SWGA Politics

SWGAPolitics.com Interview with Austin Scott, Part 2: Democratic Candidates and The Question

After Rep. Scott talked about why he was running for Governor and what he thought about his GOP Primary opponents, we discussed his potential Democratic Party challengers in the General Election and The Question on everyone’s minds – will he drop out of the Governor’s race to challenge Jim Marshall for the 8th Congressional District instead?

Regarding State Rep DuBose Porter (audio), Scott says “I think DuBose Porter is the best candidate that they have. I think that DuBose Porter as their nominee would create a unique challenge for the Republican Party if our candidate is from North GA. … I think that he Dubose Porter is intelligent, he is I think from the right part of the state for a candidate – either from the Democratic Party or the Republican Party – to mount a unique challenge in November. I guess the thing I would say about DuBose is that if DuBose got to be DeBose, he would probably be OK but in the end, he would be pushed very far to the left by his Party.”

On Attorney General Thurbert Baker (audio), Rep Scott says “Thurbert Baker. Wow. You’re talking about a man who has been certainly one of the most influential people in the state for the past 12 years as Attorney General – and I can’t name anything he’s done” and “I don’t want an Attorney General like Eliot Spitzer who thinks it is the Old West and who was certainly hypocritical in his judgment of people. At the same time, I think Thurbert Baker as the Attorney General has pretty much done nothing”.

Regarding General David Poythress (audio), Scott says “I think that younger voters are looking for somebody that’s got more vision, more energy, more passion than he does.” Scott notes that General Poythress has “certainly got a distinguished military history” but that “Whether or not he can govern, I’m reluctant to think that anybody who has not been dealing with the budget related issues, the Ways and Means changes, the Appropriations changes, and understands the – one of the things I’m sure we’ll get into the ‘intermingling’ if you will – or blackmail if you will – from the Federal government to the State government”. Rep Scott also wonders what types of policies General Poythress will put forth and “how realistic they will be”.

On the rumored entry to the gubernatorial race of former Governor Roy Barnes (audio), Rep Scott says “the Democratic Party has got to have three candidates for the top of their ticket. They’ve got to have a US Senate candidate, they’ve got to have a gubernatorial candidate, and they’ve got to have a Lt Governor candidate. In the end, I believe that Roy Barnes will be in one of those three positions”. Rep Scott said he had two main issues with Governor Barnes. The first one is known as revenue maximization, and Scott says “Barnes embarked on a policy when I was a younger man and didn’t understand the threat that it brought to us I actually supported it. But if you remember in Barnes’ administration, his budget policy was revenue maximization, which was you put money in the state budget in the areas that it drew down the most Federal reimbursement. Then you turned around and found a way to reallocate it around to the areas that you wanted it to go. So revenue maximization was one of the policies that he put in that in simple terms you look at and say “Well, why wouldn’t you want to draw down as much as you can?” Well, because that makes you subject to more Federal control. It was a policy that he put in back when I was a much younger and less experienced legislator and I think he very much believes that big government is good government.” The second issue Rep Scott has with former Governor Barnes is “nobody’s chief of staff should be referred to as a ‘hatchet man’. This is a free country, people have the right to petition their government, and to turn around and if anybody disagrees with you to send somebody that takes pride in being called the ‘hatchet man’ after them I think is absolutely ridiculous.” Finally, Scott says of Barnes “If he gets in, we’ll deal with him. I don’t think people have forgotten reapportionment and what he did to the rural parts of the state.”

On The Question, here’s the entire transcript (audio):

Jeff: Have you heard about all this, Facebook in particular, group to try to recruit you to go against Jim Marshall in the 2nd District?

Scott: I have.

Jeff: Is there any chance at all that you would ever consider that?

Scott: No, there’s not, and this is why: My personal life, the things that are most important to me… Public service is important to me, but my family is more important to me. You’re talking about, in order to be in Congress, you’re talking about spending five nights a week away from your wife and your child and it’s not a commitment that I’m comfortable with in my personal life. I’d love to challenge some of our Republicans on some issues, much less somebody like Jim Marshall. I’d like to ask the Republicans “tell me why you haven’t balanced the budget”, “when was the last time y’all even discussed a balanced budget amendment to the US Constitution”? We don’t hear that anymore. We heard that 12, 13, 14 years ago when the Republican Party appealed to people like me when Newt was up there. Tell me why I have to pay income tax on what I put into the Social Security system. The money has never come through the door of my house, yet I have to pay income tax on it. At least don’t make me pay income tax on something I never take home. Tell me again how increasing debt loads on my generation aren’t putting us further at risk of more control to foreign countries. I’d love to have the debate on the Federal policies and how far off base this country has gotten, but I’m not willing to spend five nights a week away from my family, and that’s what the job in Congress demands in your personal life. I’m honored that they think that much of me. At a different time in my life, it would’ve worked. But it doesn’t work for me in my personal life as a man. If you put your political career ahead of who you are as a person, then you’re part of the problem, not part of the solution. I appreciate the fact that they think that much of me. We can use the gubernatorial debate to start some debates at the Federal level that need to be had as well. We as Governor can challenge, we’re not going to sit back and play Kum-Ba-Yah with policies that we don’t agree with as Governor, regardless of which Party passes it.