You Do Remember Iowa, Don't You?

For those who think that Martin can't win on Tuesday, I have one question: you do remember Iowa, don't you? Because if you do, then you know that an effective field plan can make a contender a winner on election day. In Iowa, the Obama volunteers focused on an area and used a three door knock then get 'em to the caucus approach. And it worked. Right now, there is literally an ARMY in the field here in Georgia, and the plan is intense, penetrating, organized, high-tech-grassroots. It's the Obama machine. And it's working.


Indeed, everyone is calling for Martin today. Metro women are getting a robo call from Michelle Obama, and I had calls from both Max Cleland and Bill Clinton on my home answering machine. Bill rang me on my cell as well, as I reported earlier. But the most important call?

Sebastian. Sebastian is a graduate of film school who worked a congressional race in Ohio and is now in Georgia for the post election Martin Miracle Party. Sebastian is one of at least four people who have called me in the last week who (1) do not live in Georgia; (2) are volunteers and (3) have through their Obama experience come to believe in that with enough field work, the unlikely really can happen. One of the guys who called me last week worked Wisconsin for Obama. I imagine that he believes that if Obama won Wisconsin, Jim Martin can win Georgia. He just might be right.

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Civil Rights Icon to Campaign for Martin

Congressmen John Lewis and Hank Johnson will headline a rally for Jim Martin tomorrow in Macon. The rally will be at 486 Poplar (between 3rd and MLK) tomorrow - Monday - at 3:00 p.m. The event is open to the public and to press. See you there.

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Bill Clinton Calling

Just got a pro-Martin GOTV robocall on my cell phone from Bill Clinton. Get out and vote, we need someone who can work with Barack Obama to get our economy back on track etc. The most remarkable aspect of this expected weekend before strategy is that the call hit my cell and my husband's. As Jim Galloway pointed out earlier, the Obama campaign and the DNC have made ritual of gathering and using those numbers to reach "cell phone only" voters.

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The Palin Gamble

If things don't go as Saxby hopes on Tuesday, look for a post game analysis that weighs the impact of Sarah Palin's visit to Georgia. Saxby's counting on Palin to be his "closer," as she swoops in from Alaska on the day before the election to save his struggling campaign, but there's a real risk for Chambliss that Palin will do for him in Georgia exactly what she did for John McCain nationally: further motivate the democratic base in Georgia-specifically democratic women-in a way that even Barack Obama might not have been able to do.

Democratic women are a key voting block that is currently under-represented in early voting. Trust me when I tell you that to a person, the democratic women I know have a viscerally negative reaction to Sarah Palin - and that's before she opens her mouth to criticize Jim Martin, who has a reputation as a reliable advocate for women. It was Georgia women who rallied and pushed Jim to victory in the primary run-off. If you think that Vernon Jones can motivate Georgia women to go vote by slapping Obama's picture on a mailer, wait until you see what Sarah Palin does when she opens her mouth and calls Jim Martin a socialist. There's the real risk for Chambliss that Palin's visit and her rhetoric will send democratic women to the polls-in droves.

Yes, far from a no-brainer, the Palin visit is risky, both for Chambliss and the GOP. First of all, if there's anyone who thinks that Palin's in Georgia to help Saxby, think again. Palin is gracing Georgia for one reason: to help herself by keeping her national name ID alive. This women still thinks she can be president, and if she is viewed as The One who rescued Chambliss, then her claim to control of the national GOP will be strengthened. Now, I admit that as a democrat, I would like nothing better than for the Palin wing of the party to win the struggle for control of that sinking ship, but it may not be a winning strategy for the GOP. But that works for me.

Admittedly, Saxby didn't have a lot of choice. If he had run a halfway decent campaign, he wouldn't be in this runoff at all. He is a weak candidate who entered the race with low name ID statewide despite having served for six years. John McCain was able to get more than 50% of the vote in Georgia, but Saxby Chambliss was not. Both supported the bailout, McCain in dramatic fashion. Both had Georgians on the ballot as third party candidates. Neither is a favorite of the Georgia republican establishment. Yet, John McCain turned in a 52.2% performance, while Saxby Chambliss drew only 49.8% of the vote-and more than 181K votes fewer than the presidential candidate. Those numbers have to give Chambliss' team serious heartburn. By comparison, Obama drew 47% of the vote in Georgia, while Martin garnered 46.8% and about 87K fewer votes than Obama. There was less drop-off in the democrat's race, and his numbers more closely tracked the preformance of the party's presidential candidate.

A reasonable analysis in that the democratic base in Georgia likes Jim Martin more than the republican base likes Saxby Chambliss, and that could spell trouble for the incumbent on Tuesday, especially since a seriously out-spent Jim Martin has managed to keep most polls in the three point range, within the margin of error, with Chambliss below 50%. Add to that Georgia' reputation for not returning incumbents to the senate, and the unpredictable Palin, and the Tums are definitely on the table at Chambliss central.

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Promoted: Palin Paranoia

Me, I just pal around with a terrier, a Jack Russell to be exact. Regardless, this is promoted from Alan G's comments, re the Palin Paranoia Machine's Georgia visit:

"This is a bit off-topic but I didn't see any other way to contact Georgia Women Vote.With Sarah Palin's campaign visit to your state on Monday, Georgians will once again be exposed to her mindless blathering and off-putting arrogance. Many on the left believe she is the Republican gift that keeps on giving while others hope she would just go away. Several weeks ago, I posted a petition online entitled "Dear Sarah Palin, Please Shut Up Already," partly as an attempt to save our country from further embarrassment and ridicule, and partly as a therapeutic outlet for those in the latter camp who weren't sure if they should scream or cry. Since then I imagine the petition might also have the unintended consequence of encouraging Governor You Betcha to just keep yapping away — which might make it more appealing to those in the first group whose long-term goal ameliorates any suffering. I invite you to check out the petition at:

http://www.petitiononline.com/1113nov8/petition.html

If you think it might be a good way for all Georgia progressives to either welcome the Governor or say "adios" to her, please spread the word on this blog and to other terrorists you pal around with :)"

Many thanks.

Alan G.

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Robocall from US Chamber of Commerce

I just got a robocall on behalf of Republican Saxby Chambliss from the United States Chamber of Commerce. I guess this organization has given up all pretense of being nonpartisan. Perhaps Democrats should stop joining.

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Insignificant

Insignificant. That's what Saxby Chambliss's chief strategist, Tom Perdue, had to say about Jim Martin. According to an article published yesterday on Politico, Perdue asserts that Martin, as person and as a candidate, is the most insignificant opponent in all his 30 years in politics. That was after Perdue compared Jim Martin to his dog.

If that won't make you get out an vote, either today or on Tuesday, I don't know what will.

True, Jim Martin didn't think he was a special case deserving deferment from serving his country in Vietnam, like Saxby did. And, true, Jim Martin has never sought to make a name for himself, instead preferring to stand up for the little guy, unlike Saxby who has spent his time using hundreds of thousands of dollars of special interest money to finance luxury golf vacations for himself and his lobbyist friends. Jim Martin's never been a high roller like Saxby, and he never will be. I know him. He just doesn't have it in him. Thank God.

But insignificant? I guess that all depends on what you think is important. Saxby thinks that it's insignificant when families can't afford to take a sick child to the doctor, but Jim Martin doesn't. That's why Martin helped create PeachCare. And, that's why Saxby voted against expanding the program just last year. And, I suspect that the women who was able to find safety after becoming a victim of domestic violence, or the sexually abused child who was able to find help from the kind professionals at a child advocacy center, or the family that is now able to get mental health services for their child all think Jim Martin's leadership on those issues is significant, no matter what Saxby says.

Truth be told, it's not just Jim Martin who Saxby views as little more than a gnat threatening to disrupt his precious golf swing: it's all of us who work for a living, struggle to make ends meet, hope to be able to take our child to the doctor when he or she is sick and occasionally need a little help to make it through. Saxby and his machine think that we're all insignificant. That's why in Saxby's world, banks get bailouts, but hard working American workers? They just get blamed. And workers who dare to blow the whistle-they get grilled by the champion of Big Sugar when they dare to testify before Congress.

We have come to expect the nastiest, most mean-spirited attacks from the Saxby and his operatives, and there is little doubt that with the Palin Paranoia machine headed to Georgia, we're about to hear a whole lot more about who Martin pals around with and how dangerous he is. Never mind that it would be tough for someone so insignificant to be very dangerous. Such non sequiturs have never been a problem for Chambliss, who has made one thing clear: he will do and say anything to win. And if that's what you want, all you have to do not show up to vote. That's what republicans are banking on-that you will stay at home, so stuffed with turkey that you will still not be able to move by Tuesday.

In fact, in the same Politico article, Chambliss supporter and Cobb County Republican Party Chair Scott Johnson was surprisingly candid in his admission that the current weapon of choice for Saxby is, in a word, fear. Johnson said:

“The fact that we’d be giving Democrats a blank check is the biggest motivator for us to get Republicans to the polls,” said Cobb County Republican Party Chairman Scott Johnson. “If we have to motivate with fear, that’s what you have to do to win.”

We appreciate your honesty, Scott.

Now, all ya'll - GET OUT AND VOTE.

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You're In Alysis

So, up on the space station, our astronauts are installing some very expensive equipment designed to turn urine into drinkable water.

They expect success, of course, because they've already turned crap into tv ads for Saxby Chambliss.

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Heating Up for Martin

There 's no question: Jim Martin can become Georgia's next senator. Polling data to date reflects a tight, unpredictable race, and the outcome entirely depends on turnout. Internal polling to be released tomorrow will show an even tighter, two point, race-a statistical dead heat with neither candidate breaking 50%.

On the ground, there is significant enthusiasm about the race among democrats. For example, last week, Lauren Benedict called me as she left her office to say that there were eight people there to phone bank for Martin. And, Martin and Powell were both here in Macon for a rally on Saturday afternoon-at a time when I thought it would be really difficult to build a crowd given Mercer's homecoming-and, yet, City Hall was packed with a diverse, local, enthusiastic crowd.

The impact of the Obama field organization will also important. At the rally on Saturday, staff were there from the beginning making sure that all who came to the rally signed up for shifts for canvassing and phone banks. It is my sense that the Martin organization is far better than Chambliss', and that alone may make the difference on Dec. 2nd.

Having backed a number of outstanding candidates who went on to lose their races, I am now, officially, a political realist. But, the reality here is that Martin really can win this thing if we go vote and make sure that everyone we know who voted for Martin in the general gets back to the polls by Tuesday. That's the bottom line.

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Mike Sheffield is Cozy With Republicans

Word on the street has long been that a candidate for Court of Appeals Justice, Mike Sheffield, is bff with the republican party. Some say he's the handpicked candidate of Sadie Fields' Christian Coalition. After all, he was the only one of the candidates who thought it was proper to fill our her form. Now, there's some more objective evidence that his partisan leanings are more than a rumor. On June 21, 2008, Sheffield, a candidate in a nonpartisan race, paid the Fulton County Republican Party $250 to place an ad in a program, and on September 24, 2008, wrote a $125.00 check to the same group for "dinner." Both payments were made from his nonpartisan campaign account for judicial office. Nothing particularly wrong with that mind you, but I didn't see him paying for any ads or dinners with democrats. Plus, I don't know if he attended, but the only event on the Party's calendar on September 24th was for the Young Republicans, and the guest speaker was GWV favorite Karen Handel.

My point? Go vote for Sara Doyle for Court of Appeals. She's the better qualified candidate, and we can't afford to elect Mike Sheffield.

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Martin Headed to Macon

Attention: The forces of evil holding Jim Martin hostage in Atlanta have been defeated. The democratic senate candidate is headed out on a bus tour with other prominent veterans. He'll be at a rally at Macon City Hall at 3:30 on Saturday, and you are invited to come out and hear from Georgia's next senator.

We kid Jim because we love Jim.

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Might the Church Lead on Same-Sex Unions?

Something remarkable happened in Atlanta last week. Without fanfare, The Episcopal Diocese of Atlanta (that would be basically all the churches from Macon north), adopted a resolution supportive of the Development of Liturgical Rights for Same-Gender Unions. Someone who was present sent me a text message as the measure passed-overwhelmingly and without any discussion or amendment. Remarkable, really. Now, this does not mean that this is a done deal for Episcopalians. As you will see in the full text of the resolution below, this is simply a resolution to request that the General Convention of the Episcopal Church develop such rites:

R08-4

Development of Liturgical Rites for Same-Gender Unions

Resolved: This 102nd Annual Council of the Diocese of Atlanta approves the following resolution to the 76th General Convention of The Episcopal Church, meeting in Anaheim, California, in 2009; and be it further

Resolved:
This council directs the Secretary of Council to transmit the following resolution to the Secretary of the General Convention:

Resolved:
The House of __________ concurring, the 76th General Convention of The Episcopal Church authorizes the Standing Commission on Liturgy and Music to develop appropriate rites for the celebration and blessing of the sacred unions of gay and lesbian persons, taking into account the variety of civil arrangements for such unions available in the regions served by the church; and be it further

Resolved: that such rite or rites shall be presented at the 77th
General Convention of the Episcopal Church.

Few would argue with the concept that the church, in particular the black church, was integral to the ultimate progress of the Civil Rights Movement. Now, as gay and lesbian individuals struggle for their civil rights, is it possible that again the church might lead? While some churches are adamantly opposed to such rights and poured money into ballot measures like Prop. 8, and others consider sexual orientation to be a "life style choice" or a condition to be "cured," there are signs that at least some churches will again lead on a civil rights issue. And, if the Episcopal Church does adopt such a liturgy, it raises a very interesting point. Marriage, in the religious sense, is a sacrament. What business does government have telling a church to deny-or to administer for that matter-a sacrament to certain parishioners? This seems to me to be the other side of the civil union/religious union debate.

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The Gains Women Made

Want to feel good about the gains women made this cycle? Watch this video. Really. It will be the best four minutes you've spent today.

While we have been understandably focused on the historic election of Barack Obama, democratic women also had a very good night on Nov. 4th, electing two brand new democratic women to the U.S. Senate and electing the first female governor of North Carolina. Across the board, the work of Emily's List is a key reason for their success, and I hope that you will contribute to this important work.

When we see women like Kay Hagan elected to the U.S. Senate, and Bev Perdue become North Carolina's first female governor, it is important to remember that their success was not an overnight phenomenon. That sort of accomplishment began years ago in their education and in their preparation for running for office, and Emily's List has taken that into account in setting their programmatic priorities. For example, through the POP program (Political Opportunity Program), Emily's List helps identify and train future Kay Hagan's to run for office. Those programs touch women right here in Georgia, helping to identify and train great candidates and future leaders. So, toss them some change.

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Bookman: Martin's a Workhorse, Not Showhorse

Why am I supporting Martin? What he said.

Here's a tease:

Martin, the Democrat, has been a fighter for the little guy throughout his life, and he’s proved effective in that role. He served his country in the U.S. Army in Vietnam and as a state legislator, lawyer and head of the state Department of Human Resources. Throughout his public life he has been known as a workhorse not a showhorse, someone whose first concern was getting the job done well rather than trying to get the credit.

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On the Phone With Gov. Howard Dean

Right now, on his birthday and mine, DNC Chair, Gov. Howard Dean is doing a conference call for bloggers, and he's spending the majority of the time taking questions. I asked him about the DNC efforts with regard to Jim Martin's race in Georgia. He said that all of the Obama campaign offices are re-opening or remaining open, and that the DNC is investing significant money in the race, along with the DSCC. Gov. Dean praised Jim Martin, saying that he is a great person and a great candidate who anyone supportive of Barack Obama should be pleased to vote for. Dean correctly noted that this runoff election is all about turn out and stressed the importance of grassroots efforts, especially knocking on doors, to get those all important voters to the polls.

There were also questions from bloggers in West Virginia and Louisiana about how those of us in 'red' states could work to improve chances for Democrats. Again, Dean pointed to both the national trends, the gains made in those states this cycle and said that his eye was on Texas as a prime target for Democrats over the next two election cycles. (Just so we're clear, I'm making it my personal mission to make Georgia a prime DNC target, and we'll talk more about that later.)
In response to a direct question, Dean essentially said that he could not explain why President-elect Obama's overall performance was better than Gore and Kerry, yet in some areas of Appalachia and the "inland South" Obama did not preform as well as they did. Of course, the question essentially raised the issue of to what degree race was a factor in some areas of the country.

I really appreciated the fact that Gov. Dean did this call today, drawing in the bloggers in a substantive way. Thanks, and Happy Birthday, Gov. Dean!

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