Fresh Loaf

In yet another sign that Democrats aren’t just bluffing about their prospects for an upset of Republican Sen. Saxby Chambliss, former President Bill Clinton will come to Atlanta tomorrow to attend a fundraising reception tomorrow for fellow Dem Jim Martin, Martin’s campaign has announced.

It surprised me to see that the event — 7:15 p.m.-9:15 p.m. at Trois in the 1180 Peachtree building — isn’t that pricey: just $100. Maybe, I’m wrong but I thought fundraisers with Clinton would usually run more than that. Then again, it’s a “reception, not a dinner, and getting your picture taken with the former president will still set you back $1,000.

Recent polls, including this one, have place the Chambliss-Martin contest in the “tossup” category.

Info on the event is here. More info on Senate contest is here. And for more on the 2008 election, see our Voter’s Guide.

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The polling agency says its findings echo those of last month’s poll.

From Rasmussen:

The latest Rasmussen Reports telephone survey in the Peach State finds the incumbent ahead of his challenger 50% to 43% (see crosstabs). That’s similar to results from a month ago.

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Typically, incumbents who poll below the 50% level of support are considered potentially vulnerable and support for Chambliss is not as solid as he might like. However, he is far from being the most vulnerable GOP senator in this year’s round of elections. Many Republican Senate seats are potentially in play for Democrats including seats in Alaska, New Hampshire, Oregon, New Mexico, Colorado, Mississippi, Minnesota, and Virginia.

Chambliss picks up votes from 91% of Republicans and Martin is backed by 91% of Democrats. Among unaffiliated voters, Chambliss has a modest advantage once again this month.

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Rasmussen Markets data suggests that Chambliss has a 90.3 % chance of winning re-election in November.

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A top campaign aide insisted that Republican U.S. Sen. Saxby Chambliss wants to include Libertarian Allen Buckley in debates. But Buckley complained last week that Chambliss doesn’t want to debate.

“We didn’t wait for the Democrat to say that the Libertarian should not be involved in the debate, because that’s generally what the Democrat does. They don’t want the Libertarian involved in the debate. We said the Libertarian would be involved in all the debates. If he doesn’t want to show up that’s his business.”

— Tom Perdue, Chambliss’ campaign consultant, in a Sept. 4 interview with CL

“Saxby is running from his record. His goal is clear: to minimize debates and blast the airwaves from now until the election with commercials stating that he ‘represents our conservative values.’ He doesn’t represent my values. Let’s debate as much as possible.”

— Buckley in a Sept. 10 press release

“We have no comment.”

— Kate Hansen, a campaign spokeswoman for Democratic candidate Jim Martin

(Photo by Joeff Davis)

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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?

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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…)

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