State of the Georgia Senate race
It’s been four weeks since Georgia’s senior senator, Saxby Chambliss, announced he would not run for re-election next year. That news triggered an avalanche of speculation about who would run for the seat, with the field expected to get very crowded very quickly. That hasn’t happened. No one has entered the race or even admitted to giving it serious consideration on the Democratic side, and the GOP field has been developing only slowly:
- Congressman Paul Broun, R-Athens, was the first to file his paperwork to run and has been running online ads for a couple of weeks now. Yesterday, he touted the endorsement of TheTeaParty.net, a Washington, D.C.-based outfit that bills itself as the nation’s largest tea-party group.
- Last week, Congressman Jack Kingston, R-Savannah, said he was running for Senate while speaking to the Forsyth County GOP. The very fact Kingston was speaking to a Republican group in a county a couple of hundred miles from his district tells you about all you need to know. A person familiar with Kingston’s thinking told me the congressman wants to do some more fund-raising before making his candidacy official. In December, Kingston’s campaign committee reported having just under $1 million in cash on hand. That’s much more than the $156,000 Broun reported, but it’s not as much as some of the other potential candidates.
- Congressman Phil Gingrey, R-Marietta, has been the subject of numerous reports this week that he will enter the race. The Washington Post has a story citing two unnamed ones saying Gingrey is telling people he is in the race. The Hill newspaper earlier cited GOP strategist Tom Perdue saying Gingrey was calling people to tell them he’s in. But Gingrey emailed me last night to say it is only true that he is “very interested in [the Senate race] and strongly considering it. However, at this point I am still undecided.” Based on my own conversations with people close to Gingrey, I will be surprised if he does not run.
- Congressman Tom Price, R-Roswell, whom many thought would be one of the first candidates out of the gate, has instead punted on making a decision until May. While he would probably be the front-runner if he were to enter the race, a person familiar with his thinking told me Price currently is only 50/50 as to whether he will run. One concern he apparently doesn’t have is adverse intervention by Gov. Nathan Deal. Price and governor have had chilly relations ever since Price retracted his endorsement of Deal in the 2010 gubernatorial election and instead backed Karen Handel. But I am told the governor intends to be completely neutral in the Senate race, not least because he will be focused on his own re-election next year. If Price does not run, Handel — who comes from the same North Fulton base — would be much more likely to enter the Senate race.
That’s where things stand now, at least as far as I’ve been able to track them down.
– By Kyle Wingfield
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207 comments Add your comment
Morality?
February 22nd, 2013
12:22 pm
All the Dems need is for King Roy Barnes to run for governor again – to completely become extinct in the state of Georgia.
breckenridge
February 22nd, 2013
12:22 pm
“And YOU think religious fundamentalists are extremists .”
Yes I am very bitter, the filthy disgusting garbage that is the religious right has destroyed the republican party. We Goldwater conservatives will never, ever buy into a party platform based on pure stupidity.
Born-again Christians comprise just over 10% of the population, and this fungus, this disease, has turned the GOP into a complete pile of crap. Not only that but these stupid fools actually believe one must be born-again in order to go to heaven! ROFLOL!
Blowing up the World Trade Center and shooting abortion doctors are just opposite side of the same coin.
A Liberal Mess
February 22nd, 2013
12:24 pm
I have yet to hear of a viable dem candidate. They may not want to put anyone up and save their money. Which is honestly what they should have done in the Governor’s race.
A Liberal Mess
February 22nd, 2013
12:27 pm
breckenridge:
So I’m guessing your one of those folks that think we grew out of a mud puddle form a single cell organism? Hmmm.
Just Saying..
February 22nd, 2013
12:30 pm
“Doctors should get into politics more because they are some of the most educated people in society.”
Senator Bill Frist has an educated opinion on Terri Schiavo’s medical condition.
If you could only get her to listen…
indigo
February 22nd, 2013
12:30 pm
A Liberal Mess – 12:27
And, how do YOU think we got here?
sailfish
February 22nd, 2013
12:32 pm
liberal mess
Actually, you yourself did when the egg got fertilized. You physically evolved, unless you still believe the stork dropped you off?
getalife
February 22nd, 2013
12:32 pm
Write in Max Clelland.
getalife
February 22nd, 2013
12:34 pm
Another slow news day with no drama Obama.
Tiberius - pulling the tail of the left AND right when needed
February 22nd, 2013
12:35 pm
breckinridge, I will agree that the religious right has taken the GOP down the wrong path in some ways (btw, I’m an Agnostic), however, the way to change that is to get involved at the local level and take the party back from them.
Tiberius - pulling the tail of the left AND right when needed
February 22nd, 2013
12:36 pm
Indigo, would you please just give it a REST !
Hillbilly D
February 22nd, 2013
12:37 pm
Way too early to be worrying about this.
Jefferson
February 22nd, 2013
12:37 pm
For those who don’t think libs have a choice, check the federal dollars that won’t get spent here as punishment for being red. Good choice.
A Liberal Mess
February 22nd, 2013
12:38 pm
indigo:
Humans were created by GOD in his image.
breckenridge
February 22nd, 2013
12:39 pm
Liberal Mess……..you may believe the story of creation as reported in the Bible. That is certainly your right. But nobody, not Jack Kingston or Paul Braun or Tony Perkins or James Dobson or David Barton, has the right to attempt to use taxpayer dollars to jam that belief down the throats of every American.
And remember the words of James Madison, the Father of the Constitution, Father of the Bill of Rights and the greatest political mind this country has every produced……..
“An alliance or coalition between Government and religion cannot be too carefully guarded against……Every new and successful example therefore of a PERFECT SEPARATION between ecclesiastical and civil matters is of importance……..religion and government will exist in greater purity, without (rather) than with the aid of government.” James Madison, 1822.
indigo
February 22nd, 2013
12:41 pm
liberal – 12:38
I would ask you to produce evidence but this subject gets Kyle all upset.
indigo
February 22nd, 2013
12:42 pm
Tiberius
I just keep forgetting that you’re Kyle’s official censor here.
Theres a good boy.
A Liberal Mess
February 22nd, 2013
12:43 pm
Great new ad exposing obama for his hypocrisy on sequestration.
http://youtu.be/GZMNfP_HCUA
Tiberius - pulling the tail of the left AND right when needed
February 22nd, 2013
12:47 pm
Indigo, the surest sign of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.
That is the very definition of you debating evolution vs. creationism.
YOU can’t prove how we got here; THEY can’t prove how we got here.
Are you really just that stupid to continue this nonsense to the exclusion of all other topics?
A Liberal Mess
February 22nd, 2013
12:50 pm
indigo:
The evidence is simple. You see it every time you look in the mirror. You see it when you open your eyes when you awake. GOD is everywhere and is everything. I’m just amazed that many on the left simply cannot see what is right there in front of them. Now move along if you can’t participate in an intellectual debate.
Cheesy Grits is gone but not forgotten
February 22nd, 2013
12:51 pm
When was the last time Christian fundamentalists flew 3 planes into buildings or killed an ambassador?
Oklahoma City was pretty close.
Crusades were pretty violent too.
A Liberal Mess
February 22nd, 2013
12:51 pm
breckenridge:
Just what laws have been passed by the folks you mentioned forcing “religion” down your throat?
Cheesy Grits is gone but not forgotten
February 22nd, 2013
12:51 pm
GOD is everywhere and is everything.
Shame he didn’t do anything about Newton.
If that is your God ill pass
Tiberius - pulling the tail of the left AND right when needed
February 22nd, 2013
12:53 pm
“Just what laws have been passed by the folks you mentioned forcing “religion” down your throat?”
DOMA comes to mind.
Just Saying..
February 22nd, 2013
12:54 pm
“…the way to change that is to get involved at the local level and take the party back from them.”
Well, yeaaahh.
But the two critical questions are:
-WILL that be done?
-Will it be done timely enough that the Party can recover?
Hillbilly D
February 22nd, 2013
12:54 pm
When was the last time Christian fundamentalists flew 3 planes into buildings or killed an ambassador?
Oklahoma City was pretty close.
Timothy McVeigh was a self-professed agnostic.
Just Saying..
February 22nd, 2013
12:56 pm
“GOD is everywhere and is everything.”
And for logic 102, God in Adam Lanza is explained.
To everyone’s satisfaction…
Cheesy Grits is gone but not forgotten
February 22nd, 2013
12:56 pm
Not the whole story
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timothy_McVeigh
McVeigh was a registered Republican when he lived in Buffalo, New York in the 1980s, and had a membership in the National Rifle Association while in the military,[84] but voted for Libertarian Party candidate, Harry Browne, in the 1996 presidential elections.[85] McVeigh was raised Roman Catholic.[86] During his childhood, he and his father attended Mass regularly.[87] McVeigh was confirmed at the Good Shepherd Church in Pendleton, New York, in 1985.[88] In a 1996 interview, McVeigh professed belief in “a God”, although he said he had “sort of lost touch with” Catholicism and “I never really picked it up, however I do maintain core beliefs.”[86] In the 2001 book American Terrorist, McVeigh stated that he did not believe in Hell and that science is his religion.[89][90] In June 2001, a day before the execution, McVeigh wrote a letter to the Buffalo News identifying as agnostic.[91] Before his execution, McVeigh took the Catholic sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick.[92]
Just Saying..
February 22nd, 2013
12:59 pm
“DOMA comes to mind.”
I’d mention those mandated vaginal probes…
Matz
February 22nd, 2013
12:59 pm
“GOD is everywhere and is everything.”
Then He really doesn’t need a bunch of crooked snake oil salesmen claiming to speak for Him, then does He? Or trying to run our government, or telling us how to live our personal lives, or extorting us for ten percent of our incomes while providing no infrastructure or military in return for our contributions. And He really doesn’t need a TAX EXEMPTION, either. Balance the budget: Tax the Churches! The churches are not God, and if you claim to speak for Him, neither are you. (Just sayin’.)
Partisay
February 22nd, 2013
1:00 pm
“Doctors should get into politics more because they are some of the most educated people in society”
So you want educated people? I thought conservatives didn’t like “elites”, you know, those people that are well educated.
Tiberius - pulling the tail of the left AND right when needed
February 22nd, 2013
1:01 pm
” I thought conservatives didn’t like “elites”, you know, those people that are well educated.”
No, that’s just your DNC talking points memo screaming in your head.
Hillbilly D
February 22nd, 2013
1:03 pm
McVeigh is agnostic. He doesn’t believe in God, but he won’t rule out the possibility. I asked him, “What if there is a heaven and hell?”
He said that once he crosses over the line from life to death, if there is something on the other side, he will — and this is using his military jargon — “adapt, improvise, and overcome.” Death to him is all part of the adventure.
http://www.cnn.com/COMMUNITY/transcripts/2001/04/04/michelherbeck/
sailfish
February 22nd, 2013
1:04 pm
Freedom of religion and freedom from religion, two great idea’s that make this country great. It’s gets warped a bit when one side of the coin tries to overpower the other. Mutual respect is a pretty good compromise except, to some compromise is unacceptable. What are you gonna do?
indigo
February 22nd, 2013
1:04 pm
Tiberius
Evolution DOES prove how we got here.
Unfortunately, to fully understand this, you need a good IQ and a great deal of learining in science.
You have neither.
In fact, trying to talk sense to you is like playing classical music to a tree frog.
indigo
February 22nd, 2013
1:06 pm
Liberal
Where was God when those little school children in Sandy Hook were screaming in pain and terror while being ripped apart by automatic gunfire?
Matz
February 22nd, 2013
1:07 pm
Indigo,
There’s no need to go insulting tree frogs, now. They have a terrific sense of rhythm and make beautiful harmonies.
Tiberius - pulling the tail of the left AND right when needed
February 22nd, 2013
1:09 pm
“Evolution DOES prove how we got here.”
No, it does not completely do so, Indigo, and you (should) know it.
If your brain would get past the religious stuff.
Evolution is a theory with certain holes in it. I prefer to believe it is likely that is how we got to this point, but the holes in it still bother me. They would you, too, if you were capable of thinking things through.
However, neither you nor the religious right are able to definitively prove your points, so once again I suggest you give it a rest.
Aesop's Fables and other Lib Economic Theories
February 22nd, 2013
1:12 pm
Out from under the protective wing of obozo lies and propaganda and then spppppppllllllaaaat-
Just 2 percent of Chicagoans surveyed said they strongly approve of the mayor’s job performance, with 12 percent somewhat approving and 5 percent leaning that way. At the opposite end, 13 percent strongly disapprove, 9 percent somewhat disapprove and 13 percent lean toward disapproval.
(Seems as though we’ve got an open topic blog already^^)
Aesop's Fables and other Lib Economic Theories
February 22nd, 2013
1:13 pm
Look at this, one day sending out emails, the next day openly participating. Will we be ratting ourselves out?
A Liberal Mess
February 22nd, 2013
1:21 pm
Cheesy Grits is gone but not forgotten:
Last I checked Timothy McVeigh wasn’t a Christian…
A Liberal Mess
February 22nd, 2013
1:26 pm
indigo:
He was right there. GOD don’t interfere with free will. Have you ever heard you reap what you sow. That’s what we as a nation, thanks to liberal policies have done. We have created a citizenry who doesn’t value human life. Those children are just fine right now.
Here is the tribute I created for them. I felt it was more appropriate than to sit around blaming GOD…
http://youtu.be/nx1Hqxunv5g
JDW
February 22nd, 2013
1:26 pm
@A Liberal Mess…”And right now the voters want Conservative Christians running our state ”
Thankfully the times they are a changing…’cause this ain’t working out so well….
Georgia:
Most Bankrupcies #1
Most Bank Failures #1
Highest Unemployment Rate #7
Highest % Uninsured #7
Lowest GDP Growth Rate #7
There is lots more but you get the idea
Tiberius - pulling the tail of the left AND right when needed
February 22nd, 2013
1:27 pm
If given the choices above, I’d take Karen Handel first, with Jack Kingston next.
The rest I have little use for.
Don't Tread
February 22nd, 2013
1:27 pm
I’ll support whoever has a record of actually upholding the Constitution instead of trashing it.
Most people in office now need to be impeached for violating the oath of office. Of course that won’t happen in the current two-party system.
JDW
February 22nd, 2013
1:28 pm
@Tiberius…”Yeah, so we can screw up this country even further ”
Nope just your outdated concept of the “Good Ole Days”. The rest us, we are moving ahead.
A Liberal Mess
February 22nd, 2013
1:30 pm
Tiberius – pulling the tail of the left AND right when needed
DOMA comes to mind.
DOMA is common sense. There’s many reasons to be for traditional marriage other than Christian beliefs. Why would our nation want to promote homosexuality as if its a good thing? Its a repulsive and dangerous lifestyle…
JDW
February 22nd, 2013
1:30 pm
“Humans were created by GOD in his image.”
O’ Dear…was Santa good to you this year? Getting all geared up for the Easter Bunny?
Retired Soldier
February 22nd, 2013
1:30 pm
Grits-
OK City was not done by a Christian fundamentalist and the Crusades? Please.
Hillbilly D
February 22nd, 2013
1:31 pm
If given the choices above, I’d take Karen Handel first, with Jack Kingston next.
I thought that said Jack Klugman. Damn, I wish I could still see like I used to.