Archive for the ‘Trayvon Martin’ Category

The American Legislative Exchange Council, which produces much of the legislation addressed by Georgia and other states, announced today that it would abandon conservative social issues — a response to liberal pressure that has already cost the group several corporate sponsors.

The group had criticized for producing the “stand your ground” legislation adopted by both Georgia and Florida, and voter ID legislation that has been criticized as a means of excluding minority and elderly voters.

This from the press release, quoting David Frizzell, an Indiana state lawmaker and the current ALEC chairman:

“Today we are redoubling our efforts on the economic front, a priority that has been the hallmark of our organization for decades. Fostering the exchange of pro-growth, solutions-oriented ideas is precisely why ALEC exists.

“To that end, our legislative board last week unanimously agreed to further our work on policies that will help spur innovation and competitiveness across …

Continue reading ALEC caves on social conservative issues, will ‘redouble’ on economic front »

State Sens. Emanuel Jones, D-Decatur, and Lester Jackson, D-Savannah, before they headed out to the Trayvon Martin protest just getting underway at the state Capitol:

Jim Galloway/AJC

Small note: The hoodies worn by the senators were only a recent fashion conversion. Price tags were still attached.

- By Jim Galloway, Political Insider

For instant updates, follow me on Twitter, or connect with me on Facebook.

Continue reading Joining the ‘hoodie’ protest »

Over the weekend, nobody fumbled the Trayvon Martin issue like Newt Gingrich.

President Barack Obama was the first to dip in on Friday morning, with a declaration of empathy. “I can only imagine what these parents are going through, and when I think about this boy, I think about my own kids,” Obama said. “If I had a son, he’d look like Trayvon.”

Rick Santorum had this to say: “There’s a difference between ‘Stand Your Ground’ and doing what he did. And it’s a horrible case. It’s chilling to hear what happened, and of course the fact that law enforcement didn’t immediately go after and prosecute this case is another chilling example of horrible decisions made by people in this process.”

Likewise, Romney declared the killing of the 17-year-old, unarmed black youth a tragedy: “Our hearts go out to his family, his loved ones, his friends. This shouldn’t have happened.”

And then there was Newt, who actually may have been the first to weigh in — quite …

Continue reading Newt Gingrich fumbles discussion of Trayvon Martin »

A careful President Barack Obama this morning stepped into the Trayvon Martin case in Florida:

From the Associated Press:

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama spoke in unusually personal terms Friday about the shooting death of an unarmed black teenager in Florida, a case that has roiled civil rights activists and a suburban Orlando community. “If I had a son, he’d look like Trayvon,” Obama said, vowing to “get to the bottom of what happened.”

Obama expressed sympathy for the parents of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin, who was shot on Feb. 26 in Sanford, Fla., a suburb of Orlando, by a neighborhood watch volunteer who said he was acting in self-defense.

“I can only imagine what these parents are going through, and when I think about this boy, I think about my own kids,” Obama said, calling the case a “tragedy.”

The nation’s first black president aimed his message at Martin’s parents, saying, “If I had a son, he’d look like Trayvon. I think they are right to expect that all of us …

Continue reading Barack Obama: ‘If I had a son, he’d look like Trayvon’ »

Monday is shaping up to be a day of protest at and around the state Capitol.

Students from Morehouse College, Spelman College, Clark Atlanta University, and John Marshall Law School are putting together a Skittles-and-hoodies protest focused on the Florida killing of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin and Florida’s “stand your ground” law.

Demonstrators will be targeting several gun bills still under consideration by the Legislature, which they term “a continuation” of Georgia’s 2006 law that expanded the circumstances under which a shooter could claim self-defense.

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The annual President’s Day fund-raiser for the Georgia Republican party on Monday – usually a sleepy event – is likely to get more attention this time around. Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, who is facing a recall election after last year’s confrontation with public employee unions, will be the keynote speaker.

Union workers in Atlanta are already planning a welcome for Walker at the downtown Marriott …

Continue reading Your morning jolt: A Skittles-and-hoodies protest headed for the state Capitol »