No worries, it’s still at Clark Atlanta University. But event organizers have moved it to:
Clark Atlanta University
The Quad
James P. Brawley Drive and Fair Street
Atlanta, GA
“The Quad” sounds like it’s outdoors to me. Be sure to wear your mittens.
You’d think that by this point in the U.S. Senate Runoff race between incumbent Republican Saxby Chambliss and Democratic nominee Jim Martin all the issues would be hashed out. But that’s not the case.
On Sunday, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee released an ad that questions why Chambliss has refused to testify about whether executives from Imperial Sugar — they owned the Savannah refinery that exploded in February and killed 14 people — asked him to help the company avoid blame for the incident. Chambliss has received campaign contributions from Imperial Sugar and browbeat a company whistleblower during legislative testimony.
A Chambliss spokeswoman told the Associated Press that U.S. Senate legal counsel told the incumbent Republican the U.S. Constitution prevents him from testifying.
But government watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington says the senator has it wrong. And in a post on the group’s website, executive director Melanie Sloan delivers the senator a zinger.
Signs! They make us think! They make us laugh! They’re great tools for pranks!
No outside signs are allowed at tomorrow’s Bill Clinton rally for U.S. Senate Democratic nominee Jim Martin. And this afternoon you’ve got a chance to make some authorized ones at one of the campaign’s satellite offices in Fulton County.
Here are the details from the Martin HQ:
ATLANTA – This afternoon Jim Martin for Senate supporters will gather at one of the Democratic Party’s Campaign For Change Offices located in Fulton County for a sign-making party in preparation for the Bill Clinton rally. Afterwards, supporters will phone bank to get out the vote for Jim Martin. Martin will work with President-elect Barack Obama to fix the economy and cut taxes for middle class families in Georgia.
WHO: Jim Martin for Senate supporters
WHAT: Host sign-making party and phone bank
WHERE: Fulton County
Morris Brown Office
643 Martin Luther King Drive Atlanta, GA 30309
WHEN: 4:30 PM, Tuesday, November 18, 2008
Infowizard Jim Galloway at the AJC’s Political Insider brings word that Judy Woodruff of PBS’ “The News Hour With Jim Lehrer” will moderate Sunday’s U.S. Senate debate between incumbent Republican Saxby Chambliss and Democratic nominee Jim Martin.
One problem: Neither candidate has confirmed they’ll participate.
The details:
Right now, plans call for the debate to be taped at GPTV studios on Sunday afternoon, then aired at 7 p.m. A C-SPAN broadcast would come sometime afterwards, Strauss said.
Even though Wednesday’s Bill Clinton rally for U.S. Senate Democratic nominee Jim Martin at Clark Atlanta University is free, organizers urge those who are interested in attending to pick up a ticket at Metro Atlanta campaign offices. Here are details:
Tickets to Clinton rally available at Campaign for Change offices
ATLANTA – Tickets to Wednesday’s “America is Back” rally with Democratic Senate candidate Jim Martin and President Bill Clinton are now available at six Campaign for Change offices in metro Atlanta. The rally is to be held at Clark Atlanta University’s Vivian W. Henderson Gymnasium. Doors open at 4:00 pm and the program begins at 4:30 pm.
The event is free and open to the public, but obtaining tickets beforehand is strongly recommended. Tickets are available at the following locations:
DeKalb County
2752 E. Ponce De Leon
Suite G
Decatur, GA 30030Clayton County
2745 Mount Zion Road
Jonesboro, GA 30206Fulton County
Morris Brown Office
643 Martin Luther King Drive
Atlanta, GA 30309Fulton County
1020 Woodstock Road
Suite 2108
Roswell, GA 30075Cobb County
1200 Cobb Parkway N.
Suite 700
Marietta, GA 30062Gwinnett County
3245 Lawrenceville-Suwanee Road
Suwanee, GA 30024Those interested in attending may also RSVP here.
From the Martin campaign:
EVENT DETAILS FOR BILL CLINTON RALLY FOR MARTIN AT CLARK ATLANTA UNIVERSITY
Former President will tout Martin’s ability to work with President-Elect Obama to Fix the Economy, Change the Direction of the CountryUPDATED EVENT DETAILS:
LOCATION:
Clark Atlanta University
Vivian W. Henderson Gymnasium
650 Fair Street SW
Atlanta, GADOORS OPEN TO PUBLIC:
4:00 PM
They’ll do it every time. One of the great ironies of our democracy is that we leave election law up to politicians.
We figured it was only a matter of time until Georgia Republicans, distraught over last week’s elections, began suggesting tweaks to voting guidelines. It’s the political equivalent of Monday-morning quarterbacking – except that, instead of second-guessing failed plays by the losing team, you day-dream about how the rules might have been changed to produce a different outcome.
I should note that both parties do this – in fact, the Democrats may have started it after Wyche Fowler lost the 1992 Senate runoff – and it’s pretty scuzzy every time it happens.
You’ll remember, of course, that state Sen. Eric Johnson, R-Savannah, started the ball rolling back in October when he called early voting “a mistake” after the GOP noticed that the wrong people seemed to be going to the polls. Then, only a day or so after the election, attorney Stefan Passantino, who heads the political law group for McKenna Long & Aldridge, Georgia’s most politically influential law firm, wrote an op-ed for the AJC in which he brazenly lambasted early voting as “uncontrolled voting.” Trust me, it’s got to be read to be believed. (more…)
Oh, Jesus. This just in from the Martin campaign:
We’re 25 days away from the December 2 runoff, and we at Jim Martin for Senate will be serving up a helpful heaping of failed Saxby Economics every day until then. Enjoy! Georgia sure hasn’t.
After the jump, view today’s delicious dish!
No one really expected Georgia’s U.S. Senate race to be this tough, cost this much or last this long. Incumbent Republican Saxby Chambliss started off with more money than God, favorable approval ratings, and a late-in-the-game Democratic challenger whose heart, critics said, seemed to be elsewhere. And the Libertarian nominee Allen Buckley? Puh-lease.
But then Wall Street had its meltdown and Congress threw it a gold-plated life preserver. Chambliss was among the 74 senators who voted for the bailout package in a move that angered a great number of conservatives — and royally pissed off Libertarians.
And according to results of Tuesday’s General Election, Buckley gobbled up more than 100,000 votes that arguably would’ve gone to Chambliss. Why do I think that? Buckley’s take for the night was 127,050 votes, or 3.4 percent of people who voted in the race. Libertarian Presidential nominee Bob Barr only snatched 28,583, or 0.7 percent. And everyone — including me — was wondering what impact the presidential race would have on contests farther down the ticket.
After the jump is a transcript of a chat I had nearly two months ago when I interviewed Tom Perdue, the political veteran who managed Chambliss’ campaign, for a story I wrote about the U.S. Senate race.
U.S. Senate Democratic nominee Jim Martin isn’t waiting for election workers to finish counting the ballots in Fulton County before he starts blanketing the airwaves.
And maybe this is just me, but I think he mentions Pres.-elect Barack Obama once or twice in there.
U.S. Sen. Saxby Chambliss says he’s not waiting for “several thousand” votes to be counted before he begins another political campaign — a potentially vigorous Dec. 2 runoff against Democratic nominee Jim Martin.
What may decide whether the incumbent Republican and Martin — a former state lawmaker who fought an uphill battle to get this far — do continue their campaigns are an undetermined number of votes that include provisional, absentee and military ballots. The results of those ballots, Chambliss said in a conference call today, may not be known until this weekend. The most recent General Election results show his support literally a fraction under the 50 percent he needed to win another six-year term in the U.S. Senate.
Chambliss said 4,000 votes would put him over the top and avoid a runoff. He adds that absentee ballots — of which he estimates 12,000 in the U.S. Senate race have yet to be counted — have traditionally played into the Republicans’ favor. Even with the surge in Democratic voters this election cycle, however, he remains optimistic.
Georgia’s U.S. Senate seat is among several that Democrats are eying to add to the party’s power in Congress. Chambliss said he expects well-publicized and support-generating visits to the state by Pres.-elect Barack Obama and other Democratic luminaries, as well as an influx of money from the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee.
Are you eager to voice your thoughts about Jim Martin and Vernon Jones in a family-friendly forum? Maybe you’re angry about U.S. Sen. Saxby Chambliss? Fear not, fellow Georgians, you’re among friends here on Fresh Loaf.
I’ll be liveblogging tonight’s Georgia Public Broadcasting debate at 7 p.m. between the two Democrats vying to take a shot at incumbent Chambliss in November. There’ll be quips, comments, updates, tidbits and lots of super-scientific polls.
Drinking game rules are as follows:
That’s all I have right now. There might be more. Regardless, skip your weekly capoiera practice early and stop by just before 7 p.m. If you don’t, I’ll be lonely and frightened, all alone in the Internet.
(Photo courtesy of Megatonik.com)
The Macon Telegraph’s Travis Fain, blogging at Lucid Idiocy and following up on what was first reported here at Georgia Premium, follows up and says that U.S. Senate candidate Jim Martin’s campaign may have pulled the trigger a little too soon on another endorsement. First there was the Josh Lanier gaffe, now it involves state Agriculture Commissioner Tommy Irvin. Fain reports the Martin campaign is declining comment until it speaks with Irvin.
Fain raises two good points:
But, 1.) How do you run a race against Vernon Jones and end up looking shady?
And, 2.) Is this all a case of people truly remaining neutral, or of people just technically remaining neutral because Jones might win?
Georgia Democrats may feel over the next few weeks as if they’re watching Bugs Bunny battle Elmer Fudd for the right to take on U.S. Sen. Saxby Chambliss.
In an Aug. 5 primary runoff, you’ve got Vernon Jones, the flamboyant and polarizing DeKalb County CEO who snagged 40 percent of the votes in last week’s primary. After coming in first, he jet-setted from Atlanta to Macon and Albany to rouse up support outside his metro Atlanta stomping grounds.
Then there’s former state Rep. Jim Martin, a folksy workhorse and country boy in city clothes. Martin, who also has been state Human Resources commissioner, is squeaky clean and received beaucoup cash when he entered the race, but lacks the fire you’d normally expect in someone itching to unseat a well-financed Republican who’s ahead in the polls.
Though both candidates are experienced campaigners, either would face steep odds in a race against Chambliss.
Read the rest of this story here.
(Photo by Joeff Davis)
U.S. Sen. Saxby Chambliss is holding a sizable lead over the pit bulls scratching at his office door. According to Rasmussen polls, the incumbent Republican senator has a 59-29 margin over soon-to-be-former DeKalb County CEO Jones. When matched against former state representative Jim Martin, it’s 51-40 — a bit closer, but still in Saxby Warbucks‘ favor. What’s interesting to note is that Jone’s pull in the Rasmussen polls has dropped from its high of 33 percent of the vote in early June. The gents are smitten with Chambliss over Martin, 62-32, but the ladies love them some Jim. He Who Speaketh Quietly leads 45-43 among the fairer sex.
When it comes to favorable ratings, Chambliss holds out at 61 percent. Martin is viewed favorably by 47 percent of those surveyed by the polling organization. Jones is way down the line at 30 percent.
But those are just numbers.
Fulton County Commission Chairman John Eaves and longtime Commissioner Nancy Boxill endorsed Jim Martin for the U.S. Senate today, according to a Martin campaign press release.
It’s anybody’s guess whether support from the two African-American leaders will translate into support from black voters. He could use that in the Aug. 5 primary runoff against Vernon Jones.
But a press release from the Martin campaign also offers something of an unintentional admission that Jones is hitting Martin where it hurts. Jones attacked Martin this week for his tenure as state human resource commissioner, where he oversaw Georgia’s troubled foster-care system. The Martin press release defends him from that charge by quoting Boxill praising him for work as commissioner.
“As Commissioner of the Department of Human Resources, Jim implemented a continuing effort to reform children’s services programs,” Boxill said. “In the legislature, he wrote laws providing court appointed special advocates for neglected children, strengthened the juvenile court system, and modernized Georgia’s adoption law.”
Martin is accumulating a lot of endorsements. Besides the AJC, the primary’s third and fourth place candidates announced that they’re backing him.
Thomas Wheatley’s analysis of the runoff from this week’s CL is here.
Press release follows the jump. (more…)
As the July 15 primaries approach, we at CL wanted to give our readers a recap of some of the most important races. Let’s call it our Ad-hoc, Incremental, Online Voter Guide!
Let’s start with the Democratic candidates for U.S. Senate. They’re fighting for the honor to take on first-term Republican (and Bush hand-maiden) Saxby Chambliss.
Polls taken at different points in the race have shown a close race, generally with Vernon Jones ahead, followed by Dale Cardwell, Jim Martin and Rand Knight. But a recent Rasmussen poll showed Martin (a late entry, but the best-funded candidate) on an upward trajectory. None of the polls has shown candidate Josh Lanier gaining much traction with voters.
But, apart from their poll numbers, what do we know about these guys? (more…)
In Georgia politics, it’s generally accepted that an effective media buy for a statewide race costs upwards of $250,000 a week. That’s a lot of wampum. What do you do if you can’t afford to get your ads on TV?
You put them on your website, of course. That’s just what the Democratic candidates for U.S. Senate have done, some posting multiple videos. A few of them are short, TV-ready campaign ads. Others are long-form videos offering details about a certain issue or the candidate’s background.
Here’s what’s available for viewing:
Veteran TV reporter Dale Cardwell has a bit of an advantage in this area, since he can deliver his message on-camera rather than relying on voice-over talent. Right up front on his website is a short introductory video telling us that Dale is: A. honest, B. a truth-teller, and C. not controlled by special-interest PACs.
Cardwell archives his longer pieces on a different site with the less-than-catchy name, www.dalethetruth.com. There you’ll find videos that have something of the feel of the investigative reports Cardwell used to do in his old job. In two of them, he explains how the incumbent, Saxby Chambliss, is beholden to special-interest PACs. Another attacks Democratic rival Jim Martin for: 1. changing his mind about running, 2. counting Vernon Jones among his friends, and 3. you guessed it – being beholden to special-interest PACs.
In Vernon Jones’ introductory video, the DeKalb CEO touts his support for renewable energy sources. The actors hired to play grocery shoppers horrified by rising prices are a bit cheesy, but Jones himself has – not surprisingly – a smooth, confident delivery.
Jones’ other videos are a mixed bag. There’s an entertaining 10-minute recap of his entire life, beginning with his upbringing in a large, poor family in small-town South Carolina, and following his political victories – accompanied by inter-titles and a soaring, inspirational musical score. Actually, he did leave out descriptions of his many personal scandals, but we guarantee there won’t be a dry eye in the house.
He also includes a seemingly endless video about DeKalb that looks to have been produced by the county’s economic development department. It’s the sort of thing that puts people to sleep at chamber of commerce breakfasts.
New to politics, Atlanta businessman Rand Knight offers a video that merely uses ad-libbed testimonials by supporters. It looks and sounds as if it was shot at a meet-the-candidate house party, but in cutting between the same three people, it gives the impression that he has only a handful of backers.
In his “media” section, Knight has no videos, only photographs. Hundreds and hundreds of photographs. From seemingly every public appearance the guy has made. There’s Rand visiting a construction site, Rand at a Houston County meet-and-greet, Rand posing with a donkey. He’s a young, good-looking fella, but photos with almost no context don’t tell us much about what kind of senator he’d make.
Josh Lanier, on the other hand, has few pictures of himself on his site. Most of his videos feature Chambliss speaking, with Stephen Colbert-style subtitles providing commentary – except they’re not funny. His introductory video is a four-minute slow-zoom of Lanier speaking directly into the camera. And speaking. And speaking. It has something to do with offering voters an alternative to politics as usual, but only a mother would watch the whole thing.
Jim Martin, the best-funded Democrat, has been able to buy airtime; his first ad has been on TV at least a week, but if you just can’t wait to see it, you can view it here. It’s a typically slick, professionally produced, 30-second campaign ad with a stentorian voice-over citing Martin’s service in Vietnam, his concern for women’s health care and his legislative efforts to protect homeowners from foreclosure. Well-known Atlanta community activist Hattie Dorsey delivers an endorsement for Martin. And, lastly, the smiling candidate says: “I’m Jim Martin and I approved this message because it’s time someone stood up for the middle class.” The ad is almost a textbook example of going after the liberal base in a primary election.
Seen any of the ads? Did any of them sway your vote? Tell us what you liked or didn’t like. We’d love to hear your thoughts.
