"My Father Would Be Proud"

After the rally at IBEW in Atlanta on Saturday, John Edwards went to a private meeting with Martin L. King, III. Today, the campaign released a letter from King (posted below). I will be honest to say that I have wondered about the wisdom of Sen. Edwards staying the course in this race. I've tried to figure out his strategy, tried to figure out what path he sees to the nomination, but tonight, as I listened to the debate, and then, as I read this letter, it is now clear to me that Edwards continued presence in this race is not about "strategy." It's about justice. I believe that there would have been little discussion about poverty in this race had he not voiced it. As he said tonight, campaigning about poverty doesn't necessarily win you votes-but it's the right thing to do. Doing what's right, no matter the cost, is what transformational leadership is all about.


January 20, 2008

The Honorable John E. Edwards
410 Market Street
Suite 400
Chapel Hill, NC 27516

Dear Senator Edwards:
It was good meeting with you yesterday and discussing my father’s legacy. On the day when the nation will honor my father, I wanted to follow up with a personal note.
There has been, and will continue to be, a lot of back and forth in the political arena over my father’s legacy. It is a commentary on the breadth and depth of his impact that so many people want to claim his legacy. I am concerned that we do not blur the lines and obscure the truth about what he stood for: speaking up for justice for those who have no voice.
I appreciate that on the major issues of health care, the environment, and the economy, you have framed the issues for what they are - a struggle for justice. And, you have almost single-handedly made poverty an issue in this election.
You know as well as anyone that the 37 million people living in poverty have no voice in our system. They don’t have lobbyists in Washington and they don’t get to go to lunch with members of Congress. Speaking up for them is not politically convenient. But, it is the right thing to do.
I am disturbed by how little attention the topic of economic justice has received during this campaign. I want to challenge all candidates to follow your lead, and speak up loudly and forcefully on the issue of economic justice in America.
From our conversation yesterday, I know this is personal for you. I know you know what it means to come from nothing. I know you know what it means to get the opportunities you need to build a better life. And, I know you know that injustice is alive and well in America, because millions of people will never get the same opportunities you had.
I believe that now, more than ever, we need a leader who wakes up every morning with the knowledge of that injustice in the forefront of their minds, and who knows that when we commit ourselves to a cause as a nation, we can make major strides in our own lifetimes. My father was not driven by an illusory vision of a perfect society. He was driven by the certain knowledge that when people of good faith and strong principles commit to making things better, we can change hearts, we can change minds, and we can change lives.
So, I urge you: keep going. Ignore the pundits, who think this is a horserace, not a fight for justice. My dad was a fighter. As a friend and a believer in my father’s words that injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere, I say to you: keep going. Keep fighting. My father would be proud.

Sincerely,
Martin L. King, III

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No, Actually, I'm Not Going

It's great that President Clinton is coming to Macon tomorrow. Folks have been calling this afternoon asking about whether I am going. I can't go because have a previous commitment-that's it, nothing more. I'm sure that he will be charming, smart and charismatic as usual. His visit does beg a question. During this cycle, John Edwards has been to Macon and to Americus, and Elizabeth Edwards has been here twice and has also been to Savannah. With February 5th fast approaching, neither Hillary Clinton nor Barack Obama have been to the mid-state.

Reckon they'll come? Now, that's a good question for Bill...

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A Devastating Loss

How do you go on after a loss like the one we suffered today? No one predicted this outcome. Of course, these things are tough to predict, but we were favored, it was our turf, and we lost. We should probably just drop out of the contest.

Of course, Jon Flack is probably dancing in the streets. Maryland (Maryland) beat my Tar Heels 82-80 today while Kansas remains undefeated-until the find themselves on the court with the Heels, of course.

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Edwards Rocks Atlanta

Despite the snow, anenthuiastic crowd of about 450 people packed the IBEW union hall to hear from Sen. John Edwards.

Edwards was introduced by Gov. Roy Barnes who emphasized that in order to make change, you actually have to get elected and said, "I'm tired of having Democrats on the ballot I have to apologize for." Edwards, he said is the candidate who can compete and win in the South. "It is time," said Barnes, "to elect a president who talks like we do."

Senator Edwards carried the message of hope for the Middle Class. He said, "One candidate thinks we need a CEO for president. The other thinks we need a great speech writer. I think we need a fighter-someone who will fight for you. I will be that president."

The crowd was enthuiastic, and some are still here.

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Nothing Against Atlanta, But...

Georgia does not stop just south of the I-20 perimeter, but ever since Sonny Perdue moved out to West Paces Ferry, he seems to have forgotten where he's from. Well, except for that little fishing project. During his State of the State speech this week, Governor Perdue said:

“The triumphant drumbeat of our progress proclaims a new anthem and a new era for Georgia. Not just as the capital of the New South, not just another great American city – but an international leader – an economic . . . cultural . . . technological capital,” said Governor Sonny Perdue. “We Georgians are not content to stand on the achievements of the past –
no, we are eager to create a better future for our children, and our children’s
children.”

It's Atlanta, and the Capitol building in particular, as it was constructed in post-reconstruction Georgia, that bears the monitor, "Capitol of the New South." Too often growth, development and prosperity in Atlanta and it's suburbs and exurbs has happened at the expense of rural Georgia. Unchecked and unmanaged growth has contributed to the drought crisis. Rural schools have drawn the short straw while Governor Perdue funds his sound-bite-ready pet projects at the expense of the most basic needs of these school systems. (Parental Recruiters? Are you kidding me? Is that even correct grammar? I think that "Parental" is an adjective modifying recruiters, making the recruiters the ones who are parental. I guess that's about right.) We have a health care-access crisis everywhere, but try being indigent and uninsured in rural Georgia where there are fewer programs to stand in the gap.

My point? Rural Georgia has a lot to offer and the ability to grow a competitive workforce-if the General Assembly would stop starving our schools. When we talk about the Capitol of the New South, we need to think out the the "Atlanta" box.

I wish I lived in the Georgia Sonny Perdue says exists.

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John Edwards. Atlanta. Be There.

John Edwards is headed our way tomorrow, and he just might be bringing a little Iowa weather along with him. Never fear-a little weather never stopped Georgia Democrats! Here's the scoop:

Elizabeth Kanning invites all of you to join with other Edwards supporters at the IBEW building in Atlanta at 11 AM for a "giant poster-making party." Sounds like lots of fun! Then, stick around for the "main event" where you will first hear from a few of our Democratic leaders, and then, at 2:30 pm, from Sen. John Edwards.

It is the place to be in Atlanta tomorrow! See you at IBEW, 501 Pulliam Street, SW in Atlanta.

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Okay, That Wasn't Quite True

The other day, I posted that I thought the Democratic response to the State of the State was the first time-maybe the first time ever-we'd done such a thing. As Tom Crawford was good enough to point out today, that's not exactly accurate. During Perdue's first term, we provided a response. Lt. Gov. Taylor did one, Secretary Cox did another, and there may have even been another.

Maybe it would've been more accurate to say that this is the first time lately. In any case, I'm glad we're saying something.

Thanks, Tom.

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And You Thought Democrats Didn't Stand for Anything...

Georgia Democrats are not accustomed to being the minority party. We held the reigns on state government for years, and when we dropped them (more on that later), we stumbled around for a while trying to figure out what the minority can effectively do. Well, today, for the first time-I think first time ever-Georgia Democrats provided a minority response to the State of the State address. Rep. Kathy Ashe was the spokesperson, but her remarks reflect the values of Democrats all across the state. She did an outstanding job for all of us! Below is a portion of Rep. Ashe's speech.

I've had the honor to serve in the Georgia General Assembly since 1991. During that time, I've come to know many men and women who exemplified the ideal of citizen legislators. One of those statesmen is no longer with us. Today, we continue to mourn the passing of Speaker Tom Murphy, a true Georgia leader. Mr. Speaker, you are missed in the General Assembly, and throughout this state. Speaker Murphy understood, better than most, the role of government. He knew that the true success of a state should not be measured at the top of the pyramid, but at its base. He understood the value of investing today for later reward. He knew that government must plan today for the problems of tomorrow, and he practiced what he preached.

Eight years into the 21st Century, five years after the Governor promised us a "New Georgia," our state continues to face the stagnant challenges of yesterday. Despite frequent promises of action from the Governor and his party, Georgia continues on a perilous course.

Our public schools, where we sow the seeds of Georgia's future, continue to struggle. More than one in six Georgians does not have affordable health care - including almost 300,000 children. We continue to feel the burden of 1.3 billion dollars in education cuts forced on your local governments by this administration. And every night in Georgia - all over Georgia - too many of our children go to bed hungry and without hope for a better future.

As Democrats, we believe we can take Georgia in a new direction, by simply planning ahead, working together, and believing in our shared values and common wisdom. On behalf of my Democratic colleagues in the House and Senate, I call on Governor Perdue and the Republican members of both chambers: Let us reason and work together to solve Georgia's problems. Let no good idea wither on the vine and dry up, simply because it came from the other party. Let us prepare today, and avoid crisis tomorrow.

What will be the next crisis to face Georgia? Will our schools continue to wallow in mediocrity? Will the 1.7 million medically uninsured Georgians become 2 million, and then 3 million? Will factories continue to close, and farms continue to fail? Or will we work together, to create a Georgia that we can all believe in again?
I'm pleased to announce the first piece of major legislation Democrats will introduce in this session. We will address Georgia's concerns with education and property
taxes.

Next week, Democrats in the House and Senate will introduce a new plan for tax relief - not a hastily conceived scheme that changes with the political winds, but a responsible approach that helps those who need it the most – Georgia's families.

Our plan restores much-needed funding to our public schools, and eases the strain on local governments, giving them the freedom to do what their constituents demand, keep our obligations to our children, and reduce property taxes. Most importantly, it gives public schools what they need to produce the next generation of Georgians, brighter and better-prepared than any generation in our state's history.

We will keep the promise made to students and parents over twenty years ago - we will fund the Quality Basic Education Act, and we will create the some of the best
schools in the nation. Ideas like this do not come from us, the Democratic legislators, but from what we hear from our constituents every day in our schools, our churches, and our places of work. Our ideas for a better Georgia come from all of us, from our shared values, and from what we all believe. Once again, the Governor has said one thing and done another on education. Despite his rhetoric and rosy promises, Governor Perdue is introducing $141 million dollars in cuts to education this year. And as a result, our schools will be underfunded by one and a half billion dollars.

Democrats believe we should finally make good on our promise to our children to fully fund their schools; and emphasizing reading, math, science, discipline, character, and above all, preparation for a 21st century global economy.

Democrats believe that we should reduce class sizes and make Georgia's teachers the envy of America. We believe that every student deserves a teacher who has time to
teach, and a well-equipped classroom, not an overcrowded portable trailer.

Our children are our guarantee that Georgia will remain competitive economically, and that we will leave our state better off than we found it. We believe that if you work hard, and play by the rules, you shouldn't have to worry about going bankrupt when your health is on the line. We believe that every family deserves a family doctor, and that it is our moral obligation to make sure that every child in this state is free from preventable illness and pain.

We can reform our health care system, and make sure that every hardworking Georgian, and especially every child, has access to affordable health care.
We believe that by rebuilding our aging infrastructure, from crumbling roads to bridges on the brink of danger, we ensure that Georgia continues to be the economic engine that drives the South.

We can protect our economic future by making Georgia a place where responsible business owners want to do business, and by partnering with business to foster enterprise and innovation that brings jobs to Georgia, and helping small businesses down the path to prosperity.

We believe that we can cut the gridlock by cutting through the red tape at the Department of Transportation, and by looking to bold new ideas like commuter rail and other mass transit solutions to get Georgians home to their families quicker.
We can ask the tough questions about transportation in Georgia. How can our Department of Transportation lose 5 billion dollars of our money and not even know how many projects are underway? Why are Georgians spending more time in traffic and less time with their families?

We can mitigate today's water crisis and, more importantly, prepare for tomorrow. As Georgia continues to grow, we must recognize that the next drought will be worse. It's time to plan for that future today.

We must plan for the water we need, so that businesses don't hesitate before opening up shop in Georgia, and so that we are never again days away from rationing water.

Our state water plan should not divide Georgia, it should unite us in responsible development and conservation efforts. We believe that stewarding and protecting our natural resources is our sacred duty, and today, water is perhaps our most important resource.

A renewed commitment to education; a family doctor for every family; growing our state's economy; investing in infrastructure; tax reform for those who need it the most.

Some might say that this is the Democrats' legislative agenda. It is more than that. These are our guided values, our principles. They are guided by our faith and fortified by the conviction that we must judge ourselves as a people by how we treat the least among us.

These guided principles are why we fight for nurses, teachers, parents, and children, and why we will continue to fight until we have no fight left within us. We must take a long, hard look at how our state has grown, and how we must grow with it. We must plan ahead, and make the right decisions today for a better, more prosperous tomorrow.

Today, with the legislative session barely under way, we hope that all members of our state's government will put aside their bickering and turn to the future with a firm step and resolute heart. If Governor Perdue and the Republican leadership choose to face the future, we will stand with them.

If they choose instead to turn inward and focus on the political fights that distract us from the betterment of our state, then we will show them the way.Thank you all, and may God's blessings be with you.

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Don't Get Mad

Get busy! Georgia Republicans are at it again. They take a break from their inter-party mud wrestling just long enough to push legislation like "The Personhood Amendment" (H.R. 536). Now more than ever, we need more Democratic women serving in the state legislature. That's the mission of Georgia's WIN List: to elect pro-choice, Democratic women to state level office in Georgia. To do that, WIN needs YOUR help.

WIN invites you to come to our Annual Breakfast With Our Legislators. There, you can learn more about Georgia's WIN List and about the critical legislative issues that will impact the lives of Georgia women. The information is below:

Georgia's WIN List

ANNUAL BREAKFAST WITH OUR LEGISLATORS

Tuesday, January 29, 2008

Hear our Senators and Representatives
speak about their predictions for the 2008 Legislative Session and actions that WIN List supporters can take in the upcoming elections.Coffee and conversation 8:00 am
Program begins promptly at 8:30 am

Central Presbyterian Church
(across the street from the Capitol)$10.00 minimum donation

Please reserve your place by calling Leslie at 770-489-6689 or by e-mail at info@georgiawinlist.com.

Click here for driving directions...

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Edwards in Atlanta, Redux

At this point in the campaign season, it's not unusual for candidates' schedules to be fluid. Such is the case with the Edwards campaign trip to Atlanta.There has been a scheduling change:

John Edwards is now going to be in Atlanta this Saturday, January the 19th at:

IBEW Local Union 613
501 Pulliam Street
Atlanta, GA 30312

2:30 PM

This event is open to the public. Ya'll come, now.

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New Poll: Think the Race is Over? Think Again.

Don't gamble on this becoming a three-way race any time soon. A new poll shows Clinton, Obama and Edwards are locked in a statistical tie in Nevada.

Barack Obama: 32 percent
Hillary Clinton: 30 percent
John Edwards: 27 percent

Margin of Error: 4.5%

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Breaking: Edwards Headed for Georgia, Updated

Updated: Note Date and Time Change

Great news! On the heels of Georgia for Edwards' very successful canvassing trip to South Carolina this weekend, I just just learned that Sen. John Edwards will be in Atlanta this Saturday, January 19th, at 2:30 pm, for a campaign event, location TBA. On CNN yesterday, I heard Edwards say that he was planning events in February 5th states. This must be a part of that effort.

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The Harold Fording of Barack Obama

Is the Clinton campaign about to do to Barack Obama what the GOP did to Harold Ford? Depending on the day, the Clinton campaign is either a well-disciplined, well-oiled machine where every word is scripted-even some of the audience questions-or it's a ragtag bunch of shoot-from-the-hip media hounds who just say whatever off the top of their head-and then resign or apologize, but, regardless, capture at least three news cycles with yet another awfully-close-to-racist attack on Obama that the Clinton campaign obviously doesn't endorse. And, by the way, shame on you for thinking that they would. It's all just below the radar. There's always room for plausible deniability. And it's very, very effective.

A seamy line of attack on Obama has been building since before the Iowa caucuses when Clinton's campaign co-chair resigned after suggesting Obama would be asked about whether he sold drugs. Then, Bill Clinton-possibly the best pure politician of our time-suggested that Obama was a role of the dice, and Mark Penn managed to work the word "cocaine" into a statement denying they were attacking Obama about admitted drug use. Today's comments by BET founder Robert L. Johnson while he was on stage with Hillary Clinton reminded me of the attack on Harold Ford during the 2006 Tennessee senate race and were the most vicious yet. You can read his comments here, including this jewel:

“And to me, as an African-American, I am frankly insulted that the Obama campaign would imply that we are so stupid that we would think Hillary and Bill Clinton, who have been deeply and emotionally involved in black issues since Barack Obama was doing something in the neighborhood –­ and I won’t say what he was doing, but he said it in the book –­ when they have been involved.” Moments later, he added: “That kind of campaign behavior does not resonate with me, for a guy who says, ‘I want to be a reasonable, likable, Sidney Poitier ‘Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner.’ And I’m thinking, I’m thinking to myself, this ain’t a movie, Sidney. This is real life.”

Later, in a statement, Johnson said that he was simply referring to Obama's community organizing, how dare anyone suggest otherwise. Right.

Of course, in the movie, Poitier played a black doctor who was to wed a white socialite. For the uninitiated, Harold Ford ran for the senate in Tennessee and was beaten, in large part, by the now-infamous "Call Me Harold" ad. Here's, from The Prospect is Emory professor Drew Westen's analysis of that ad and it's impact: (it's long, but it's worth the read.)

Flying Hate Below the Radar
On Election Day, Democrats outflanked Republicans in every closely contested Senate race except one: Tennessee. At first blush, this is surprising, given that Harold Ford Jr., like so many of the other candidates who defeated Republican incumbents (Bob Casey, Sherrod Brown, and Claire McCaskill, for example), was an emotionally compelling candidate. However, if we take a look at the way the Republicans used a sophisticated understanding of how networks operate, we can see both the limits of conventional analyses of the ad campaign ("Was it racist, or wasn't it?")
that led to the rapid decline in Ford's poll numbers, and what his campaign might have done to counteract it. The infamous ad, created by a prot¨¦g¨¦ of Karl Rove, was actually part of a broader stealth campaign orchestrated by now Senator-elect Bob Corker and the Republican National Committee. The stealth attack, designed to fly far enough below the radar to allow "plausible deniability" of racist intent, capitalized on the way neural networks work. If I were to ask you to name the first American automobile company that comes to mind, many of you will would say "Ford," even though you could just as easily have responded with one of the other Big Three. The reason is that I've just "primed" your neural networks with Harold Ford, putting anything associated with "Ford" at a heightened state of unconscious activation. The Republican campaign against Harold Ford Jr. played these kinds of networks like a fiddle at Opryland. As Corker fell slightly behind Ford in the polls, he began describing himself as the "real Tennessean," using as a cover story that Ford was a city slicker from Washington. This was a curious charge to make, given that Corker had been attacking Ford and his family for being part of a Tennessee political machine (although once again Corker had plausible deniability because Ford had spent part of his childhood in Washington). The Republican National Committee then ran an ad the Corker campaign disavowed once it drew national attention, allowing him to claim distance while taking advantage of its effects. But Corker then followed it up with another ad of his own that makes clear that the ads were coordinated. The ad that drew media interest began with a scantily clad white woman declaring excitedly, "I met Harold at the Playboy party!" She returns at the end of the ad, with a seductive wink, saying "Harold, call me." The obvious goal was to activate a network about black men having sex with white women, something about which many white men, including those who are not consciously prejudiced, still feel queasy. The "call me" line came just after the ad had ostensibly ended with the following words on the screen: "Harold Ford. He's Just Not Right." When I first saw the ad, I thought the syntax was peculiar.What did they mean by "He's just not right?" That's a term often used to describe someone with a psychiatric problem, and no one was suggesting that Ford was deranged. Then I realized what was wrong. If you were going to use that syntax, you'd say "He's just not right for Tennessee." What the viewer of the ad is not aware of (unless he or she is Tweetie Bird, or has trouble pronouncing r's), is that another network is being activated unconsciously. This second network was primed not only by the racial associations to the ad itself but by the broader campaign emphasizing that Ford isn't "one of us": "He's just not white."

For the record, I support John Edwards and have not made a decision about who I will support should he not be the nominee. These tactics-and I think that are tactics not accidents-do not leave me with warm feelings about Sen. Clinton. There's a an undercurrent around Hillary Clinton-sometimes very, very close to her-that tweaks our worst selves-the part of us that fears, stereotypes and hates. I don't like it, and I suspect that I am not alone. I don't buy the idea that these highly-placed surrogates have just accidentally spoken in error-in virtual concert. Either way, surely, someone who would be President can find a way to shut down this unconscionable line of attack.

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1 Out of 7

One out of seven Americans lacking health insurance isn't just a statistic, it's a tragedy. The American Medical Association has a powerful group of ads running to make that case. I don't know why I was surprised to find the AMA telling us to "vote with this issue in mind." It is logical that doctors would be allies in the fight to make sure every American has access to health care. Not only is this position consistent with their mission, uninsured patients are costly to medical providers. A friend who works in hospital management told me that when an uninsured patient presents at their ER, there's a greater than 90% chance the hospital will never get paid. In these ads, the AMA has done a superb job of making the issue personal and emotional without pandering. Excellent. The Democratic Party needs to hire their ad company. Click here to view of these powerful ads.

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Photographic Evidence

There's been a little Gold Dome buzz about photographic evidence of a different sort-but what I have for you today is a little photographic evidence of the Georgia for Edwards trip to South Carolina yesterday. One canvassing group that included former Lt. Gov. Taylor, Steve Leeds and Chuck Byrd reported knocking on more than seventy doors and finding overwhelmingly positive support for Sen. Edwards. JRE may just be a South Carolina sleeper! Thanks to all who made the trip. Enjoy the photographs!

Ready to Knock on Doors!

Georgia Girls Have Got John's Back!

Volunteer Extraordinaire': Julie Simon

Georgia for Edwards Canvassers Gather in Greenville

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