Taylor: Work to Welfare?

When Randall Savage put the Cox ad to the "Truth Test" on Monday, one fact was not mentioned on television, but is included in the full version of the story on the station's website. Savage says that fifty workers were replaced with prison labor, and of those fifty, thirty-five were previously on welfare and following being fired, ten returned to welfare. So, let me get this right, the state (via the prison system) provided free labor, but you and I (the taxpayers) picked up the tab for the ten fired employees who returned to the welfare rolls. It must've been a good deal for somebody, but not for Georgia taxpayers.

Taylor has begun running yet another ad about Cox's effort to educate Georgians about the dangers of investment fraud. And last week, Dent, Taylor's spokesman, jumped up and down about the State Board of Elections voting to spend some money to educate voters. It appears that Taylor does not want Cathy Cox to do her job herself. Do you think that maybe he could work out some of that free prison labor for her?

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Where is Denise Majette?

Today the Macon Telegraph endorsed Darryl Hicks, Carlotta Harrell, Karen Handel, Kathy Cox and Gary Black. The paper said that Denise Majette failed to schedule an interview. What is Denise Majette thinking? Is she in this race? She blew off a candidate interview with a newspaper that has the third largest circulation in the state. I do not see her at any events here. Is she fundraising? Is she coming to metro events? Does she think that she's going to win this race based on her name recognition alone?

I was initially relieved when Majette threw her hat into the ring in this race. I would have preferred a candidate who had experience running a school system, but I thought that Majette could probably learn what she needed to know.

Georgia's schools are on life support, sucking up the bottom of the barrel by nearly every measure that can be applied, and one of the two Democratic candidates for state school superintendent is MIA. Frankly, neither Harrell nor Majette has ever run a school system much less a whole state's school system. I don't know that I can support either of these candidates and am beginning to think that our schools are too important for the selection of superintendent to be a popularity contest. Maybe this should be an appointed position.

Here's the Telegraph piece:

http://www.macon.com/mld/macon/news/opinion/14960532.htm

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Thanks "Demblogs": Video and More on Taylor

Thanks very much to Demblogs who found and posted the link to the Savage Truth Test of the Cox ad. The full text and the video can be found here:

You can find the text of the Savage story and the video at this link:


http://www.13wmaz.com/news/news_article.aspx?storyid=27603&provider=top


The text contains more info than was broadcast, including the "rest of the story" about what happened to the fired workers who were replaced by prison labor. Much more on this tomorrow.

Here's a quiz for tonight. Lee Parks has been referred to in the press and the lawyer for the Taylor Campaign. In addition to suing Cox and Peter Jackson, what other kinds of litigation is Parks known for?

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Did the Cox Ad Pass Reporter's Truth Test?

Tonight on 13 WMAZ, Pulitzer Prize winning reporter Randall Savage applied the "Truth Test" to Cathy Cox's "Prison Labor" ad and found that it PASSED. On June 23rd, Savage applied the same test to the Taylor "Lottery Vote" ad, and found that it FAILED. (You can find more information about why the Taylor ad failed here.)

Randall Savage is a well-respected reporter known for his objectivity and his willingness to hold everybody accountable. He takes the ads line by line and evaluates whether the statements are true . In the four years he has been doing this "Truth Test" series on political ads, he said that only three or four have passed. (I will post video of the newscast as soon as I have it.)

In this instance, he said that the Taylor Campaign provided data that actually helped prove Cox's point. So, now, a completely objective source has weighed in and found Taylor's claims lacking and that Cox passes "the truth test." What will be the Taylor Campaign's next excuse? That Savage is biased? Spare me. How can we believe anything they say?

And, by the way, Savage will be one of the panelists for the Albany debate. That should prove interesting!

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"Women Know There Needs to Be a Change"

In the Governor's race, Georgia's women have already voted with their pocketbooks. According to today's AJC, about 40% of the individual contributions made to Cathy Cox have come from women, and that is a very big deal. Nationally, only about 28% of individual political contributions come from women. And only about 15% of Taylor's individual contributions have come from women, yet women will cast 55-60% of the votes in the primary. Clearly, as Mary Long, Chair of Georgia's WIN List, said in today's article, "Women know there needs to be a change." And that bodes very well for Cox's chances on Election Day.

Why does the money matter? Political giving, and not so coincidentally, political office, has long been a game dominated by the Big Guys. Most women have never written a check to a political candidate, and when they write that first $20 check, they make a personal commitment to a candidate. Often, they don't just vote: they invest.

The gender disparity in giving also says something about the difference in Cox and Taylor. The money behind her candidacy is not the "typical" political money in Georgia. Instead, she has created a coalition that includes seasoned political givers, first-timers and women who have contributed at higher levels than ever before. Many of her contributions have been less than $100, reflecting broad grassroots support. Let's not forget that many, including Taylor doubted that she could raise the money needed to win, but innovation, creativity and making a path where none existed are marks of a great leader, typical of Cathy Cox and consistent with her message that she will change the way government works so that it benefits everyone, not just the fat cats.

On the other hand, Taylor's financial disclosures to date reflect a more typical pattern of high dollar, male givers. There's nothing particularly wrong with that if you're fine with business as usual in Georgia politics.

The entire article is a worthwhile read, and can be found here. This is the portion I have referenced:

Selling herself as an agent of change has been made easier because she looks different from her opponents. The portly Taylor and the balding Perdue look the part of good ol' boys a lot more than the rail-thin Cox. She is attracting a lot of female voters. A recent review of campaign disclosure reports since the beginning of 2005 show about 40 percent of Cox's individual contributions have come from women, as opposed to about 20 percent for Perdue and 15 percent for Taylor. Mary Long, a community volunteer from Atlanta who chairs a women's political action committee that has endorsed Cox, said more than 55 percent of the Democratic primary vote will come from women. "Women know there needs to be a change," Long said.

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Throwing Rocks from the Front Porch

Someone told me that Cathy's newest ad is a far cry from the rocking chair on the front porch- more like throwing rocks from the front porch. In the country, I guess that's what you do when there's a big ol' mean dog in the yard. I wish this race were not a "street fight", but it is. Many people predicted that if the race got nasty, it would favor Taylor because they thought he was better at trench warfare. I don't think that prediction has proven true. Cox turning the "Big Guy" label from a positive to a negative has been far more effective than any response Taylor has had so far. Cox won this round, and it is showing in both the polls and the momentum in the race. Last week, Taylor tried to morph "Big Guy" into "Tough Guy" in the AJC piece. That got no traction, leaving Taylor in the quicksand. If he doesn't find a foothold soon, the race belongs to Cox. Game, set, match.

The very best example I have ever seen of a candidate taking an opponent's positive and turning it to a negative actually happened here in Middle Georgia. A candidate's whose last name was Lovett ran an ad that ended with "You've Gotta Love It." Big mistake. His opponent countered with "Love It? I Don't Even Like it!" You can guess the end of that story. Cathy making Big Guy a negative and offering the "Fat Cat" alternative may be just as effective.

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Barnes Dismisses Voter ID Lawsuit

The Associated Press is reporting that former Governor Roy Barnes has dismissed his lawsuit challenging Georgia's Voter ID law. The suit was dismissed because the plaintiff has voted by absentee ballot, (whoops) a method that requires no id. Barnes hopes to re-file with an appropriate plaintiff.

Doesn't it just take the cake that as the law now stands, I can walk into my local Board of Election, request and complete an application for an absentee ballot, be handed that ballot or the card for the machine, and vote on the spot- all with no reason necessary and no id of any form? Yet, the week before the election, I can walk into that same Board of Election and be required to present a narrowly defined form of id before voting. The rationale applied to requiring id at the polls is completely ignored when it comes to the absentee voting process. Why? Because Republicans drafted the law, and absentee voting is an effective part of their GOTV strategy.

I am not very charitable in my assessment of why the law was drafted in this way. The voters most impacted tend to be Democrats. Plus, Republicans make far better use of the absentee voting and early voting options than do Democrats. Last cycle in Bibb County two or three races literally turned on those absentee votes. The Democrat who had a slight lead, lost the election after the absentee ballots were counted. The new law is a win-win: for the current Republican majority only.

Most people who lack state issued id's are people who live on the margins of life- the poor, the disabled, the elderly and minorities. When a person lives on the margin, they tend to think about day to day survival, not about voting in an election two or three weeks away. It is a luxury of wealth and place in society to have the capacity to plan to vote and the ability to independently get to the Board of Elections to do so. Many Georgians don't have that luxury. Republicans purposely ignored the elephant in the room when they failed to pass a bill that addressed the potential for fraud in absentee ballots. But why not? They'd be crazy to mess with a winning election strategy just to insure access to the most basic of our liberties. Perhaps we should all celebrate the 4th by taking someone to vote.

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Election By Litigation?

According to an Associated Press article that appeared today in the online version of the Macon Telegraph, a supporter of Taylor has sued Peter Jackson for defamation. The Cox campaign's response? "Another day, another frivolous lawsuit." I am not personally making any judgment about the merits of the man's case. I do note that the Taylor Campaign has itself already sued Cox over the open records request. And, according to the article, the supporter is represented by the Taylor Campaign lawyer, Lee Parks. Is that a coincidence?

I am not attracted to litigious campaigns. Some candidates consider running into the courtroom an acceptable campaign tactic. I think for most voters, it's a turn-off. We see what happens when courts decide elections. His name is "W." And he is still the President.

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Negative Ads and Whisper Campaigns

I heard from a reliable source (neither campaign) that Cox and Taylor both have new ads, slated to air soon, and both ads are bare-knuckle negative. Cox told a group yesterday that this was going to be a three week street fight, and that she grew up in the country and knew who to fight. No doubt. Her prison labor ad is one of the hardest hitting political ads I have seen. Taylor's gotten in his share of licks as well.

Most people will say, me included, that they don't like negative ads. These ads are the sort of thing that make folks cynical about the political process. The kind of thing that makes people believe that all politicians must be corrupt. But, for the candidate, there's is Catch 22, and a stark truth. While a negative ad can blow up in your face and tank a race, for the most part, these ads are effective. Look at the way the polls tightened in the last two weeks. Does anyone really think that the ads had nothing to do with that? So, when it comes to these ads, I don't know whether to fault the candidates or the public. We seem to crave them and respond to the content. I guess it goes to the idea that it's easier to remember something bad about someone than something good. Too bad.

One of the other things that makes negative ads compelling is the frequent use of "whisper campaigns." You know, starting the rumor that you would never be able to broadcast on television- because the rumors are full of half-truths and outright lies. They don't pass the not-so-tough broadcast standards. Rumors about affairs. Rumors about someone's sexuality. Rumors that someone is a racist. It's tough to respond to a whisper campaign because it is covert, and sometimes candidates feel that the negative ad is their only recourse.

That said, I hate these ads, all of them. I'm just not sure who to fault- the electorate or the candidates.

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Bad News for Georgia's Children

In Georgia, 21% of our children live in poverty, and more than one-third of children live in families where neither parent has a full-time, year-round job. This startling data was released today by the Annie E. Casey Foundation as preliminary numbers for the 2006 KIDS COUNT Data Book, a state-by-state study on child and family well-being. Overall, Georgia has fallen from 39th to 44th nationally. While trend shows improvement, many communities, particularly those in South Georgia lag behind the state averages. The full report will be available soon. Past data can be viewed at Georgia Family Connection Partnership. Click on "Kids Count."

Georgia's drop in the national rankings is due in part to escalating rates of child poverty (21% of Georgia children live in poverty), increasing numbers of low birthweight infants (9%/41st in the nation)and increasing numbers of children who live in households where neither parent has a full-time, year-round job (35% of all children). Our infant mortality rate, stagnant at 8.5 per 1,000 births places Georgia at 43rd in the nation and contributed to the drop in over all ranking.

There are a few bright spots, if you can call them that. On six indicators: teen birth rate, percentage of high school drop outs, percentage of teens who neither attend school or work, child death rate and teen death rate, Georgia showed improvement from 2005. Unfortunately, there was a lot of room for improvement. For instance, we continue to rank 41st in the nation on number of teen births, 48th in the nation for high school drop outs, 42nd in the nation for teens not attending school and not working.

None of this is good news for Georgia's families, and I expect that a fair amount of political hay will be made from it as we move toward November. My personal involvement in politics stems from my involvement in the community, not the other way around. Much of my professional practice and community service is focused on child well-being, and my political choices are directly impacted by how what politicians do effects families. Politically, I would love to just lay this data at the feet of Perdue and use it as a wedge to get a Democrat elected in November, but the reality is much more complicated, and the problem and the charge to find solutions belongs to all of us. We are facing a crisis for our families that defies political labels and calls us all to the table to seek solutions. What can you do?

1) In every Georgia County, there is a Family Connection Partnership. These groups bring together agencies and individuals to gather data, define problems and work together toward measurable positive outcomes. These programs are effective because the partnership is broad, including public, private, the faith community and individuals. And the results are measurable. For instance, in Georgia counties where the FCP targeted teen pregnancy, the rates declined as compared to counties that did not. Find your collaborative and get involved.

2) Educate yourself about the problems and what works to address them. There is a wealth of information on the state Family Connections website.

3) During session, look critically at legislation and ask whether a given bill will make these problems better or worse, and advocate for families, not for party loyalty.

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Cast Your Vote For Governor Today

Blog for Democracy has a straw poll up on the Governor's race, the Lt. Governor's race and the Secretary of State's race. You can vote by clicking here. This poll was originally posted yesterday, but those results did not appear valid. BFG also posts the results of the invalid poll. It's interesting.

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Taylor Supports "The 65% Deception"

My mouth dropped open this morning when I read a Morris News Service article by Walter C. Jones comparing the education platforms of Cox and Taylor. Among other things, the article stated that Mark Taylor supports Governor Perdue's 65% Deception. Legislation that every single education group in Georgia opposed. Legislation that came straight out of a right wing Washington, D.C. think-tank. Legislation that guts local control of education dollars. Legislation that The Macon Telegraph called "asinine" and an effort to "abandon public education." The AJC called it the equivalent of "Non-Dairy Whipped Topping."

I am truly shocked and have to ask whether polling is driving his position on this issue. For whatever flaws I might find, Mark Taylor, like Cathy Cox, has always been a friend to education. One of the reasons that I plan to support Taylor should he win the primary is that he has been faithful in that cause, and public education is near and dear to my heart. So, I cannot square his support of the horrible piece of legislation with his history of support of public schools. The only sense I can make of it is that while the legislation is awful, it polls very well because people like the idea of putting more resources in the classroom. Who wouldn't like that? The problem is that this legislation fails to accomplish that goal and it requires more than 15 seconds to explain why. It is interesting that I never heard Taylor speak in favor of this legislation during session

I wrote extensively about this bill during the session, but for a refresher course in what the problems are with the bill, see a copy, below of the Macon Telegraph editorial.

"It was too much to expect from the Georgia Legislature to get through the 2006 session without doing something really stupid. That said, they have out done themselves.Thursday, the House passed its version of Senate Bill 390, 102-70, which requires the state's 180 school systems to spend 65 percent of their revenue in the classroom. Proponents say the 65 percent rule will put $192 million in the classroom instead of going to pay for administration and other items.On the surface the 65 percent rule appears to be a good idea. Lawmakers speaking for the bill talked about bloated bureaucracies siphoning off money that should have been spent in classrooms for education. They pointed to the 64 systems already meeting the 65 percent threshold as examples of higher SAT and CRT scores. Again, it sounds really good.Most citizens are probably unaware that the state already mandates where money can be spent, and, according to opponents of the measure, the percentage spent in the classroom has little relationship with higher scores.Here are some of the expenses the bill, which has to go back to the Senate for minor tinkering, would count toward the 65 percent rule: Teacher salaries. Costs for supplies and instructional materials. Physical education, including athletic competitions. Music and art instruction, field trips and tuition paid to out-of-state school districts and private institutions for special needs students.More interesting is what does not count toward the 65 percent mandate: Administration, principals, guidance counselors, social workers, librarians (Media center specialists) and school nurses. Transportation, maintenance costs and plant operations. Food service. Teacher training.Here's the question that proponents of the bill have failed to accurately explain: Since salaries make up the majority of any school system's expenses - will the remaining 35 percent a system can spend for what the state deems as "non-classroom" expenses - be enough? The simple answer is "no."Citizens should ask their legislators a few simple questions: Why include athletic teams and field trips and not the buses to get students to their off-campus activities? How can costs for materials count and not the janitorial services needed to keep the buildings clean or to pay the power company to keep the lights on?Whether the state allows systems to count school lunches or guidance counselors or media specialists or principals really isn't the question legislators were dealing with. They understand that those expenses will still have to be met. The real question they were grappling with is, "How can we appear to promote education without paying for it?"They also know that this effort, while couched as a way to "improve" education, is a power grab. The state mandate applies to all funds school systems receive, local, state and federal. So much for the local control espoused by Gov. Sonny Perdue in the past. He obviously doesn't have faith in that concept now. PAGE, GAE, the National PTA and the Georgia PTA, oppose the bill.In a letter to teachers from his office dated Feb. 15, Perdue said: "As excited as I am about this proposal, I am concerned about some of the e-mails and letters we have received from educators about the proposal. One of the most frequent assertions we have heard is that this bill is intended to tell local systems how to spend their money, but this claim simply cannot be supported. In fact, if a school system is making student achievement gains and meeting benchmarks, they are exempt from the 65 percent requirement all together. The "Classrooms First for Georgia" simply encourages school systems to examine their budget and determine where efficiencies can be made so that most of the resources go into the classroom. Also, within the 65 percent and 35 percent categories, school systems are free to spend the dollars as they wish."I also want to reassure you that the great work of our support personnel such as media specialists, counselors, and nurses does not go unnoticed. These valued employees should not feel excluded by this proposal. Everyone certainly understands that no education is complete without instructional support personnel; however we also can all acknowledge that teachers and paraprofessionals are on the frontlines for educating our youngsters."The double-speak included in that letter is almost silly.Also silly were statements made by House Speaker Glenn Richardson, R-Hiram, when he angrily stepped into the well Thursday and said, "Don't ask them," meaning people in the gallery watching the debate and opposed to the measure. "Ask the mamas and daddys," he said.Mamas and daddys may send an answer he doesn't expect once they realize what the state is really up to: Abandoning public education."



Below is an portion of the Morris News Service article that outlines the platform of the two candidates:


Cathy Cox:
* Reduce class size.
* Hire additional teachers, relieve them from non-instructional chores, and give them extra pay for additional training.
* Hire more guidance counselors in elementary and middle schools and require them to draft a individual plan for each sixth grader.
Mark Taylor:
* Fully fund the per-pupil allowances specified in law that have been underfunded in the aftermath of the latest economic recession.
* Give Georgia teachers the highest annual pay raise in the nation.
* Maintain the "65 percent rule" that requires no less than 65 percent of local school-system budgets be spent inside the classroom.

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Straw Poll Vote

Check out this site for a straw poll vote onsome state offices.
http://www.blogfordemocracy.org/archives/2006/06/blog_for_democr.html

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"Street Money" and Georgia Politics

There's an 800 pound gorilla that sits squarely in the middle of Democratic politics in Georgia. Virtually daily, I am hearing about who is being paid by whom to do field work for various candidates. Real field work is a legitimate, legal and necessary campaign expense. But whether it's called "Street Money", "Gas Money", or "Walking Around Money", sometimes with a wink and a nod, politicians or those who work for them sometimes put large sums of money in the hands of key political contacts to facilitate voter contact and GOTV. Too often, a great deal of that money stays in the contacts possession while little actually trickles out to the street.

Candidates sometimes get what they pay for, and other times, their signs end up in the dump and their literature never makes it out of the car. (I know of one situation where people were paid to canvass and produced tracking sheets showing contact with a recently deceased person, not yet purged from the voter file.) In any given community, locals who are plugged in politically know who the folks are who do this work and know the benefit in paying them and the price of not playing the game.

Some who do this work are really very capable and experienced. They hit the street, touch the voters and get them to the polls. This is a valuable skill at election time and not one taught in your Poly Sci 101 class. Some, however, take money and never intend to do much work, or worse, some take money and consider that payment for not taking your signs down. And sometimes it is a game, with people holding out for the highest bidder in any given race. The question is, where's the line between paying for voter contact and buying voter loyalty? And beyond what line is the candidate actually buying votes?

The idea that a person will be loyal, politically, to the candidate who is willing to put money in their hand is disgusting to me. But, I am a realist, and know that some people can be bought. When I raised this issue with a friend of mine, she said, "You can't be squeamish and stay around politics." She then informed me that when a certain Democrat ran for President, the money came into Georgia in brown paper bags. And I believe her.

Campaign finance reform can never touch the shadowy world of Street Money. While this can be done legally, and legitimately, I suggest that often, it is not. What do you think about this political tradition, and what would you do if you discovered that a candidate you supported was putting money in the bank accounts of the "right" people in order to secure loyalty? Is this an unseemly "given" of Georgia politics?

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Rainy days and Mondays

For the past few months, Amy and I have been tracking the IP addresses of the most active commentors to our blogs, and some interesting patterns have emerged. The most vehement anti-Cox comments aren’t coming from grassroots supporters (as the Taylor camp would like you to believe), but from the Taylor campaign itself. The two IPs consistently linked to 5 identities are registered either to Mark Taylor for Governor or Mark Taylor for Lt. Governor.

But wait there’s more. They even have their own blog. The users kimberlysmith and JennyB trace (via IPs embedded in emails and comment logs), to one of the Taylor IPs. Naughty “girls”. Not that we needed software to figure that one out. No female over the age of 12 would put that many curlicues on anything, and the design and content were completely incongruous from the start.

Is this illegal? I don’t think so. Is it unethical? I don’t know. Is it hypocritical? Yes. It also doesn’t bode well for a potential Taylor run against Perdue if clumsy blogging and goofy videos are what constitute work product at Taylor HQ. Beyond that, it’s dangerous to allow unskilled kids to engage in astroturfing. Let’s face it, if Amy and I can figure this out, anyone can.

We know about 90% of our blog traffic comes from campaign offices, party offices or political junkies. We see the same screen names and IPs pop up repeatedly from blog to blog. This is a very tiny bubble we’re in and (to borrow a phrase from a recent news story), it’s way more aspirational than operational. As much as I’d like to claim otherwise, no one is reading but you, and maybe a few curious reporters. There are no votes here, or on any other blog.

For this reason, I don’t consider this some big revelation or breaking news story. I’m just stating what we’ve all known for a while, even before we had proof.

Even so, I’m not without empathy. This primary has been difficult for everyone. I completely understand the desire to push back against what sometimes seems like wall-to-wall netroots support for Cox. I’m sure it’s been demoralizing at times, and almost impossible to resist responding, especially here. But much has changed in recent weeks as two genuine metro bloggers have turned, not toward Taylor, but away from Cox. And that may be the best Team Taylor can hope for in the way of honest netroots support. Well, that and Andre.

In three short weeks we’ll all be Democrats again, and that can’t happen soon enough for me. When that day finally comes and Amy turns her formidable voice against Perdue, you’ll be glad she’s on your team. Until then, it’s time to focus on your respective campaigns, party duties and real websites (especially you TaylorTroll*). The tone and temperature of comments has spiked lately, and it’s time to give it a rest before real damage is done.

In fairness, I’ve also checked for the Cox HQ IP and have found 4 comments in the last 5 months, none of which mention Taylor. But then, Team Cox learned a hard lesson about IPs a few months back. Apparently Team Taylor is a little slower.


*TT doesn't blog from Taylor HQ, but from an even less appropriate place.

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