Fresh Loaf

State Sen. David Shafer, R-BorderWars, says he won’t run for Congressman John Linder’s seat. Linder, who’s spent 18 years in Washington, D.C., announced on Saturday that he won’t seek re-election.

From a press release Shafer distributed this morning:

I will be doing everything in my power to help elect a strong, principled conservative to succeed John Linder in Congress.  But I have determined that my public service is best performed here in Georgia, on the state level, near the ones I love.

Notice that Shafer, who previously considered a run for lieutenant governor, didn’t specifically say “in the Senate.” Some have wondered if he’d jump back into the LG race, which currently includes Republican incumbent Casey Cagle and Democratic candidate Carol Porter.

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State Sen. David Shafer, R-Duluth, says he’s dropping out of the lieutenant governor race. He will instead seek re-election in the Senate.

From Shafer’s campaign:

Today I am fully suspending my campaign for Lieutenant Governor with the intention of seeking re-election to the State Senate.

I will always be grateful to those who have so generously supported my candidacy. I am especially proud of the endorsements from my colleagues in the Georgia General Assembly and our strong showing in the various Republican straw polls.

I was relieved to learn that the Lieutenant Governor’s surgery went well and that his doctors are optimistic about his ability to actively campaign for re-election. He has been a friend for many years, and I wish him a speedy return to full health.

I would not have entered the race had it not been an open seat, and there is no point in remaining in it as long as the Lieutenant Governor is well enough to be a candidate for re-election.

Public service is, by definition, about serving others, not the positions or titles that we want for ourselves.

Dr. Bill Sheals and Matt Reeves have agreed to serve as honorary co-chairs of my re-election campaign.

(Photo by Joeff Davis)

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Jim Galloway reports state Sen. David Shafer, R-Duluth, was contacted by constituents early Sunday morning about the slow-moving bill that would allow cities and counties to decide whether stores could sell alcohol on the Sabbath.

Shafer said a half-dozen slurred messages were left on his office voice mail at 1, 2 and 3 a.m. Sunday. “They were clearly on the cell phone in the beer aisle, drunk and unable to buy beer, and angry with me,” the senator said.

Shafer says the phone number to his Gold Dome office was listed on fliers placed in the booze aisle of a Wal-Mart, Galloway reports. The distinguished gentleman from Gwinnett County — who’s also a 2010 lieutenant governor candidate — chairs the committee that will discuss the legislation tomorrow.

The editorial employees of CL urge all Georgians to get involved with local politics and speak out on issues near to their hearts. Especially when those issues involve not allowing people to purchase alcohol in stores on Sundays. Sounds like Socialism to me!

Should you ever want to talk to Shafer about life, love, baseball or giving cities and counties more local control, you can always reach him at

(Courtesy ICanHasCheezburger)

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Just received from state Sen. David “Border War!” Shafer, R-Duluth:

With Casey Cagle’s decision to run for Governor, Georgians must elect a new Lieutenant Governor in 2010. I wanted to let you know that, with the support of my family and the encouragement of my colleagues in the General Assembly, I will seek this office.

I have filed paperwork creating a campaign committee so that we can prepare for the effort. Chuck Clay will serve as chairman of the committee, and Bartow Morgan will serve as treasurer. Chuck is a former Senate Republican Leader and past State Chairman of the Georgia Republican Party. Bartow is the CEO of The Brand Banking Company, Gwinnett County’s oldest and largest community bank.

Shafer says the campaign will formally launch after the legislative session ends. He’s holding a start-up fundraising event, however, on Thursday, Jan. 8, 2009, from 3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. on the 49th Floor of One Atlantic Center. If you want to help with his campaign, send him an e-mail.

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Reverend Joe Beasley twice calls Senator David Shafer a “race man” and accuses him of trying to get the City of Atlanta abolished when Maynard Jackson was elected Mayor (in the early 1970s when Shafer would have been in elemetary [sic] school). You can hear it here.

— Erick at Peach Pundit, on WABE-FM (90.1) series “Saving Grady” about Grady Hospital.

Note, Beasley doesn’t explicitly accuse Shafer of trying to abolish Atlanta. Instead, he seems to conflate Shafer with state legislators of the early 1970s.

Whether he’s actually accusing Shafer of being the Doogie Howser of legislative racism is beside the point. Beasley is clearly trying to short-circuit a serious discussion about Shafer’s legislation by calling him a racist.

Incidentally, Beasley also calls Maynard Jackson “the first mayor of the city of Atlanta.”

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Hey, it’s raining outside

— Mel at Blog For Democracy helpfully notes that it’s raining outside — as opposed to inside. Thanks, Sonny.

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I suppose some Democrats are going to say, “Clinton managed to balance the budget and create a surplus.” Clinton deserves some credit, but the Republican controlled Congress deserves just as much recognition for their part, like I said above…Congress holds the purse.

— Jason Pye accuses AJC columnist Jay Bookman of intellectual dishonesty for saying Democrats are more fiscally conservative than Republicans.

In the same post, Pye praises President Reagan for cutting federal spending, never mentioning that Democrats controlled the House of Representatives during Reagan’s two terms.

Either they “hold the purse” or they don’t.

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