Archive for the ‘Vernon Jones’ Category

U.S. Rep. Hank Johnson says he’s landed the support of former Atlanta mayor Shirley Franklin in a re-election bid that has drawn two challengers in the Democratic primary: DeKalb County Commissioner Connie Stokes, and former DeKalb CEO Vernon Jones.

Franklin made it official at a “Women for Hank” rally on Saturday. We wouldn’t normally include a campaign-generated photo of something that routine, but the event seems to have also marked the return of Jeff Hullinger, now with WXIA-TV, to Atlanta television.

The former sports specialist will find that, as in baseball, political reporting is simply a matter of calling balls and strikes. Except there is no strike zone, spitballs are permitted, and we umps sometimes can’t see a darned thing.

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Continue reading Shirley Franklin sides with Hank Johnson in re-elect bid »

Former Gov. Roy Barnes made a brazen foray into Attorney General Thurbert Baker’s home turf of DeKalb County last week.

While the event didn’t rise to the level of a Sharks vs. Jets rumble, the Democratic race for governor could hinge on the incursion and what follows.

Roy Barnes chats with DeKalb County Commissioner Jeff Rader (left) and DeKalb County District Attorney GwenKeyes Fleming on the steps of the old courthouse in Decatur. Bita Honarvar, bhonarvar@ajc.com

The former governor assembled a collection of nearly 30 current and former DeKalb leaders who back his return to the state Capitol. Most prominent among them was District Attorney Gwen Keyes Fleming.

The surface message was polite but unsubtle: The state’s top prosecutor does not have the support of his county’s top prosecutor — not in his run for governor.

The larger point was even blunter. Barnes intends to challenge Baker for the largest cache of Democratic votes in Georgia — the vast majority of …

Continue reading Roy Barnes and Thurbert Baker battle for DeKalb County »

The ever-courteous Hank Johnson has given those Democrats who want his DeKalb County seat in Congress a long weekend to think things over, plus this press release:

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama announced Thursday his endorsement of Congressman Hank Johnson, who represents Georgia’s Fourth Congressional District.

“Congressman Johnson has done an outstanding job,” said President Obama. “Together, we are fighting to renew our economy. Together, we passed historic health care reform. I am proud to stand with Hank and support his re-election.”

Qualifying begins on Monday.

Obama’s endorsement is, in fact, a license to print photos of Johnson and the president – real ones, no digital retouching necessary — in whatever fashion that pleases the congressman.

A total 322,301 people in DeKalb County cast ballots on Nov. 4, 2008 — 78 percent for Obama.

There is probably no need to note that Johnson was the first member of Congress from Georgia to endorse Obama in the 2008 …

Continue reading Barack Obama dips into 4th District race, hands Hank Johnson an endorsement »

Contrary to what you may be reading elsewhere, U.S. Rep. John Barrow (D-Savannah) is not thinking about becoming a Republican.

“I am not switching parties, nor have I ever given any indication that I would. There is no truth to this rumor,” Barrow said through his spokeswoman this morning.

U.S. Rep. John Barrow of Savannah has been taking heat for his vote on health care reform. AP

The table was set for speculation by Moveon.org’s purchase of TV time in Savannah, to punish Barrow for his vote against the Obama health care law. Moveon.org has been pumping up Reginia Thomas, who drew less than 24 percent in a 2008 primary contest against Barrow.

But the rumor itself was set off by this bit of timely disinformation from the Republican-oriented American Spectator:

The challenge from Thomas — now apparently backed by MoveOn.org, rumored to be prepared to spend a six-figure sum to defeat the incumbent in the July 20 Democratic primary — represents the left side of the political bind …

Continue reading Your morning jolt: No contemplation of switch to GOP, says John Barrow — so kill that rumor »

U.S. Rep. Hank Johnson has just released a poll that shows the two-term congressman miles ahead in a four-contender Democratic primary that includes former DeKalb County CEO Vernon Jones and county commissioners Connie Stokes and Lee May.

As always, take surveys like this with a grain of salt: Campaigns use them to attract contributions, and to undercut competitors.

But for those very reasons, the memo composed by Lake Research Partners will be required reading in DeKalb. See the entire thing here. But this is the gist:

On the full four-way ballot, Johnson has more support than all of his opponents combined, and he is already only 3 points away from the simple majority necessary to avoid a runoff. Johnson begins the primary season with 47% of the vote, followed by Vernon Jones with 19%, Connie Stokes with 12% and Lee May with 5%. Fifteen percent of voters remain undecided.

In head-to-head match-ups, Johnson easily defeats his two closest challengers. Against Vernon Jones, …

Continue reading A Hank Johnson poll: Survey shows him far ahead in a four-way Democratic primary »

It looks like last year’s feud within DeKalb County’s ranks will continue at the state Capitol this session. The following note from Eugene Walker, a member of the DeKalb County Board of Education, is making the rounds.

The ethics bill he refers to is H.B. 888, sponsored by state Rep. Kevin Levitas (D-Atlanta).

To wit:

More often than not, when there is a political ax to grind, the unforeseen collateral damages harm a far greater number of people than the originally intended target.

Take state Rep. Mike Jacobs, for example. Angry with former CEO Vernon Jones and myself, this Republican lawmaker sought to legislatively exact political revenge. He convinced the Georgia General Assembly to pass a law that only affected the Development Authority of DeKalb County.

The Development Authority of DeKalb County used to bring in hundreds of millions in new investment and thousands of jobs every year. No more. Thanks to Mike Jacobs’ law, the Development Authority of DeKalb County can …

Continue reading A brewing fight over ethics legislation, as applied to DeKalb County »

I signed up for e-mail from the Vernon Jones campaign for Congress this morning.

Prior to his decision to challenge two-term Democrat Hank Johnson, the former DeKalb CEO and former candidate for U.S. Senate apparently had been considering yet another statewide race – because this was the immediate response sent to the in-box:

Welcome to the Vernon Jones for Secretary of State Campaign. I am honored to have your support of my candidacy.

The glitch may have been fixed. The following was just received, in the last five minutes, from the same account:

As I told you previously, I would let you know my political plans for the future. Today at 2pm, I will be announcing my bid for the Fourth Congressional District Seat in the United States Congress.

Johnson is to announce his re-election bid on Saturday.

One wonders if we’re about to have a discussion about religion. One observant reader notes that on Jones’ new web site, the candidate says “Georgia needs…someone that is humble, a …

Continue reading Vernon Jones apparently eyed secretary of state race »