SWGA Politics

Who does John Oxendine Give Money To?[ January 31, 2010 – 10:47 am]by Jeff Posted in » 2010 Campaigns

A few days ago, I was tipped off that John Oxendine had contributed to at least one Statewide candidate through his PAC, Better Georgia. (Both the PAC and Ox’s State Ethics Commission reports show the same address.)

This morning, I started looking into this – and was somewhat shocked by what I found.

Money is the lifeblood of politics, but there are different views on it. Some have said that if you give a person money, you’re going to vote for them the vast majority of the time. Others have said that it is more of an appearances thing, that sometimes you have to give to certain Party leaders to keep up appearances within the Party. Still others have said that money is sometimes used to build relationships with people you hope will be your friends down the road.

The list of who John Oxendine has contributed to through Better Georgia, for whatever reason, is fairly interesting…
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Decriminalizing Prostitution? In Georgia? Well… Sorta[ January 30, 2010 – 1:47 pm]by Jeff Posted in » Commentary

Senator Renee Unterman (R-Buford) has introduced a bill to decriminalize underage prostitution. Only the minor’s act is decriminalized however, as another code section is added to the
Sexual Offenses chapter of the Ga Criminal Code that basically says that even if the child you did this act with/to/against was too young to be prosecuted, you can still be prosecuted for whatever you did. Similar clauses are added in other areas where sexual exploitation is mentioned in OCGA.

I disagree with Senator Unterman’s ultimate intentions here, as she describes in this AJC article, but I do like what she is doing. Senator Unterman wants to take these minors out of a jail cell and put them in a treatment room – still under government supervision, and still being held against their will, and now with the added burden of being “re-educated” according to what the government wants these kids to do.

Of course, none of this “treatment” is mentioned in the actual language of the bill, that was simply what Unterman told the AJC. No, all the bill does is decriminalize prostitution for anyone under the age of 16. I would be in favor of this proposal even if I wasn’t in favor of repealing all laws that criminalize consensual sexual behavior (which I am), and here’s why:
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Press Release: MacGinnitie Launches HelpHeroesVote.com[ January 30, 2010 – 9:14 am]by Jeff Posted in » press release

Today Doug MacGinnitie, candidate for Secretary of State in 2010, launched the website HelpHeroesVote.com as part of his platform to improve military and overseas voting in Georgia. The website will help raise awareness about the voting issues that plague our military and provide a means in which Georgians can communicate their ideas, experiences and questions with the campaign.

MacGinnitie began his focus to increase voting opportunities for military personnel last October when he created his Military Voting Advisory Committee (MVAC). MVAC a panel comprised of military and civilian experts have been working to develop a plan to alleviate the problem of inadequate ballot access for deployed soldiers. Along with MacGinnitie, their goal has been to meet with local elected officials and military personnel to find a solution to the growing problem. HelpHeroesVote.com is the latest effort from MVAC to bring awareness and shed light on the voting problem that deters America’s heroes.

“I’ve launched this website because I believe it is critically important that we make it easy and efficient for our military personnel serving overseas to vote in our elections here in Georgia,” said MacGinnitie. “I have joined forces with the best and the brightest to ensure that we can make a difference to military and deployment voting.”

In 2008, research acquired by the Heritage Foundation suggested that 75-80% of military voters from across the United States were disenfranchised by their inability to request and return an absentee ballot within time limits as required by law. To make matters worse, for those military personnel who did cast an absentee ballot, many of those were rejected by local officials. Military absentee ballots are rejected at a much higher rate than other absentee ballots.

“Our heroes deserve a voice in Georgia elections, and it is the job of the Secretary of State to ensure that military personnel are able to cast a ballot,” stated MacGinnitie. “The men and women who fight to defend our freedoms at home and abroad undeniably deserve the right to vote and be heard; I am honored to be a part of the team that is bringing this issue to the forefront.”

For more information about Doug MacGinnitie and his plan to curb the problems associated with military and deployed voting, visit HelpHeroesVote.com or follow on Twitter at Twitter.com/HelpHeroesVote.

Absolutely Ridiculous[ January 29, 2010 – 8:00 am]by Tom Posted in » General

I’ve been in the middle of taking a break.  The pace I had been keeping up here on the blog had gotten to be a bit much, and needed a breather.  Unfortunately, the Dougherty County School Board couldn’t accomidate me by not doing something so supremely stupid that I’d have no choice but to jump in.

In case you didn’t know, they’ve narrowed their selection for a new School Superintendent down to their finalists…or should I say finalist? Read More …

Possible Signs of a New Birtherism?[ January 29, 2010 – 7:21 am]by Jeff Posted in » 2010 Campaigns

“Birtherism” is the belief in the conspiracy theory that President Barack Obama is not eligible to be President of the United States because was born somewhere other than in Hawaii. Depending on the level of nuttiness, I’ve heard everything from Kenya to Mars.

It is absolutely and utterly ridiculous – yet one candidate for Governor supports it: current US Congressman Nathan Deal. I agree with Jason on Deal in particular – he is a complete embarrassment to this State.

But it appears that there may be a “new birtherism” on the horizon.
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In Committee Today: Friday, January 29, 2010[ January 29, 2010 – 6:13 am]by Jeff Posted in » Legislation

House Judiciary Non-Civil Committee (link)

• HB 1015, Rep Rich Golick’s bill expanding anti-gang laws
• HB 1016, Rep Rich Golick’s bill to include businesses as potential identity theft victims

The House Appropriations Economic Development Subcommittee will hear from the PSC, the various Halls of Fame, the Civil War Commission, the Georgia Medical Center Authority, and various transportation authorities. (link) The MARTOC Subcommittee on Infrastructure and Maintenance will hear from MARTA staff regarding maintenance operations and Operations Capital Programs. (link)

C/P Georgia Legislative Watch

Free Speech, the Super Bowl, and Abortion[ January 28, 2010 – 8:51 pm]by Jeff Posted in » Editorial

By now, we’ve all heard about the upcoming Focus on the Family anti-abortion ad that is to be played during the Super Bowl featuring Tim Tebow. Apparently, some “pro-choice” groups are mad about it.

As both Tom and I have said on this site many times, an assault on one freedom is an assault on them all. You cannot respect the right to privacy without also respecting the right to free speech – and, let’s be honest here, freedom of religion as well.
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In Committee Today: Thursday, January 28, 2010[ January 28, 2010 – 7:08 am]by Jeff Posted in » Legislation

Senate Judiciary Committee (pdf)

• SB 235, Senator Chip Pearson’s Microchip Consent Act
• SR 795, Senator Seth Harp’s proposed Constitutional Amendment regarding healthcare

Senate Retirement Committee (pdf)

• HB 172, Rep Howard Maxwell’s bill regarding reexamination of people receiving disability benefits under the Employees’ Retirement System of Georgia
• SB 283, Senator Bill Heath’s bill regarding county revenue employees and the Employees’ Retirement System of Georgia
• HB 320, Rep Jimmy Pruett’s bill regarding membership in the Employee’s Retirement System of Georgia with respect to employees of the Georgia Environmental Facilities Authority

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On the Floor Today: Thursday, January 28, 2010[ January 28, 2010 – 5:46 am]by Jeff Posted in » Legislation

Rules Calendars have been posted for both chambers today – the first day this session one has been available.

On the Senate Floor (link):

• SB 306, Senator Bill Heath’s proposal to allow hands-free devices in all vehicles

On the House Floor (link):

• HR 1168, Speaker Ralston’s proposal to change the Rules of the House to officially eliminate the Hawks, among other changes

The Constitution and the State of the Union[ January 27, 2010 – 8:07 pm]by Jeff Posted in » National

About 75 minutes from the time I start writing this post, the 44th President of the United States, President Barack Hussein Obama, will give his second State of the Union address.

Honestly, I’m not paying attention to it at all. I might read the text of it tomorrow, as is my custom, but I will not be watching live, and any clips I happen to see will be from TVs that happen to be playing it.

But I did want to touch on one issue about the State of the Union in general.

You see, much like Christians have built up their own religion that has absolutely nothing to do with the text of the Bible, so too has a whole lot of pomp and circumstance built up around the State of the Union that there is no basis for.
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