Fresh Loaf

State Sen. Jeff Mullis, R-Chickamauga, filed legislation today that urges the Internal Revenue Service to revoke the tax-exempt status of the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, or ACORN.

If you recall, the grassroots organization pissed off cable news pundits and right-wing Internet trolls during the 2008 presidential election for alleged voter fraud.

From the state Senate press office:

“An organization that chooses to undermine the integrity of our nation’s election process should not be entitled to tax exemption benefits,” said Sen. Mullis. “The excessive amount of evidence against ACORN engaging in fraudulent activity demands that the organization to be held accountable for taking advantage of hardworking taxpayers, and I call on the IRS to ensure that justice is executed in this case.”

The grassroots organization runs a large voter registration drive focused on minority and low-income communities, and during the 2008 presidential election came under fire for submitting voter registrations to 11 states with false information. ACORN has been accused of submitting the names of deceased persons and the names of 15 members of the Dallas Cowboys on registration forms in Nevada. In Ohio, one person stated that he signed 73 voter registration applications over a five-month span through ACORN, and in Connecticut, ACORN submitted a registration card for a seven-year-old girl that contained a false birth date.

Sen. Mullis is calling on the IRS and the Secretary of the Treasury to launch a full-scale investigation into ACORN’s fraudulent activities, and is urging the IRS to remove the organization’s tax exemption status.

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Seriously, why didn’t I know about this guy before the election? His name appears to be Iman, he’s part of a Mad.TV contest, and he’s got Obama down. I especially like his version of Obama doing De Niro. (”Saturday Night Live’s” Fred Armisen tries, but has always sounded more like Tiger Woods.)

If anyone knows of any others, please let me know.

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By the time Georgia polls close at 7 p.m. tonight, we here at CL will already be snookered on Diet Coke and moonshine, liveblogging in this digital Utopia about all the races up for grabs.

CL Editor Ken Edelstein will hold court at Manuel’s, staff writer Scott Henry will report from Jim Martin’s party at Park Tavern, and senior writers Mara Shalhoup and Andisheh Nouraee will monitor results and send dispatches from undisclosed locations. I’ll be in Stepford — oops, Buckhead — at the Intercontinental Hotel where the Georgia GOP is holding its fete. If you have any questions you’d like me to ask lawmakers, leave ‘em in the comments or send me an e-mail here.

Here’s a good list of key states to watch and what time their polls close. Here’s a neat-o map of the United States that shows where the presidential race stands. Here’s a place where you can win $20 of Andisheh’s money. And here’s a picture of a kitten dressed as a pirate.

Be sure to return and join us in a liveblogging celebration of America and insomnia. And if you haven’t done so already, go vote.

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FiveThirtyEight, one of the most entertaining and informative online resources for this Presidential election, posts an excellent Georgia-centric rundown on the state’s demographics and political dynamics — and how the combination of the two may determine who runs the country come Jan. 20.

From the site:

Since native son Jimmy Carter was on the ballot, Democrats have found Georgia tough sledding. But with African-American turnout soaring to unprecedented levels, Georgia may be a state where the public polling models are off, and indeed Barack Obama has put last minute advertising resources into the state in an effort to both go over 400 electoral votes as well as help a rising tide lift Jim Martin’s boat against Max Cleland-smearing incumbent Saxby Chambliss.

It’s a long read, but it says Georgia’s may be one of the closest races we’ll see on Nov. 4. Definitely worth checking out.

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In the last of its Jawja polls of the day, Rasmussen says John McCain still leads Barack Obama by five points in Georgia.

Interesting tidbit:

In the latest poll, Obama now leads 53% to 44% among unaffiliated voters in the state. Last week, McCain led those voters by an identical margin. McCain leads 73% to 26% among white voters in Georgia while Obama earns overwhelming support from black voters. While men favor McCain 55% to 45%, women are split between the candidates at 49% each.

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With just days left before votes are to be counted, Barack Obama is rolling out a new ad about the economy that’s slated to air in Georgia and North Dakota .

Here it is:

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The headline’s a bit misleading, sure, but this sounds like it’ll be just as interesting.

Grady High School’s award-winning Speech and Debate Team is hosting “The Final Showdown,” a U.S. presidential debate tonight at 7:30 p.m. in the school’s Main Theater. Seniors Mike Robinson and Demarius Wilson will portray John McCain and Barack Obama and debate healthcare, the economy, foreign policy and other issues. The fundraising event will be moderated by members of the press and Emory University’s Barkley Forum. Students and audience members will be able to pose questions to the “candidates.”

Can’t make it out to the event? No worries, you can watch the debate from home — the team will streamcast it live on its website here.

A chili dinner will be offered at 6 p.m. in the high school cafeteria. Tickets cost $12 and can be purchased at the door or online here.

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— Over in Iraq, the Daly Briefing is getting ready to come home. Which means it’s no time for complacency because that can get you killed. He makes a final trip down into a bunker when they hear explosions near their compound. When they emerge, they learn that a convoy with an Iraqi official was bombed. From the way the walls of the bunker shook when the bomb went off, he instantly knew people had died.

— On the local front, Georgia has become a battleground state as the polls show “that one” and Jim Martin have closed the gap on J-Mac and the Sax Machine. How’d that happen? While we all sat in gas lines — when there was gas — Sonny went on vacation (oops, I meant to say he went on an economic development trip) to Spain. And as Raleigh at Inside The Sprawl notes, Republican numbers had to go down every time Glenn Richardson opened his mouth.

— And, as Jason Pye points out, the Republicans do idiotic things. A prime example is how the AJC busted Sonny over the weekend because while state agencies are under a mandate to cut costs by six percent, he’s going full steam ahead on his own pet project: the $23 million “Go Fish Center” in Perry.

— With the races closing in Georgia, Bill Clinton came to Atlanta Saturday night on behalf of Martin, and Amy at Georgia Women Vote was there. She got up close and personal with Clinton, and was awed by his charisma.

— At Georgia Politics Unfiltered, Andre takes note that the daily papers in Macon and Columbus each endorsed “that one.” I ventured out into 770 territory over the weekend, and was surprised by the sparsity of political signs for Johnny Mac and Caribou Barbie. Is Georgia going to go Democratic in this election?

— And, fiinally, Amber Rhea checks out the new Waffle House museum so the rest of us don’t have to. And she wants to go back. Check out her report here.

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This is going to be an interesting week. And a busy one.

Pollster, a website that somehow eats every single political poll IN THE WORLD and then burps them out in color-coded maps, says Georgia is now a “toss up” between John McCain and Barack Obama. Yep, Georgia.

Wonkette says no way, but we’ll see.

Pollster’s also calling “toss up” about Georgia’s U.S. Senate seat. Nearly everyone thought incumbent Republican Saxby Chambliss would easily win a second term in his race against Democratic nominee Jim Martin and Libertarian challenger Allen Buckley. Turns out all of ‘em — me included — were wrong. Signs point to a run off in that race.

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If you’re stuck at college in Atlanta or Macon without a car and those damn campus buses don’t go anywhere near the polls, the Barack Obama campaign is here to save you.

Workers from the presidential nominee’s Hope Depots© will offer free bus rides for students from select colleges and universities next week for advanced voting.

Full list with details follows after the jump:

(more…)

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The latest poll from Rasmussen is the fourth straight snapshot that shows John McCain with more than 50 percent of the vote.

From the polling organization:

The race for Georgia’s Electoral College votes is getting closer.

The latest Rasmussen Reports telephone survey in the state shows that John McCain’s lead over Barack Obama is down to five percentage points, 51% to 46%. In September, McCain led by 11. Earlier in October, that lead had slipped to nine points.

However, while Obama continues to gain ground, this is the fourth straight poll of Georgia voters to find McCain at the 50% level of support or above. In August, McCain led Obama 50% to 43%.

Sixty-eight percent (68%) of voters in the state expect McCain to win Georgia on Election Day.

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A recent Democracy Corps poll focused on Georgia shows a slight 46-44 margin for John McCain over Barack Obama and a 48-44 margin for U.S. Sen. Saxby Chambliss over Democratic challenger Jim Martin.

But it was a question about the 2010 Governor’s race that caught my eye:

(more…)

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— For our friend at the Daly Briefing, who has faithfully documented his stay in Iraq, he has 17 days left before he comes home. And on his calendar, X marks the spot.

— DriftGrift started with his Morning Wooten, then lost all inspiration.

— What if they did a debate and nobody showed up? If you live in Atlanta, you probably saw no televsion coverage of Thursday’s debate in the ever-tightening Senate race. Live Apartment Fire, not only notes the lack of coverage, but chides the one station that did cover it (WXIA-TV) for never actually showing footage from the debate.

— Speaking of campaigns, is it all about race in the presidential election between J-Mac and “that one?” At My Urban Report, A.man.I complains the mainstream media is focused on all the wrong things. The other night, he was watching a news show that delved into the question of whether Obama will suffer from the “Bradley Effect,” where white people say they’re going to vote for a black candidate and then lose their nerve in the voting booth. He’s more interested in making an intelligent choice based on what the two candidates will do once elected. Maybe that’s, like, too much work for them.

— And poor Reporter Cub is suffering from information overload. For him, there’s 57 channels and nothin’ on.

— Over at In Decatur, there’s a great parable for the times … all over a parking space in New York City.

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After Thursday night’s roller-coaster ride on the YouBetchaExpress, this evening’s presidential debate was relatively staid. I thought Barack Obama clearly led the night, but McCain’s final two answers were stronger.

Your thoughts?

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Tonight at 9 p.m., the two vice presidential nominees from both major parties — where’s the Libertarian? — will face off in what’s sure to be a battle of the wits.

In one corner, we have Sen. Joe Biden, a veteran lawmaker with a history of gaffes but who has more or less held it together — even while riding the Amtrak from D.C. to Delaware every single day of his life. In the other, there’s Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, who has proven to be the most astute interview subject since Crispin Glover.

To help you enjoy the debate, the fine folks at GEDBlog have put together a Sarah Palin BINGO card. The targeted moose is a free space. Each time Palin mentions “lipstick,” “glass ceiling,” “Tony Rezko,” or the healthy polar bear population, cover a space. First person to mail in their winning BINGO card receives a free pair of 3-D glasses that have been sitting on my desk for a couple of months.

We may or may not be liveblogging this spectacle. I’m in talks with a special guest to join me, a person who has changed the very fabric of modern politics with her wit, wisdom and style. I’m speaking with her agents, who as luck would have it, are demanding I provide her with tomatoes. Even if we don’t, at least you have this fancy game to play.

To print out a BINGO card, click here to access the PDF version.

(Hat tip to various folks on Tumblr, GEDBlog)

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Libertarian Presidential nominee and former CL columnist Bob Barr was interviewed by Liz Gorman of Wonkette during Friday’s debate between the Barack Obama and John McCain. Skip the “festive” guy talking about conspiracies and start watching at 1:50. Barr shows his human side when he’s asked whether facial hair has any place in our armed forces.

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One of the pleasant surprises of this campaign season for me has been the emergence of Emory University Psychology & Psychiatry Professor Drew Westen as an influential national political commentator. (more…)

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Today’s Air Loaf features CL’s Chanté LaGon and Scott Henry discussing Bob Barr’s potential to be a spoiler in the U.S. presidential race — the subject of this week’s cover story.

Air Loaf is broadcast weekdays on 1690 WMLB-AM at approximately 8:10 a.m., 12:20 p.m. and 6:20 p.m.

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