Oconee County, GA Politics

Clarke County sticks with Democratic trend Midterm elections E.H. Culpepper watches poll results Tuesday night in Athens. Culpepper said Athens' trend of voting blue speaks of its flavor. Special By Todd DeFeo | todd.defeo@onlineathens.com | Story updated at 1:52 AM on Thursday, November 9, 2006 In 14 Athens area counties outside of Clarke, more than 68 percent of voters favored Gov. Sonny Perdue in his re-election bid Tuesday. That's roughly 10 percentage points higher than the state average - just under 58 percent of voters cast ballots for Perdue. But in Clarke County, almost 54 percent of voters opted for Perdue's opponent, Lt. Gov. Mark Taylor. "We know that Athens has always been a strong Democratic area," said Larry Davison, chairman of the Oconee Count...

I must give credit where credit is due: the Georgia Republican party took a page out of the Lee Atwater - Ralph Reed playbook and did the best they can to try and bury the Democratic party in Athens-Clarke and Oconee Counties. Malapportionment and redistricting seemed to work well for the Republicans in the state senate race in District 46 at the very least. Let's hope Bill Cowsert remains true to his word and will work towards a more united district rather than to forward his partisan agenda. I look forward to more affordable health care. The real test will be in now three weeks when Heidi Davison takes on Charlie Maddox in the run-off to decide the Mayor of Athens-Clarke County. I think Heidi will win in a cakewalk but it is always about who gets out the vote the most, especially in run-offs. I do not see Tom Chasteen as a factor in who will win. You could put forth the whole African-American vs. Caucasian theorum with the Kelly Girtz - Alvin Sheets run off as well, but somehow ...

Democrat Vilsack to launch run for White House POSTED: 9:50 a.m. EST, November 9, 2006 DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) -- Democratic Gov. Tom Vilsack of Iowa took the initial step in his long-shot bid for the White House Thursday, establishing a presidential campaign committee and seeking an early jump on 2008. "Americans sent a clear message on Tuesday. They want leaders who will take this country in a new direction," Vilsack, Iowa's two-term governor, said in a statement. "They want leaders who share their values, understand their needs, and respect their intelligence. That's what I've done as governor of Iowa, and that's what I intend to do as president." Vilsack filed documents with the Federal Election Commission to create the committee. Although the favorite son in the early voting state, the Democratic governor has trailed the other potential candidates in early polling, among them front-runner New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton an...

U2 and Green Day What if this had really happened? Do you think that the Republicans would have been swept out of power?

Ruling a blow to political fairness The Georgia Supreme Court made it official Monday: The Legislature can gerrymander statehouse districts all it wishes and whenever it wishes, as long as U.S. Census Bureau figures are used and districts remain contiguous. This is terrific news for the party in power - in this case, the Republicans - because it means that they can structure voting districts at any time to give Republican candidates a favorable edge during elections. The court's ruling came after Democrats challenged the General Assembly's right to redistrict a Democratic stronghold in Athens, cutting it in half and reducing the likelihood that a democratic challenger to Republican Bill Cowsert would be able to unseat him in a bid for the 46th District state Senate seat. The Legislature modified the district to include all of Republican-dominated Oconee County. (The official reason for the change, the court was told, was that Madison County commissioners wanted their county to ...

This is it folks. The Plum Creek rezone requests are on the agenda for tomorrow night’s BOC meeting. Russ Page has summarized where things stand. Read below. If this issue is of any value to you at all, PLEASE be at the courthouse tomorrow night at 7:00 p.m. and sign up to speak. Make it a day of civic activity. Case your vote, then come cast your voice! Many thanks, Tony Glenn >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Friends: The BOC vote regarding Plum Creek Timberlands 2 pieces of land at 441 and the Apalachee River comes up Tuesday at 7 PM. I have made a plea to Plum Creek to think about donating the entire ~350 Ac to the county and a conservation easement to the Athens Land Trust (this way they could get maximal tax incentives). They have said that the River Walk was not something in concrete...just an idea. I have mailed them a 15 page in-depth overview of what we propose for a river walk. They have not answered my email yet. ...

So in two five minute journeys around Watkinsville just now, I saw a curious sight. Suddenly signs of the GOP candidates sprung up in all sorts of non-private property. Being the good chair of the Democratic committee, I decided to match those on the areas I know are not belonging to a residence or Republican business. The main area is the curve at the top of the Oconee State Bank property at Main Street and Experiment Station Road, otherwise known as Highway 53 and 441 business route in downtown. It was not as if there weren't a few signs there already, and I have permission from the bank to leave them at the top of the hill. I pulled in significantly away from the instant banker, where someone was transacting their business and I saw a few cars in the far lot near the top of the hill. Imagine my surprise when a cop comes hauling off out of a small pick up truck (mine was much bigger than his) with a hooded cowl telling me I had to leave. I asked him if I may put up a sign, and we...

Oconee County Observations Too bad Bob Smith failed to show up.

Rep. Charlie Norwood, an Augusta Republican, has represented the 10th District for 12 years. He received a lung transplant in 2004, the month before his last election, but his health has not been an issue in this race. Norwood has been a polarizing influence in the debate over illegal immigration, siding with zealots who claim the country is being invaded by Latin Americans conspiring to recapture parts of the United States. The Democrat in the race, Terry Holley, a jeweler and former teacher, articulates standard Democratic positions on most national issues (the war in Iraq, a minimum-wage hike, health insurance reform, etc.) and has no track record as an elected official at any level. But those drawbacks are more than offset by Norwood's extreme views on immigration and other issues. Voters in the district should take a chance on Holley.

Excuses from the Guv. A good wrap-up of the Perdue profit margin factory of lies

Two Peas in a Pod Gux Drexinger shows how Sonny & John Oxendine take Georgia's children off insurance

We had five brave souls attend the Oconee County Democratic Committee meeting last night at the Oconee County Courthouse. Judge David Sweat continued a strong tradition of candidates attending our gatherings, and I think we have had at least one candidate at every meeting since I took over the helm a couple years back. The main gist of the evening was listening to ideas about the Oconee County Christmas parade 11 am Saturday, December 2, 2006 in Watkinsville. We will have the Belgian horses again, so if anyone wants to help out, we will greatly appreciate it. The Blue hat society will be meeting this Saturday and Saturday, Nov. 18th to finalize plans for the float. Essentially we are going after a birthday party cake theme for the float, which is really the back of the horse carriage. Anyone with any extra white sheets they are throwing away, we will be glad to use them. Also any and all large cardboard tubes, like the kind you see inside a wrapping paper roll, are going to be used as ...

Seems our esteemed Representative found something more important in Savannah rather than attend the second candidates' forum to which he committed and backed out of (without any advance notice). Do you think Bob Smith is afraid of answering the voters' questions? I do. I felt sorry for his son only because some one from the audience jumped down this throat the second he made his pitch for his dad. Bob Smith does not deserve our support or votes on November 7th. Keep in mind this is the same Bob Smith who offered Burnell Brown money to have "his people" vote for him. Remember this is the same Bob Smith beholden to the mortgage industry and taking expensive concert tickets to musical events in Atlanta for Lord knows what kind of backroom shenanigans and promises. I tried to ask Bob Smith a question about this on the radio and he simply declined to answer. What more do people need to know about this corrupt politician other than it is time to send him back home? Please ...

Because of Iraq Go Wesley and Iraqi war veterans!

Mac Rawson for State Senate TV Spot 1 - - Please vote for Mac against Ralph Huggins

Ad Running in Wyoming.

Sonny the land mogul A 19,000-acre tract in Middle Georgia - described by experts as one of the richest nature preserves and hunting grounds in the Southeast - may shortly be filled with 17,000 homes and become a closed private city. You can thank Gov. Sonny Perdue for making it happen - and for making himself richer. In 2004, Perdue effectively blocked a $25 million offer from the national Nature Conservancy to buy for Georgia's public use the Oaky Woods property in Houston County. Oaky Woods was envisioned as a permanent natural area similar to Sapelo Island on the coast and the Smithgall Woods Conservation Area in Northeast Georgia. The Oaky Woods land would have been set aside for the use of Georgia hunters. Perdue refused to issue a letter to the conservancy to declare that the state had an interest in acquiring Oaky Woods for conservation purposes at an unspecified date, perhaps years in the future. Perdue's refusal resulted in the conservancy withdrawing it...

For Immediate Release – October 31, 2006 Contact: Linton Johnson, 404-285-2453 or http://webmail.bellsouth.net/agent/MobNewMsg?to=linton.johnson@wordexpress.info WIGGINS’ SISTER AFFIRMS TRUTH OF HER AFFIDAVIT IN STATEMENT FROM HER LAWYER ATLANTA – A Hunstein commercial states that Mike Wiggins has neither the experience nor values to be a Supreme Court justice. Among other facts, the commercial informs voters that Mr. Wiggins sued his only sister, that she said he threatened to kill her when she was eight months pregnant, and that a judge ordered Mr. Wiggins never to contact her again. The facts were based in part on an affidavit filed in the lawsuit by Mr. Wiggins’ sister. In the affidavit, she said she was afraid of and intimidated by him. She also said that after their mother went into a coma, her brother had cursed and verbally abused her, threatened to have her arrested, and threatened to kill her shortly before she had her third child. In a written statement and television ads r...

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Personnel matters are never easy to discuss. It is like airing personal dirty laundry, and it is never a good thing to do so a few days before an election. With the early voting starting today, I wanted to pass along this email just sent to me from Terry Holley concerning his former chief of staff quiting the race and emailing everyone he could, thus making more enemies than friends for this former campaign chair from Delaware. Hanby showed up to two Oconee Democrats meetings, once bragging about traveling all the way from Delaware to have come to one. I wish again nothing but the best for this person, but just wish he might have decided to exit the campaign with a little more tact and professionalism than the childish manner in which he choose to depart. The very experienced and able-bodied Terrance Dix took over the fay to day campaign manager duties after being the Get Out the Vote person for Holley. I hope everyone votes for Terry Holley in spite of any difficulties with personal p...