Senate threatens to become the Eric and Dave show
January 7, 2009 at 6:52 pm by Scott Henry in NewsThe 2009 General Assembly doesn’t start until next week, but already the infighting has begun. This time, it isn’t the lop-sided Richardson/Ralston showdown-that-wasn’t. It’s a smashmouth tussle between state senators Eric Johnson and David Shafer, who both plan to run for lieutenant governor in 2010. Ho hum.
Here’s the story – yawn – so far: Johnson stepped down as senate president pro-tem in November to devote himself to running for guv lite. Over this past weekend, Shafer told a crowd of Cobb Republicans that he, too, is seeking the post, and added that he has never given money to Democratic state Rep. Alicia Thomas Morgan – something that Johnson has done, leading to much controversy within the GOP.
Johnson – zzzzz – responded by taking offense and releasing a statement that essentially called Shafer a poopybutt:
“I am saddened by such early, petty comments. I am afraid that this is what Republicans will have to hear from my opponent for the next 18 months.”
Shafer has most recently released a list of 100 supporters, including a goodly number of Republican state legislators.
If the two carry their catfight over into next week’s legislative session, I may need to scream. The election is a year-and-a-half away, for Christ’s sake and it’s for lieutenant governor! Moreover, by the time the winner – assuming, for argument’s sake, that it even is one of them – is positioned to run for governor, Georgia might well have flipped back to being a blue state.
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