Wait for the Ads

I'm sure once Martin goes up on the air with ads this will change (at least in the primary), just like with Oregon.  

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by: TXObserver @ Wed May 14, 2008 at 23:29:36 PM UTC

still,

it's disheartening he doesn't have a larger bottom line of support, considering he's the only one to have run statewide before.

i figured it could be a tough primary against that creep jones just because of race & the dekalb base, but i didn't expect martin to be trailing cardwell.

he should be able to pull it out if he raises at the clip he did in the last few weeks of Q1 (not that jones is a fundraising slouch) - but he'll need that money against chambliss's cache.

primary date?

It is difficult to get the news from poems, but men die miserably every day for lack of what is found there. --William Carlos Williams

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by: RichardPlatypus @ Thu May 15, 2008 at 00:09:45 AM UTC

It would be a disaster

if Jones won. Martin has a lot of money though so I think he can close the gap and win.

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by: Populista @ Thu May 15, 2008 at 00:21:49 AM UTC

I know we

Try to ignore the primary as much as possible here, but I have to think that we could've gotten some of our top-tier choices in states like Georgia, North Carolina(although this one looks like it'll be competitive anyway)and Oregon had they known Obama was going to be the nominee.  

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by: safi @ Thu May 15, 2008 at 02:25:10 AM UTC

Georgia and KENTUCKY

party: Democratic, ideology: moderate, district: CT-01

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by: Glenn Magus Harvey @ Thu May 15, 2008 at 06:07:27 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

I don't think

Kentucky is too favorable too Obama

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by: safi @ Thu May 15, 2008 at 15:02:44 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Disappointment

Not getting a top tier candidate in Kentucky was disappointing.  Perhaps, they saw Obama as the likely nominee and realized he would hurt.  It's hard to think of any states outside KY, WV, TN, and AR where Obama may actually be a major drag on the down ballot races.

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by: sicembears @ Fri May 16, 2008 at 16:14:57 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

I was gunning for Rand Knight

He seemed to have the youthful charisma that reminded me a little of Scott Kleeb
But It looks like he has a lot of ground to cover  

Male 21 Dem Ca's 1st  

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by: lordpet8 @ Thu May 15, 2008 at 02:31:05 AM UTC

So Who Would Be SSP's Preferred Choice?

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by: Gatenmaru @ Thu May 15, 2008 at 03:26:14 AM UTC

Jim Martin, probably.

He has shown the best fundraising chops so far and has run statewide once before.

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by: James L. @ Thu May 15, 2008 at 03:27:41 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

The problem with Jim Martin

Is we haven't seen much.  He has no issues or bio on his website and has missed debates.

Jones is persona non grata.  At this point, I won't vote in that election if he's the nominee.

Cardwell has run to the right too much for my tastes.

For me, it's between Knight and Lanier.

I really should follow things more.

Follow the elections in Georgia at the 2010 Georgia Race Tracker.

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by: TheUnknown285 @ Thu May 15, 2008 at 15:07:51 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Can't crack a 30 point gap? I think not.

If you think any Dem candidate is going to lose by bigger than a 65-35 point margin in GA you're crazy.  With so many AA's in GA Saxby probably won't win by >20 %.  Heck we ran a liberal AA female candidate in 2004 and still only lost by about a 58-42% margin.  

Will we win? no chance.
But we won't lose by anywhere near 30% either.

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by: ChadInFL @ Thu May 15, 2008 at 15:32:33 PM UTC

MOre

We ran a liberal, black, female candidate who had divisions within the DeKalb (single largest source of Democratic votes, bigger than even Fulton) Democrats.  She was, remember, the one who beat McKinney.

Follow the elections in Georgia at the 2010 Georgia Race Tracker.

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by: TheUnknown285 @ Thu May 15, 2008 at 17:07:27 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

allow me please

to take a little different stance here; i was involved with democratic politics in rural GA for many years; i am under the sincere belief that if we nominate martin over that lunatic cardwell(that guy is the democratic version of attila the hun) and vernon "threesome" jones; that the democrats have a REAL shot at "sic 'em" saxby in the fall; the ms-01 race should tell us that an economic populism message can work in the south(which i have known and been advocating for many years); with obama at the top of the ticket, you will see a HUGE black turnout in GA, add to this, the rural white type(think childers voter), who is conservative on social issues BUT are approachable to vote their own economic interests,PLUS the ever-increasing role of women at the ballot box(women now comprise around 53% of the electorate)and i think you have a potential for a race on your hands;also, "sic 'em" saxby is NOT well-loved in GA and the current republican legislature just finished one of the most unpopular sessions in its history(thus, voter backlash may come into play); the politics in the south has always been about race and poverty; that still continues to this day; the way for democrats to win in the south has ALWAYS been, split the white vote and take ALL the black vote; i believe MARTIN can do this IF we democrats are smart enough to nominate him

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by: jackdawkins @ Thu May 15, 2008 at 19:22:03 PM UTC

Problem

As I said above, until Martin shows that he stands for something and isn't just an empty suit who's the stooge of Schumer, I won't be convinced he'll win.  You have to stand for something to beat Saxby.

Follow the elections in Georgia at the 2010 Georgia Race Tracker.

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by: TheUnknown285 @ Thu May 15, 2008 at 19:33:19 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

agreed

i agree with your take; my point deals mainly with the fact that i believe martin is the only democrat running who could conceivably win(an uphill fight yes, but still winnable)

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by: jackdawkins @ Thu May 15, 2008 at 21:11:12 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Stats and sense

Georgia is the same old state that elected plenty of Democrats with one crucial difference.  The addition of another 2 or is it 3 million more people in suburban Atlanta who vote 70%-30% Republican.  Crack into that base and all of a sudden everything opens up.

It may be more vulnerable than people think, too.  The housing boom is on hiatus and the market is glutted big time.  And the Republican answer is ... what, exactly.  "Save" the banks at the expense of homeowners?  No renegotiation.  Empower the credit card companies by making bankruptcy harder for the little guy.  There is room here for a populiist message over and outside the whole old racial divide (and conquer).

And there is that African American base.  The one that used to boast about Atlanta being different and having opportunities for a middle class and a business class that thought green instead of black or white.  Still there.  Georgia has more black people than any state although Georgia (29.9%) ranks behind Mississippi (37.1%) and Louisiana ((31.7%) by population percentage.

Dop a Travis Childers and restore Georgia back to where it once belonged. The head of the New South.

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by: David Kowalski @ Fri May 16, 2008 at 03:41:32 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

exactly

focus the campaign on economic populism AND hang "sic 'em" saxby with GWB(bush is extremely unpopular, EVEN in GA)and martin has a chance

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by: jackdawkins @ Fri May 16, 2008 at 19:28:41 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Reagrding the Georgia U.S. Senate Race...

I saw no discussion of Candidate Josh Lanier in this article.  Yet, Candidate Lanier has years of experience as a Congressional staffer in Washington.  Plus, Candidate Lanier not only supports clean elections, but is using his campaign as a model for such.  That's right.  Josh Lanier accepts contributions from individuals, only, and will not accept contributions over $100.00 from any one contributer.  In fact, Josh Lanier is encouraging contributions of no more than $5.00 from any one contributer.

Also, Josh Lanier advocates ending the occupation of Iraq, while encouraging an international effort to stabilize the country and the region.  And, Candidate Lanier supports single-payer, universal health care, as well.

Josh Lanier is a Vietnam Veteran, and opposes torture, period.  

Go Josh!

www.joshlanier.com    

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by: DebraPoss @ Fri May 16, 2008 at 04:56:08 AM UTC

sorry for josh BUT

he would make a GREAT candidate in vermont or maine(he is light years AHEAD of the electorate in GA);maybe an atlanta area congressional seat is in his future BUT no way his message carries statewide;plus, with his stance on campaign fundraising(which is a great idea that is years ahead of its time), he has effectively hamstrung himself; GA is the LARGEST state east of the mississippi, it takes REAL money to win there(josh has no money to compete)

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by: jackdawkins @ Fri May 16, 2008 at 19:35:29 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Regarding the GA US Senate Race

I apologize for the misspelling of "regarding".  But, to answer your reply, the internet is becoming more and more influential in elections. And, with the internet comes the possibility of very low cost campaigns.

At some point, the electorate will need to make a conscious decision to stop the money game.  Josh Lanier has already made that decision.

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by: DebraPoss @ Fri May 16, 2008 at 21:56:50 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

maybe

in the future, such thinking MIGHT actually win a race or two, BUT, not a STATEWIDE race in GEORGIA, and not this year;like i said, josh lanier would be an excellent candidate in vermont or maine; politics is the art of the possible, josh's current race is simply not winnable; i hope he will continue in politics(i see him possibly winning a congressional seat in the ATL in the future)because he is a fine candidate AND a potential rising star in democratic party politics; our party needs MORE candidates like lanier in the future and i personally wish him well

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by: jackdawkins @ Fri May 16, 2008 at 22:20:57 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Josh Lanier

Josh Lanier IS electable if people vote for him.  That's all it takes.  Also, his having been a Vietnam Veteran gives added credibility to both his candidacy as well as his stance on Iraq and torture.  Plus, veteran status goes well in Georgia, since Georgia is a conservative state that has a significant number of military bases.

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by: DebraPoss @ Mon May 19, 2008 at 03:43:55 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

your dedication is commendable

BUT josh lanier has NO chance to win this race this year;his stance on campaign finance has ONLY cut his own legs out from under him; i know more about GA politics in my little toe than you know in your whole body(i ran rural campaigns in GA for the democratic party for many years); like i said, i think josh is a rising star in the party and IN THE FUTURE could possibly win an atlanta area congressional race(or other local state race) but politics ain't all ice cream and cake; IT TAKES MONEY to win and josh has decided to make a principled stand that will only bury any slim chance he had in the first place; i hope he learns from this loss, so that in the future, he will realise that politics in GA, are much different than politics in vermont(where such a stance on campaign financing might actually help)

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by: jackdawkins @ Mon May 19, 2008 at 04:15:08 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Regarding the GA US Senate Race

Oh, how low can we go?  

As long as the money game is THE game, Georgia politics will be bought; causing Georgia politicians to sell out completely.

It has to stop, sometime.  So, why not stop it now?  

Now that we have the Internet.

The Internet has significantly changed the political scene within the past ten years, and it will continue to change the landscape of politics; soon rendering the money campaigns obsolete!

To help with that change, Josh Lanier will soon be launching the new Personal Command Center, an inter-active Internet community, from his "un-campaign" website.
You may check for it by visiting www.joshlanier.com.

 

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by: DebraPoss @ Tue May 20, 2008 at 05:33:07 AM UTC