McCain to Campaign for Chambliss

By the end of today, we should have official word confirming a run off for the US Senate seat will be needed. Neither Republican incumbent Saxby Chambliss or his challenger, Democrat Jim Martin, have reached the fifty percent threshold to avoid a runoff.

But Republicans, still facing the prospect of losing a filibuster proof minority in the Senate, are taking no chances here in Georgia. According to the Chambliss campaign, John McCain will be stumping for his Republican colleague.

Chambliss endorsed McCain days before the February 5th primary, a race ultimately won by former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee.

Martin, for his part, has taken to the airwaves linking himself to President-Elect Barack Obama. Martin endorsed former North Carolina Senator John Edwards before the primary, even though Edwards had withdrawn from the race. That endorsement caused Martin some headaches during his primary runoff with Vernon Jones.

Obama TV ads return to GA airwaves

Democratic Presidential Candidate Barack Obama is returning ads to the Georgia airwaves. Shortly after the nomination of Republican Sarah Palin for Vice President, polls showed Obama twenty points behind John McCain. It was then Obama pulled out staffers and stopped ads in Georgia. However, recent polling has showed a tightening race between Obama and Republican Presidential nominee McCain. It’s unclear how big the latest ad buy is. Obama will also be airing ads in North Dakota and McCain’s home state of Arizona. Polls show Obama closing the gap in both of those historically Republican states.

New poll shows Georgia might be toss up state

An insider advantage poll taken this week shows John McCain and Barak Obama only one percentage point apart. The poll of 637 likely voters has a margin of error o 3.8 percent.

Matt Towery, CEO of Insider Advantage says Obama could win Georgia easier than North Carolina or Virigina if he invested in TV ads in Metro Atlanta. That, Towery argues, would get some more white voters. But the Georgia Obama campaign says they are running a grassroots effort that is stronger than in other states. John McCain has not opened a campaign office in Georgia. “McCain's done nothing in this state,” says Caroline Adelman with the Obama Campaign, “so everything we do is icing.”

The same poll also shows the race for the U.S. Senate within the margin of error. Incumbent Saxby Chambliss leads challenger Jim Martin by only 2 percent. With a Libertarian in that race and Georgia’s 50+1 vote rule, there could be a runoff for the senate seat.

Insider Advantage poll results.

President
McCain, 48%
Obama, 47%
Barr, 1%
Other, 1%
Undecidced, 3%

U.S. Senate
Chambliss, 46%
Martin, 44%
Other, 2%
Undecided, 8%

Barr: McCain's Gonna Lose Georgia, So Vote For Me

Libertarian Presidential candidate Bob Barr released a statement predicting Georgia's 15 electoral votes will go to the Democratic nominee Barack Obama.

This election clairvoyance comes on the heels of an Insider Advantage poll showing Obama with a one point percentage lead over Republican candidate John McCain. The poll is the first to show Obama with a lead over McCain in Georgia.

The same poll shows "other" candidates, including Barr, garnering 2 percent of the vote. So, as Barr predicts it's over for McCain in Georgia, he's telling conservative voters it's just beginning for his campaign.

"Georgia voters looking for a candidate who truly believes in limiting the size of government and reducing taxes should vote for Bob Barr and the Libertarian Party," Barr said.

And, of course, if those three candidates don't do it for voters, there's always Cynthia McKinney.

Obama Camp: Staff Will Continue Working In Georgia

Democratic Presidential candidate Barack Obama’s campaign is pushing back on reports he’s giving up on winning Georgia. News came over the weekend that Barack Obama would be pulling television ads from Georgia. Then on Monday it was announced some of his Georgia staff would be sent to North Carolina. GOP State Senator Preston Smith of Rome says John McCain’s decision to put Alaskan Governor Sarah Palin on the Republican ticket has re-energized his party in Georgia.

"And so now the whole South will be voting Republican. What we say about Sarah that’s she’s so far north she’s south."

However, officials in Obama's campaign say they are still leaving all thirty offices in Georgia open, and the vast majority of the staff will stay in the state. Most polls show McCain has maintained at least a five point lead among Georgians in the race for the White House.

McCain drops in on Georgia

Republican presidential nominee-in-waiting John McCain collected over one-and-a-half million dollars from his fundraiser in Georgia Monday. The event lasted about an hour, and drew around 200 people. McCain was joined by U.S. Senator Joe Lieberman, who gave praise to Georgia’s two Senators--Saxby Chambliss and Johnny Isakson, and Governor Sonny Perdue.

McCain in Georgia today

Republican presidential candidate John McCain will attend a fundraiser in Atlanta later today.

Soliciting donations on behalf of McCain is a Georgia man tied to disgraced former lobbyist Jack Abramoff.

The on-line email solicitations went to select Georgia Republicans, and was sent by Ralph Reed. Reed is the former director of the Christian Coalition.

In 2006, Reed lost his bid to become Georgia’s lieutenant governor. That same year, Senator John McCain led an investigation into Reed’s dealing with lobbyist Jack Abramoff. The investigation concluded Reed received $4.2 million from Abramoff. The money was to be used to mobilize Christian voters to oppose the opening of casinos that could compete with Abramoff's Indian tribe clients. Reed has said he regrets his actions and Abramoff is currently serving 6 years in prison for conspiracy, mail fraud and tax evasion.

The McCain campaign Wednesday referred questions to the Republican National Committee.

Obama spreads campaign efforts in Georgia

Presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama opened five campaign offices in Georgia on Saturday.

It is a sign that the Obama campaign believes Georgia is in play.

A poll released last week shows that John McCain is still ahead of the Democrat in Georgia with 46 percent.

But Obama’s 41 percent showing in the Insider Advantage poll is within the margin of error for the poll.

Also, the poll asked people to identify their party affiliation. It showed that 40 percent of Georgians consider themselves Democrats and 18 percent said they are independent voters.

Obama evokes MLK , seeks 'mandate for change' in Georgia

Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama said Monday he doesn't just want to win the White House -- he wants a mandate. And that includes competing in Georgia, a state that hasn't awarded its delegates to a Democrat in 16 years.

"I intend to win right here in the great state of Georgia," Obama told some 300 donors.

They had paid a minimum of $2,300 apiece and crowded into the upscale Atlanta restaurant 103 West to hear him speak. It was the first of two Atlanta fundraisers the Illinois senator headlined Monday night to stock his campaign warchest for the coming general election battle with Republican John McCain.

Obama evoked the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. in his hometown, warning Democrats not to forget "the fierce urgency of now."

"We want a mandate for change and we're not just going to run in the same old states and have just everything hinge on Florida," Obama said.

"We're going to try and transform this political map."

He will host a town hall meeting today on the economy in the GOP stronghold of Cobb County.

Georgia Republicans went on the attack against Obama before he'd even arrived in the state. In a conference call with reporters, Georgia's two U.S. senators -- both Republicans -- blasted the Illinois senator on taxes, gas prices and the war in Iraq.

Saxby Chambliss and Johnny Isakson said Georgians need to know about Obama's voting record, which they allege is out of step with many of the state's conservative voters. The Georgia Republican Party also issued a blistering press release taking aim at Obama's decision to forgo public financing for his campaign, among other things.

There's been talk that Georgia could be up for grabs in the November general election. And in South Carolina, two of Obama's top supporters said Monday he would put paid staff on the ground there, in another break with the recent Democratic strategy of bypassing a GOP-dominated state in the general election.

Isakson predicted Monday that Republican candidate John McCain would carry Georgia. He said the Obama camp is touching down in the state in what will be a futile attempt to engineer a win in Dixie.

"I think they would like nothing better than to crack a Southern state," Isakson said.

Chambliss, who's running for re-election this year, praised Obama for bringing new voters into the process.

"I have to commend him for that," Chambliss said. "But we want to make sure that people understand really how this guy has voted and what he stands for."

A spokesman for the Georgia Democratic Party said it was telling that Republicans launched such a coordinated offensive against Obama.

"Don't let our senators fool you -- Georgia is not as red as they would have you believe," Martin Matheny said.

Obama on Monday also received a plug from Georgia Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Vernon Jones on Monday who praised him for battling in the state unlike some previous Democratic presidential candidates "who wrote the South off."

The last Democrat to carry Georgia in a presidential contest was Bill Clinton in 1992.

Jones' comments came a few days after a mailer from his campaign made waves with the Obama camp. The flier featured a composite picture of Jones and Obama under Obama's signature slogan: "Yes We Can!

The Obama campaign issued a statement which said "despite what this mailer inaccurately suggests, Sen. Obama will not endorse a candidate in the U.S. Senate primary in Georgia." Jones brushed aside such criticism on Monday and said the flier merely shows that he's supporting Obama.

Jones volunteered that he can help Obama.

"For Sen. Obama to win Georgia he's going to need conservative Democrats like myself, obviously that's the great need," Jones said.

Obama visits Georgia

Barack Obama's campaign says he will visit Georgia on Tuesday to discuss the effects of the economy on families. The presumptive Democratic presidential nominee will attend a public town hall meeting at a High School in Powder Springs.

The Obama campaign says the senator's visit to Georgia is part of an effort to win over states that President Bush won in 2000 and 2004. One poll released last week showed Obama only 2 percentage points behind John McCain in Georgia. But other polls have been showing McCain with a lead of up to 10 point.

The fact that Obama is traveling to Georgia shows that his campaing believes he can win the state. Campaign officials say that during the next week, Obama will focus his message on economic security. He will also hold a private fund raising event.

Presidential race in Georgia tight

A new poll shows Republican presidential candidate John McCain with only a 44 to 43 percent lead over presumptive Democratic nominee Barack Obama here in Georgia. Libertarian candidate Bob Barr draws 6 percent. Those numbers come from Atlanta-based Insider Advantage. Obama’s campaign announced it will start running a new 60-second TV ad in Georgia and 17 other states today.

Obama supporting Barrow in state race

Presumptive Democratic nominee Barack Obama is throwing his support behind Georgia congressman John Barrow in his race against a state lawmaker.

Experts say Obama’s support could prove crucial for Barrow, a white incumbent from Savannah, who is running against black legislator, state Sen. Regina Thomas.

Black voters are a solid majority in the 12th Congressional District, which includes large portions of Savannah and Augusta.

Obama will soon begin airing his first TV ad in the state since clinching his party’s nomination.

The spot, which will also run 17 other states is a biographical sketch called, “Country I Love.”

Georgia has voted heavily Republican in recent years. The GOP believes the state will give its 15 electoral votes to John McCain, the GOP nominee in waiting, in November.

Click here for more GPB News coverage of the July 15th state race, and here for the presidential elections: http://gpbelectionnews.blogspot.com/

McCain Needs to Amp Up Evangelical Outreach, Reed Says

Former Christian Coalition head and candidate for Georgia lieutenant Governor Ralph Reed says John McCain should step up his efforts to reach out to evangelical voters. Reed said the presumptive GOP nominee for president could win more than 70 percent of the evangelical vote if he continues to woo them.

McCain Maintains Ten Point Lead

Georgia has been mentioned as a possible Presidential battle ground state, yet new polling released Tuesday shows the presumptive GOP nominee well ahead of his Democratic challenger.

This is the first Georgia presidential poll since Illinois Senator Barack Obama locked up the nomination earlier this month.It was conducted by Rasmussen, and it shows Obama trailing GOP candidate John McCain by ten percent.

Polls conducted back in February show a similar lead for the Arizona Senator. During the February 5th primary, more Democrats turned out to the polls, leading some strategists to think Georgia could be up for grabs.

Enthusiasm for Obama via fundraising has been strong in Georgia, as he’s far out raised McCain.Yet the poll shows McCain is doing well among seniors and military veterans, two key swing groups in Georgia.

The Presidential election will be held in one hundred forty five days.

Georgia said to be potential battleground state for Presidential election

Georgia has been mentioned as a possible Presidential battle ground state, despite new polling numbers released today which show the presumptive GOP nominee John McCain well ahead of his Democratic challenger.

This is the first Georgia presidential poll since Senator Barack Obama locked up the nomination earlier this month.

The poll was conducted by polling firm Rasmussen, and shows Obama trailing McCain by ten percent. Polls conducted back in February show a similar lead for the former Arizona Senator.

During the February 5th primary, more Democrats turned out to the polls, leading some strategists to think Georgia could be up for grabs.

Fundraising has been strong in Georgia for Obama, and he has far outraised McCain.

Yet the poll shows McCain is doing well among seniors and military veterans, two key swing groups in Georgia.

The Presidential election will be held in 145 days.

Democrats Keep Raking in the Money

New finance reports released today show Democrats are out raising presumptive GOP nominee John McCain in Georgia.

For the past ten years, Republicans have far out performed their Democratic rivals in raising money in Georgia, according to election records. But since his win in Iowa, Democratic Presidential front runner Barack Obama has out raised presumptive McCain by more than two to one, according to federal election commission filings. About half of Obama’s two million dollar haul in Georgia came from small donors.

About 20 percent of McCain’s Georgia money comes from small donors.

Candidate contributions are just one indicator of where Georgians are leaning politically. Another measure is polling, and there McCain fares much better than Obama. The latest survey shows the Arizona Senator up by thirteen points.

(Click on the hyperlinks to see the numbers.)

GOP Convention Recap

Georgia Republicans united behind likely GOP presidential nominee John McCain at the party’s annual convention this weekend in Columbus. They selected delegates to represent Georgia at the national GOP convention in September.

Elected officials taking the podium said the party needs to return to its conservative roots, focusing on issues like tax, immigration, military might and gun rights.

Perdue urged Republicans to be steadfast, and said recent Democratic wins in the Bible Belt should be a warning around the south and the nation. Then outside to reporters, he said he feels very good about Georgia.

(Associated Press)

Columbus: GA GOP unites behind McCain

Sen. Chambliss addresses a sparse crowd of convention delegates at the Columbus Civic Center, on Friday, May 16th, 2008. Many more arrived for Saturday's session. (Dave Bender)

Georgia Republicans united behind likely GOP presidential nominee John McCain on Saturday and fired up their faithful members at the party's annual convention Saturday.

Delegates were selected to represent the state at the national GOP convention in September, and a steady stream of elected officials who took the podium said the party needs to come home to its bedrock conservative issues from taxes and immigration to military might and gun rights.

"We've got some work to do. We've got some proving to do,'' said U.S. Rep. Lynn Westmoreland of Sharpsburg. "The base didn't get lost. We got lost.''

Governor Sonny Perdue urged Republicans to avoid poll-driven "gimmicks'' and suggested there was a damaging disconnect between party leaders in Washington and conservative states like Georgia.

Recent contests in the Bible Belt that have elected Democrats "ought to be a warning around the South and around the United States,'' Perdue said. But, he later told reporters, "I feel very good about Georgia.''

Democrats made gains in 2006 by winning control of the U.S. House and Senate, but Georgia bucked the trend by electing Republicans to a couple of statewide posts that had been held by Democrats.

However, Republicans said they were not taking anything for granted, especially after Democrats cast more ballots in this year's Feb. 5 presidential primary than the GOP.

The main order of business Saturday was to select delegates who will attend the national GOP convention. Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee won Georgia's presidential primary with strong support from religious conservatives and independents. But on Saturday, John McCain stickers were everywhere and nearly every speech plugged the Arizona senator.

The slate of 30 delegates and 30 alternates selected included prominent supporters of Huckabee, as well as other former GOP contenders including former New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani; Fred Thompson, the one-time senator from Tennessee; and ex-Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney.

Among the delegates were supporters of U.S. Rep. Ron Paul of Texas. A vocal group of Paul supporters were also in the stands, according to the Associated Press.

Bickering on the floor turned caustic at times. One delegate demanded a resolution condemning abortion as "prenatal murder.'' Another participant had his microphone turned off when he criticized the war in Iraq.

"I've never seen debate stifled that much,'' said state committee member Brian Laurens, of Ellijay, who said he's been involved in state conventions since 2002.

Turnout by delegates on Friday afternoon's 2 p.m. opening session was light; many arrived later in the evening, and on Saturday. (Dave Bender)

U.S. Sen. Saxby Chambliss on Friday said he'd warned President Bush that vetoing the farm bill could hurt presumptive GOP nominee John McCain in reliably Republican states this fall.

"If they get turned off by Republicans it's going to make it tough for John to get those votes," Chambliss told reporters following his speech.

Chambliss, a loyal Bush ally who is running for re-election, said he told the president that that with his low approval ratings he should avoid alienating voters in agriculture-rich states in the South and the Midwest that have supported him.

White House officials have suggested Bush will veto the bill.

Chambliss, the top Republican on the Senate Agriculture Committee, defended the recently adopted bill from critics who said it is heavy on rich subsidies to wealthy farmers.

"That's ridiculous," Chambliss said. He said the bulk of the farm bill spending went to nutrition programs, like food stamps and school lunches. And he argued that individual farmers earning more than $750,000 a year don't qualify for federal aid, under the bill.

Chambliss was asked about the five-year $300 billion farm bill by reporters but he made no mention of it in his speech to the party faithful at the Columbus Civic Center for the kickoff of the state party's convention. Also missing from the speech: Any reference to President Bush.
Bush's dismal approval ratings have many election-bound Republicans steering clear.

Chambliss did talk up McCain and urged Georgians to unite behind the Arizona senator. Georgia went for former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee in the Feb. 5 primary. Huckabee drew strong support from independents and religious conservatives.

Chambliss made a case for his own re-election to a second-term by issuing a dire warning about what the nation will be like if Democrats win a handful of additional seats in the U.S. Senate. Under Senate rules, Republicans will lose the ability to block the Democrats' agenda.

Click here for more GPB News coverage of the presidential elections.

(The Associated Press)

McCain in Georgia

John McCain was in Georgia last night, and wakes up in the state this morning. The Republican presidential nominee-to-be has a meeting with employees of Chick-fil-A in Atlanta today. McCain last night was flanked by Governor Sonny Perdue and Lieutenant Governor Casey Cagle at a $1,000 per-plate fundraiser. McCain is beginning the process here of winning over many who backed other GOP hopefuls in the primary. Mike Huckabee won Georgia's primary last month.

Obama, Huckabee win Georgia primary

Barack Obama and Mike Huckabee were the big winners in yesterday’s presidential primary in Georgia.

With 99% of precincts reporting, Obama won 66% of the votes from state Democrats; Hillary Clinton earned 31%.

On the Republican side, it was a much closer race with Huckabee earning 34% of the vote, followed by John McCain with 32% and Mitt Romney with 30%.