Fresh Loaf

Six years ago, Saxby Chambliss authorized the most vilified political campaign ad of the past decade, one that questioned the courage of then-Sen Max Cleland — a triple-amputee Vietnam War veteran — by showing pictures of Osama bin Laden and Saddam Hussein.

Well, prepare for deja vu. Last week, a new attack ad debuted on local TV channels, this one aimed at Chambliss’ runoff opponent, Jim Martin, and incoming president Barack Obama. This time, instead of using the magic of video to link the Democrats to bin Laden, they’ve chosen Mohamed Atta, leader of the 9/11 hijackings, to serve as the bogeyman.

On the left is Atta’s familiar FBI mug shot, taken from his Florida driver’s license photo:

… and on the right is a screenshot from about 10 seconds into the new anti-Martin ad; Atta’s mug shot is top center:

(more…)

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Jim Martin, the former state lawmaker itching to unseat U.S. Sen. Saxby Chambliss, on Nov. 4, released his newest campaign commercial. It features former Sen. Max Cleland, the war veteran Chambliss defeated in 2002 after a bitter campaign.

In it, Cleland says Martin — himself a former U.S. Army intelligence officer — is the kind of leader the country needs. (That’s also a bit of a jab at Chambliss, who dodged service in Vietnam because of a bum knee.)

Watch it below.

(Hat tip to Jim Galloway at the AJC)

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 — It’s convention time: balloons, big speeches, inspiring video bios. Bernita is in Denver and blogging for Blog For Democracy. The first thing she does is piss off the Secret Service. Uh-oh.

— Amy Morton from Georgia Women Vote is also in Denver. She has steered clear of aggravating the Secret Service, and managed to have breakfast with Heath Shuler, the former college quarterback turned Congressman.

— Everyone knows John McCain was a prisoner of war, partly because he keeps reminding us. At Politits, the question is asked: Is McCain POWing it into the ground? Perhaps Saxby Chambliss should run against McCain since he could put McCain’s war record into perspective, just like he did with Max Cleland.

— A federal judge ruled in favor of Jim Powell last week, saying Secretary of State Karen Handel wrongfully tried to remove him from the ballot in the Public Service Commission race. But DriftGrift says Democrats shouldn’t gloat just yet.

— Over at Chicken Fat, Edwin has a bigger fish to fry: world peace.

— And finally, Mother Time pays a visit to the Wren’s Nest to claim the Ouija Board she left there decades ago.

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— A somewhat sobering post at Atlanta Water Shortage. They chart out Lake Lanier’s levels over the last three years. Right now, the lake is down to 1,055 feet above sea level. That’s nearly 10 inches feet lower than this time last year, and equal to the level last November.

— At The Daily Whim, Reid Stott says House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s idea to dip into our Strategical Oil Reserve to lower gas prices is foolish and amounts to little more than pandering.

— At the Daily Kos, there’s a tantalizing call for Obama to name Max Cleland as his vice-presidential running mate.

— Duane Moody’s birthday is coming up and to pre-celebrate, he shares five songs he’s certain we’ll all love.

— It’s going to be a long August because Live Apartment Fire is going on a break, although Doug Richards assures his loyal readers that he’s pre-packaged some timeless posts that will go up throughout the month. Today, there’s rules for a local TV shot game that could have you toasted in minutes. And if you’re a Tom Waits fan, you’ve got to see the press conference clip Richards has posted.

— And speaking of amazing video, A.man.I at My Urban Report went down to Orlando for the World Yo-Yo Contest (who knew?). A true how’d-they-do-THAT? pleasure to watch.

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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)

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A security consultant and former policy adviser to Sen. John McCain is investigating allegations of voting-machine tampering in Georgia’s 2002 elections, according to Raw Story.

Stephen Spoonamore says he was given a computer patch from a whistleblower who worked in former Secretary of State Cathy Cox’s office. The whistleblower alleges that prior to the November 2002 elections, the CEO of Diebold personally installed the patch on his company’s voting machines in DeKalb and Fulton counties.

Incumbent Democratic Sen. Max Cleland was beaten by Republican Saxby Chambliss in the 2002 race, and Democratic Gov. Roy Barnes was upset by Republican Sonny Perdue.

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