Lookin At The Panhandle

Some interesting post-Florida analysis from the St. Pete Times Buzz.

Hillary Clinton thumped her Democratic rivals Florida. But looking at north Florida primary results the conclusion seems inescapable: Clinton is ominously weak in the Panhandle...Obama also handily won Escambia.

For those of you not from around those parts Escambia County is Pensacola. It's the home of Eglin Air Force Base, heavily veteran and heavily Republican. Now, the primary is closed and I am certainly not implying Republicans voted for Obama. But I find it very interesting.

The Griftdrift Endorsement

In 2004, I voted for a Democrat for President for the first time since 1988. After 16 years in the wilderness of the Libertarian Party, even though Georgia was a stone cold lock for George W. Bush, my conscience overrode my heart.

2008 is no different.

Although I believe Sen. Clinton and one Republican who I cannot name are capable of bringing this great nation back to the path of sanity, I believe there is only one candidate who can not only regenerate the respect Bush and company so cavalierly destroyed but has the possibility of literally changing the world.

Next Tuesday, I will vote for Sen. Barack Obama.

Senate Candidate Interviews

Rusty caught up with three of the Democratic Senate candidates at last night's Jefferson-Jackson dinner.

Take a listen here.

And by the way, I think that's the first time we've heard on record (other than his gonzo confrontation in Saxby Chambliss' office) Vernon Jones ACTUALLY stating he's running for Senate.

Another Grady Headscratcher

Last week, when a Senate resolution banning those with conflicts of interest from the Grady board was introduced, a lot of people wondered how the hell it didn't already exist.

Well, we've got a new one.

Apparently, Grady Hospital does not require or even provide incentives for its own employees to use the health system as a provider.

You might want to read that last sentence again.

However, reliable sources tell the Drift that legislation will come this week to address this problem. The more you peel this onion, the more headscratchers you find.

UPDATE: Just saw Sen. David Shafer on "Lawmakers" introducing the bill. Sen. Shafer promises a link to the text once it's available.

UPDATE II: You can read the text of the resolution here.

My Morning Wooten

Least shocking statement of the year.

Since I don’t expect to vote in the Democratic primary on Super Tuesday

Really.

Saturday Stupids

No snow so let's go.

Josh Lanier Is Running

So sayeth the Insider.

Where Is The Line?

I'm certainly not shy about criticism. In these parts there is a whole section dedicated to criticism (and to be fair sometimes promotion) of local media.

Andisheh Nouraee's Creative Loafing article on the tactics of Steve Gower and the Midtown Neighborhood Association's towards prostitutes in the midtown area created quite a firestorm of conversation across Atlanta blogs.

In particular, it has placed myself and my friends Amber Rhea and Rusty Tanton on opposite sides. Despite some of the heat which has been let loose I think something interesting can emerge.

What is bias? What is promotion of a certain point of view? Should writers be limited in using certain descriptors? Where is the line?

Instead of putting your thoughts here, come on over to Amber's place and join the discussion.

A Look South

We are days away from the Florida primaries and on the Republican side the soothsayers are mumbling their prognostications. The latest St. Pete Times poll has Guiliani in a distant 3rd behind McCain and Romney. From non-stop ads to bus tours from Tallahassee to Tarpon Springs, Mayor Rudy wants to make Florida his Alamo. But just like those hopelessly outnumbered Texicans, the bones portend doom for the candidate.

Unless...

Another thing to remember, Florida is the first — THE FIRST — state where only Republicans can vote for these candidates. Iowa, New Hampshire, Michigan, South Carolina, and even Nevada allowed independents to vote in the Republican primaries and caucuses. These independent voters have helped propel McCain to where he is now. McCain can’t count on that support.

So reports The State of Sunshine - a Tampa area blog which usually has a good feel for Florida politics. In fact the SOS boys are predicting a two way race between Guiliani and Romney.

The strange visions of political junkies? Maybe. But remember just how right the big boys and girls were about New Hampshire.

A Couple of Programming Notes

In addition to some little primary thing on February 5th, there are a couple of events the first week of the second month which might interest you, my gentle readers.

On February 7th, Shelby, myself and old media hipsters Southern Report's Tom Baxter and CNN.com's John Helton will be participating in a panel discussion for the Atlanta Press Club. The topic is How Electronic Media Is Affecting Political Campaigns. Should be a lively discussion.

Details:

When: Thursday, February 7 6:30- networking7 - 8:30PM
Where: The Commerce Club 34 Broad St.Atlanta, GA 30303

The very next day you can attend one of the premier social media events in the southeast.

SoCon '08

"Network and learn — and maybe even partner — with independent content producers, new media pros, academics and people from across the spectrum of marketing, public relations, legal, human resources and executive ranks."

It's gonna be a helluva week. See you there!

Grady Bills

I was going to write something on the Grady bills today but in a strange twist of fate, I'm very ill. So, instead I will direct you to the blog of the primary sponsor Sen. David Shafer (R-Duluth) for details.

Just a few comments from me.

Senate Resolution 722 creates a Grady Oversight Committee. First proposed in 1999 by then Senator David Scott, legislative oversight has been persistently opposed by those who run Grady.

The language of this resolution is drawn directly from MARTOC, the legislative oversight committee for MARTA. The entities are very analagous. Both MARTA and Grady are huge metropolitan institutions which receive no funding from the state - although that may change for Grady.

MARTOC still generates discomfort among some since MARTA remains the only major public transportation system in the country without any state funding. However, even critics have to acknowledge having the white hot light of higher scrutiny on the struggling system resulted in improvement including a revenue surplus in 2006.

The second resolution involves conflicts of interest.

Senate Bill 353 the Public Hospital Integrity Act, prevents those with a financial tie to either Grady or a major vendor of Grady from serving in a governing capacity for the hospital. This bill will help make sure that Grady’s board gives its loyalty to Grady as an institution and not to those who do business with Grady. Senator David Adelman, Vicent Fort and Kasim Reed are among the Democrats who cosponsored the bill.

The most frequent reaction to this bill is "it isn't already there?" No, unbelievably it isn't. But also note the co-sponsors include vociferous "privatization" critic Sen. Vincent Fort. The coalition is beginning to come together.

Finally, this week Sen. Shafer will sponsor resolutions regarding the sustainability of Grady. Although appropriations originate in the House, no doubt these will in some way address the $55 million Governor Perdue wants dedicated to a state-wide trauma network.

Sen. Shafer communicates to the Drift that this legislation should alleviate the concerns of those suspicious of oversight without funding as well as create a plan for Grady to become self-sustaining.

Georgia Politics Podcast Episode 15

New Georgia Politics Podcast is up.

Listen here.

Joe, Catherine, JosephG and me, grift to the d, poke fun at candidate Dale Cardwell, how Georgia is back in play for the Presidential primaries and the craziness known as Sembler.

Georgia Gang Howler Of The Week

Who else? Phil Kent in his winners and losers segment.

I'm sorry. I know the holiday is right on us but the Martin Luther King Center running the fountain...that's a real loser. They're supposed to be stopping using the water.

Jeff Dickerson then pointed out they are recycling the same water. Kent's response? "I don't care."

Always the master of timing and taste is our Phil.

Saturday Stupids

Let it snow, let it snow.

My Morning Wooten

I've been lazy the last few days. I'll be honest, I'm still not feeling the mojo. But there is one item this morning which I can't let pass.

State Rep. Mike Jacobs (R-Atlanta) would allow communities to hold referendums and become limited-authority townships. They wouldn’t have power to condemn property, but could control construction, land use and liquor and contract for services. It’s a concept that should have been embraced long ago. Communities need to be able to control their own space. And residents should be able to get a real person — real and responsive — on the telephone. Atlanta is too big for individuals to matter.

Damn right it should have been embraced a long time ago. Like maybe last year when Democrat David Adelman's township bill was squashed by a Republican controlled Senate.

Funny how now that it is pushed by newly minted Republican Mike Jacobs it's the idea of the century.

Do you really have to wonder why occasionally I just get sick and tired of this crap?

CORRECTION: A senate insider emailed to remind me that Adelman's bill did pass the Senate 41-10 with most of the nays being Democrats. The bill actually died in the house. Also Adelman was part of Lt. Gov. Cagle's reach across the aisle plan and even though he is in the minority was given a committee chair.

God help Hazinski's probably going to use this in a future lecture.

Selah.

Songs In My Head

Georgia Gang Howler Of The Week

Yeah I'm a little late this week. I wasn't even going to bother but there were two things which could not pass.

On the recent Supreme Court hearing on Indiana's voter id law, Phil Kent (of course it's Phil Kent) claimed that particular law was virtually identical to Georgia's law. Jeff Dickerson correctly noted Georgia's law was amended to provide for a free ID and Indiana did not have that provision. Kent popped back the Indiana AG argued anyone could just walk down the street and get one.

Even for a dweeb like me this is not hard. The only hard fast mention of voting in the U.S. Constitution is the 24th Amendment which prevents poll taxes. Simply put, you cannot charge a person to vote. In Georgia, the main id is the driver's license which the state charges a fee - arguably creating a fee to vote. Georgia quickly avoided a constitutional fight by providing free ids to those who lacked. As far as I know Indiana has not.

It may seem a minor point but it is a critical one. If the plaintiffs can convince the court the only way certain voters can exercise their right is to pay a fee the law is patently unconstitutional. So they are not "virtually the same".

Correct me if I'm wrong but isn't Phil Kent a lawyer?

Finally, Dick Williams couldn't resist taking a stab at Hillary Clinton by rolling out that old canard about Sen. Clintion claiming to be named after recently deceased moutaineer Sir Edmund Hillary. Too bad what Dick claimed is not exactly true.

You know, that little fairy tale has almost reached the level of "Al Gore invented the internet" as a tactic for certain pundits to give whatever constituency they have left the loin shivers.

Lets Get It Started

Okay, they are back in town and I'm back in town. Time to get down to bidness.

On Wilson's show yesterday I mentioned a place where you can watch the General Assembly online but couldn't remember the address. Well it's on GPB's website. You can watch today's State of the State at 2:00pm at http://www.gpb.org/stateofthestate

Also you may notice over on the right Georgia Legislative Watch has been moved back to the top of the Georgia Voices. The boys at the GLW are the best to keep up with the large, the small and the everything in between.

Let's start porkin!

What Is Goin' On: Griftdrift On Primaries and Porkers

Even though I was hungover from bad run of cards, I woke up early yesterday morning to chat with Wilson about the crazy presidential primaries and the potential crazy upcoming legislature.

Take a listen here.

...By The Riverside

Although I've railed against his hippie socialist ass on many occasions, I remember the day I first emailed John Sugg. This was back in those primordial days when even email was new and fresh. Yes, children it hasn't always been around.

It went something like this.

"Good stuff".

I was surprised the response came in less than five minutes. The reply?

"Thanks"

Oh, screw getting maudlin. He's only half-ass retiring.