 2016 General Assembly Session: figuring out when online sports leagues are gambling and when they’re not. The Georgia lottery thinks that FanDuel, DraftKings, and the like are illegal gambling under the Georgia Constitution.

Georgia Lottery officials are questioning whether the daily fantasy sports industry can legally operate in the state, according to a letter sent last month to CEOs of DraftKings and FanDuel.

Georgia Lottery General Counsel Joseph Kim said in the Sept. 23 letter that the companies appear to violate the Georgia Constitution, which generally bans gambling except for state lottery-run games.

Kim said in his letter that the federal law doesn’t protect the companies in Georgia, where the definition of a “bet” includes winning or losing something of value — even if a game requires some skill. Only coin-operated machines are exempt from that definition, he said.

“Based on these definitions a person or party that places or facilitates a ‘bet’ or maintains a ‘gambling place’ commits the crimes of gambling, commercial gambling, advertising commercial gambling and communication gambling information,” he wrote.

Maybe these websites can go in with the casino operators and get a 2-for-1 deal, or at least a discount, on lobbying the General Assembly.

It’s not really a back-door tax increase, more like a bathroom door tax increase: some Hall County residents will pay higher sewer rates to cover rising costs while new development fails to keep pace.