Chattanooga blogger the Tennessee Federalist Student (scroll down for a perma-link on my blogroll) cracks open Ayn Rand’s Atlas Shrugged:

“I’m…particularly drawn to Rand’s use of the word “adequately,” which she repeats over and over. Businesses and workers do not believe that they have to be the best, or even good, only “adequate.” They do not believe that they should have to compete as long as their performance is “adequate.” It’s similar to the adage about how most workers work only hard enough to not get fired, and most businesses pay only enough to keep the workers from quitting.”

I (embarassingly) confess I’ve not read it yet, though I hope to soon.

Post from: The Blog Formerly Known As Vote '08

Left: Niccolo Machiavelli

Right: Sun-Tzu

Above:  TN Rep. Jason Mumpower

Republican Jason Mumpower’s had a bad week. Denied - at the last minute - the 1st GOP house speakership in 40 years.

It was not supposed to go this way, especially because Mumpower had read up on two of the best political/strategic books in history:

“Fellow members described him as meticulous and a highly organized strategist. In addition to [Machiavelli's] The Prince, he also has a copy of [Sun-Tzu's] The Art of War in his office within easy reach.”

But he apparently wasn’t able to ingest the right lessons.

John A. Tures of the Southern Political Report explains (h/t Kleinheider):

“For all of Mumpower’s bragging about bringing “a new order” that Machiavelli wrote about, he might have done well to read the rest of the quote.

“And one should bear in mind that there is nothing more difficult to execute, nor more dubious of success, nor more dangerous to administer than to introduce a new order to things; for he who introduces it has all those who profit from the old order as his enemies; and he has only lukewarm allies in all those who might profit from the new. This lukewarmness partly stems from fear of their adversaries, who have the law on their side, and partly from the skepticism of men, who do not truly believe in new things unless they have personal experience in them.” – Niccolo Machiavelli

A quick thought about Machiavelli, whose biography & most known work I read in the past year.

Many people throw the term “Machiavellian” around as a perjorative. It’s often used to describe how to behave amorally to accomplish one’s goals. But a closer reading reveals that its main point is to show how practicing good government is in a politician’s (or manager’s, or average Joe’s) best interest to treat all with respect.

Before Niccolo, the “how to be the best King” works described an ideal that never existed in reality, & the goal was merely to strive to that ideal. “The Prince” looked at the real world, & used empirical evidence to define the best way to move forward. It is on the surface “morally neutral,” but points out the moral advantages of effective, real-world governance.

The trouble, though, as demonstrated above, is that Mumpower apparently kept his nose too far in the book when he should have spent more time looking around to see which way the wind blows.

What do you think?

Post from: The Blog Formerly Known As Vote '08

Oh, those sneaky, sneaky Tennessee Democrats.

I think regardless of party, this is pretty funny. Depressingly partisan, & a long, long way from productive, but still.

Further Reading & Analysis on this story (all great reads & different takes):

Marc Ambinder

A Fish in the Percolator

Right at Home

Best for last - A.C. Klienheider (multiple posts)

What do you think?

Post from: The Blog Formerly Known As Vote '08

Knoxville Mayor Bill Haslam (left) & 3rd District Congressman Zach Wamp (right) both have the Governor’s mansion in their sights.

But is the fact that the two of them are from east Tennessee (with a third, Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey, who’s from Blountville, considering throwing his hat in the ring) work to the men’s disadvantage & help the GOP candidate from the other side of the state? Greg Johnson doesn’t think so (h/t Kleinheider):

“With Wamp from Chattanooga, Haslam from Knoxville and Ramsey — should he get in — from the Tri-Cities, as Tom Humphrey pointed out in the News Sentinel earlier this week, that trio could split the Republican stronghold of East Tennessee. That would seem to give the advantage to [Shelby County District Attorney William] Gibbons [left].

But a quick analysis of results from the 2006 U.S. Senate race — a hotly contested run for an open seat – showed that only 201,629 West Tennesseans voted for the Republican Bob Corker. Corker got 393,120 votes in East Tennessee and 335,151 in Middle Tennessee. Even if Haslam, Wamp and Ramsey split East Tennessee, there just aren’t enough Republican voters in West Tennessee to make Gibbons the favorite.”

Read Johnson to see which candidate - from the central part of the state - could upend the apple cart.

Post from: The Blog Formerly Known As Vote '08

New Yorker Senior Editor Hendrik Hertzberg spoke before a group of students last night at Covenant College, up on Lookout Mountain last night during a gathering storm.

The media release promised Hertzberg would “will provide an “autopsy” of the 2008 election, along with a question-and-answer time of dialogue with the audience.“

Which, of course, is why I attended.

But the dissection of campaign 2008 was the warmup act (he pointed out that Obama did better than Reagan in the popular vote, completely ignoring Reagan’s better electoral college showing in 1980 - Hertzberg’s never been a fan of the EC); the main event was a challenge to the professed faith of the audience of about 150. (Hertzberg called it “playing the Village Athiest.”)

After noting the size of the crowd for little-old-him - calling it his “Barack in Denver” moment - & outlining his longtime skepticism for organized religion in general & Christianity in particular, Hertzberg asked for a show of hands.

“How many of you believe in God?”

A majority of hands went up.

“How many of you believe that God is paying close attention to your actions?”

A majority of hands went up.

“How many of you believe that those who don’t believe in God, or subscribe to another religion, but who live good lives & do good works, will still go to hell?”

Again, a majority of hands went up.

“How many of you believe I am going to hell?”

Ditto.

Once he finished outlining & defending what I suppose one could call a “fervent secular progressivism,” he opened the floor to questions.

I asked a politically-related question that he branded - to the titters of the crowd - “more of a thesis than a question,” which in retrospect was so laughably pathetic - overthought & overwrought - I won’t recount it here.

Driving back down the mountain after it was over I realized that this really wasn’t a discussion of politics at all; it was a unique opportunity for many Covenant students (the majority of whom, it’s safe to assume, come from a strong religious background) to be exposed to a point of view they likely hadn’t heard before (kudos should be given to whomever asked him to speak). These students were being forced out of their comfort zone by a man whose logic was razor sharp.

Many students did challenge him. Many were very assured of their beliefs - much like Hertzberg.

& that’s when I came to the conclusion that while Hertzberg could be labelled a consummate elitist, he wasn’t the only one in the room who could be branded as such. These young, impassioned, full-of-faith folks could also be described as elitists.

& the matchup was fairly equal; Hertzberg has likely honed his rhetorical challenges to religion over the years among friends at dinner parties on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, whereas many of the students were still relatively wet behind the ears (due to nothing more than their youth) in defending their points of view.

It made for interesting theater, in a way.

While I found myself agreeing with both sides of the argument on separate occasions, I did feel like I was one of the only people in the room who didn’t neatly fit into either ideology.

Which, of course, made me wonder who the true ‘elitist’ in that room was.

Post from: The Blog Formerly Known As Vote '08

Marc Ambinder:

“Habitual voters tend to vote in special elections; in Georgia, there are more Republican habitual voters than Democratic habitual voters; the minds of Republican habitual voters were no doubt focused on Chambliss’s sudden cameo as the bullwark against an overweening Democratic majority. But these habitual voters are an ideologically charged subset of the electorate. On November 4, 3.7 million Georgians voted. Yesterday, about 2.1 million Georgians did.

Barack Obama pulled out all the stops for Martin? Not really. His campaign lent some expertise and people, but Obama did not campaign in the state; radio ads in urban markets doesn’t cover all of the “stops.” If Obama’s coattails still fluttered in December, they were gossamer-thin. In November, they were thick and meaty, backed by strands of expensive television advertising, significant early vote efforts in the black community, and hundreds, if not thousands, more volunteers. The Obama political team chose to stay out of Georgia for the most part, and they did so for several reasons, not the least of which was their desire to send a message that mere politics isn’t what’s important right now. Also, candidly, some Obama advisers didn’t think Martin had a chance to win, and they didn’t want to expose Obama to a losing campaign.
Nonetheless, it is conceivable that the fact of the exisrence of a President-elect Obama helped his opponents, who had something to run against. Jim Martin had change; but the general election already took care of that.”

Scott at Powerline:

“The decisive victory won by Saxby Chambliss over Jim Martin yesterday in the Georgia Senate runoff is reassuring in several respects. A contrary result would have carried a disproportionately large negative impact. It would have added further weight to the notion that some fundamental shift occurred on November 4. It would have added to the demoralization felt by Republicans licking their wounds following the results on November 4. It would have brought Democrats to within shouting distance of a filibuster-proof majority in the Senate.

…

Given the closeness of the Georgia Senate vote on November 4, the magnitude of Chambliss’s margin over Martin is suprising. So far as I know, no one predicted it. In the event, the Republican base proved more motivated than the Democratic base. That has to be encouraging for Republicans.”

Fair point, but I have to wonder if Saxby ‘gets’ why his party finds itself in the ditch right now; I have seen multiple instances both during his 1st Senate term and during his recent campaign that he still believes that George W. Bush & Dick Cheney were actually beneficial to his party. The man, to me, seems nothing but unrepentant, divisive, & clueless.

I’ll be watching.

Post from: The Blog Formerly Known As Vote '08

Read the runoff results here - it was a(n expected) blowout: 57% to 42%.

I’ll have NewsChannel 9 viewing area county results & my thoughts on who really stands to gain with this victory after the jump.

LOCAL COUNTY RESULTS (rough estimates, my math):

Catoosa: Chambliss 74%, Martin 26%

Dade: Chambliss 70%, Martin 30%

Fannin: Chambliss 74%, Martin 26%

Murray: Chambliss 71%, Martin 29%

Walker: Chambliss 72%, Martin 28%

So who stands to gain with this win?

Senator Bob Corker, (R) Tennessee.

Corker will be wooed/marked/pegged by Senate Democrats as a “moderate” who can cross over to their side. Chambliss will (probably) always vote in the opposition. So if you find yourself aligning with Bob Corker’s vision of the world, you have reason to be happy today, at least in my view.

FURTHER READING: Nate Silver outlines what this means for the GOP.

Post from: The Blog Formerly Known As Vote '08

It’s common to give to a presidential campaign; it’s far less common to give to a presidential transition.

Today the Obama Transition team released its list of 1776 donors on its website, & they include a pair of local folks:

Faulkner, Sarah K…Lookout Mountain, TN…$250.00

Huff, Keith…Signal Mountain, TN…$250.00

More from Change.gov:

The Obama-Biden Transition project only accepts contributions from individuals’ personal funds – we refuse all donations from corporations, labor unions, and PACs. Individuals may not donate more than $5,000. We also refuse all contributions from registered federal lobbyists and registered foreign agents.

Post from: The Blog Formerly Known As Vote '08

From Southern Political Report:

“…how many African American voters - who in our latest survey favored Martin by over 90% - will feel compelled to go to the polls on Tuesday?

If the Martin campaign is to have even a fighting chance, that number must push the overall percentage of black voter participation in the election to at least 30 percent of the overall total vote. That’s a tall order—and that alone would not put Martin ahead of Chambliss.

For Martin to win, he must hope that female voters overall continue to support his candidacy more heavily than that of Chambliss. More importantly, he must hope that men have already voted and that on election day the gender split (as far as overall participation) is more like 55 percent female to 45 percent male.

If the runoff’s early voting pattern of near-parity between men and women were to hold true on election day, then Martin is as cooked as that Thanksgiving turkey now resting in your garbage can.”

Post from: The Blog Formerly Known As Vote '08

UPDATE: scroll down for a clip.

You still have time (though it’s running out) to RSVP to see her in metro Atlanta. Click here to find out details on Saxby Chambliss’ website.

Palin’s hometown newspaper is puzzled as to why she’s campaigning for Chambliss.

& Donald Craig Mitchell of the Alaskan Dispatch blog says she doesn’t seem to be ready to settle back down into the Alaska governor’s mansion anytime soon:

“My prediction is that for at least the next two years Sarah is going to keep her show on the road because that will be a lot more fun than being Governor of a backwater state that spends most of its time as far out of the limelight in which Sarah has been basking as North and South Dakota do. During the almost fifty years it has been a state Alaska has had nine governors. Other than Sarah Palin, how many people who do not live in Alaska can name one of them? And why should they be able to? Because who cares who the Governor of Alaska is?

That is the obscurity to which Sarah will return if she goes back to her day job. In addition to being no fun, for presidential candidate wannabe Palin, that also is the rub.”

UPDATE: The 1st reports are coming in, read more after the jump (I’ll post clips of her stump speech here once they’re available).

AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) - Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin implored Georgia Republicans to back Sen. Saxby Chambliss in his hotly contested Senate runoff, telling a cheering crowd today that the first step in rebuilding the GOP begins with the Southern state.
The former vice presidential candidate made her first campaign appearance since the Republican ticket of John McCain and Palin lost on Nov. 4. Palin’s four stops for Chambliss underscored not only the stakes for the GOP in the Senate race but Palin’s popularity within the party. She has been mentioned as a possible presidential candidate in 2012 - a fact not lost on some Georgia voters.
Several thousand supporters waited in the cold to file into the James Brown Arena in Augusta. Vendors sold bright pink “Palin 2012″ T-shirts and “Palin for President: You Go Girl” buttons. She was greeted like a rock star with chants of “Sa-rah!”
Chambliss is locked in a runoff with Democrat Jim Martin after neither crossed the 50 percent threshold in the general election.
The race will help determine the balance of power in Washington where Democrats are just two votes shy of the 60 votes needed to prevent Republican filibusters. Georgia is one of two undecided contests. A recount is under way in Minnesota in the tight race between Republican Sen. Norm Coleman and Democrat Al Franken.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution has more.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Post from: The Blog Formerly Known As Vote '08

(above: the Pardon of Robert E. Lee, illustration from Harper’s Weekly)

Click here to view the embedded video.

To date President Bush has pardoned 14 individuals & commuted 2 prison sentences.

Read more of who those people are (including a man from Rossville, Georgia) after the jump.

From the Washington Post:

“Bush has been stingy during his time in office about granting clemency, but more grants are expected.

Including these actions, he has granted a total of 171 pardons and eight commutations. That’s less than half as many as Presidents Clinton or Reagan issued during their time in office. Both were two-term presidents, like Bush.

On the latest pardon list were:

_Leslie Owen Collier of Charleston, Mo., who pleaded guilty in 1995 to unlawfully killing three bald eagles in southeast Missouri. He improperly used pesticide in hamburger meat to kill coyotes, but ended up killing many other animals, including the bald eagles. Collier, who was convicted for unauthorized use of a pesticide and violating the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act, was sentenced Feb. 2, 1996 in the Eastern District of Missouri.

_Milton Kirk Cordes of Rapid City, S.D. Cordes was convicted of conspiracy to violate the Lacey Act, which prohibits importation into the country of wildlife taken in violation of conservation laws.

_Richard Micheal Culpepper of Mahomet, Ill., who was convicted of making false statements to the federal government.

_Brenda Jean Dolenz-Helmer of Fort Worth, Texas, convicted of concealing knowledge of a crimeDolenz-Helmer, the daughter of a Dallas doctor accused of medical insurance fraud, was convicted in connection with the doctor’s case. She was sentenced Dec. 31, 1998 in the Northern District of Texas to four year’s probation with the special condition of 600 hours of community service and a $10,000 fine.

_Andrew Foster Harley of Falls Church, Va. Harley was convicted of wrongful use and distribution of marijuana and cocaine during a general court martial at the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo.

_Obie Gene Helton of Rossville, Ga., whose offense was unauthorized acquisition of food stamps.

_Carey C. Hice Sr. of Travelers Rest, S.C., who was convicted of income tax evasion.

_Geneva Yvonne Hogg of Jacksonville, Fla., convicted of bank embezzlement.

_William Hoyle McCright Jr. of Midland, Texas, who was convicted of bank fraud.

_Paul Julian McCurdy of Sulphur, Okla., who was sentenced for misapplication of bank funds.

_Robert Earl Mohon Jr. of Grant, Ala., who was convicted of conspiracy to distribute marijuana.

_Ronald Alan Mohrhoff of Los Angeles, who was convicted for unlawful use of a telephone in a narcotics felony.

_Daniel Figh Pue III of Conroe, Texas, convicted of illegal treatment, storage and disposal of a hazardous waste without a permit.

_Orion Lynn Vick of White Hall, Ark., who was convicted of aiding and abetting the theft of government property.

Bush also commuted the prison sentences of John Edward Forte of North Brunswick, N.J., and James Russell Harris of Detroit, Mich. Both were convicted of cocaine offenses.

Under the Constitution, the president’s power to issue pardons is absolute and cannot be overruled.”

Post from: The Blog Formerly Known As Vote '08

The latest poll, from Rasmussen, has Chambliss leading 50-46, with 4% undecided.

Obama “robocalls” on behalf of Jim Martin; listen to the audio here.

“Mr. Obama has shied away from inserting himself in the still-to-be resolved Senate contests in Georgia and Minnesota. While he recorded a radio advertisement for the Democratic candidate in Georgia, advisers said he would not visit there, to avoid appearing to be too political as he works to deliver on his campaign pledge to bridge the partisan divide in Washington.” - the New York Times

Over the weekend “Freedom Watch,” a pro-Chambliss independent group, released this ad:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Here’s Martin’s response:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Last week, Chambliss was giving a campaign speech on unemployment, & therefore missed a vote in the Senate on extending unemployment benefits.

Al Gore stumped for Martin over the weekend.

Mitt Romney did the same for Chambliss late last week.

Post from: The Blog Formerly Known As Vote '08

The President-elect hasn’t committed to stumping in the Peach State for Jim Martin yet, but he’s just recorded a radio ad for the Senate hopeful.

Listen to it here.

What do you think? Will Obama visit Georgia? I’d say the odds are even either way.

Post from: The Blog Formerly Known As Vote '08

Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney will be campaigning for Sen. Saxby Chambliss (R-GA) late this week. His visit follows visits by Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee in the Peach state for the first-term Republican senator.

Romney will headline a rally for Chambliss at the Intercontinental Hotel in Atlanta Friday morning. The former Republican presidential hopeful later in the afternoon will hold another rally at the Charles H. Morris Center in Savannah.

The article also has this interesting tidbit:

“Martin, who served for nearly two decades in the state House of Representatives, campaigned with former President Bill Clinton on Wednesday in Atlanta. He will also have former Vice President Al Gore stumping for him on Sunday, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, when a runoff debate to be moderated by PBS’ Judy Woodruff has been proposed.”

I hope that happens. Depend on me to post that as soon as it’s available.

Post from: The Blog Formerly Known As Vote '08

Read more about Clinton’s (predictably late) appearance here.

On the other side of the fence, the NRA is setting its sights on Martin’s defeat.

Don’t forget - you can early-vote in Georgia for the runoff right now.

Post from: The Blog Formerly Known As Vote '08

Above: a screengrab from the “MyBarackObama.com” blog post talking about upcoming Senate runoff-related events.

Notice which part of the state is cropped.

The north Georgia counties in our NewsChannel9 viewing area averaged (roughly) 72%-28% McCain-Obama on November 4th (the link’s to an interactive map - click on Georgia & then highlight your cursor over Dade, Walker, Catoosa & Murray counties). It appears those results will keep any Martin campaigning activity in our neck of the woods to a minimum.

Post from: The Blog Formerly Known As Vote '08

To find the times & locations for your voting precinct, click here.

To find out about down-ballot races in NewsChannel9’s Georgia viewing area, click here.

Post from: The Blog Formerly Known As Vote '08

Above: one of the Chattanooga political bloggers I share cyberspace with, Joe Lance.

Joe has just announced that he’s running to unseat Chattanooga Mayor Ron Littlefield.

From his website:

“After much observation and careful consideration, I have decided that the best way to encourage my fellow citizens to get involved in our local government is by asking them to allow me the honor of serving them as our next Mayor. I love the city of Chattanooga and believe that the best way to build on its recent successes, and to make this an even greater city for all of its residents and visitors, is to involve as many willing participants as possible in defining what we’re doing next — and in doing it.”

Quite inspiring, & I wish Joe the best of luck.

[For the record, please don't expect me to follow in his footsteps. I'm extremely happy doing what I'm doing now.]

Mayoral candidates have until noon on December 18th to qualify.

Find out who’s already filed papers here.

Post from: The Blog Formerly Known As Vote '08

Above: A radio spot by the victorious Tennessee Senator Lamar Alexander, which aired in Memphis, & was voiced-over by a prominent retired African-American judge.

He didn’t have to do it. He had a commanding lead all year long, & could have coasted with just the party faithful.

But to his credit, Alexander’s strategy helped him carry a sizable segment of the black vote on November 4th:

“While colleagues like Senator Elizabeth Dole of North Carolina were coming out on the losing end in part because of a strong African-American vote for their opponents, Mr. Alexander, who had a record of appointing blacks to government and education positions, was able to win about 26 percent of the black vote.”

Kleinheider:

“It’s something deserving of at least grudging political respect, if not outright kudos.”

You’d think this is a strategy that would at least cross the mind of a Senator who’s in the fight for his life one state to the south.

But instead… this is what we’re hearing:

“We didn’t get our folks to come out & vote..”

This isn’t an isolated incident, either.

Scroll up & watch that Lamar radio ad again.

I believe both members of Tennessee’s Senate delegation are worthy of praise for recognizing the future.

I also believe Senator Chambliss embarassingly represents a part of the GOP’s past that it should (& eventually will) forget, for its own good.

What do you think?

Post from: The Blog Formerly Known As Vote '08

Pity he didn’t revisit the “we are all Georgians now” line.

Post from: The Blog Formerly Known As Vote '08

.

From WMAZ:

A campaign visit from Barack Obama would sway more voters in Georgia’s U.S. Senate runoff than John McCain’s visit on behalf of Saxby Chambliss, according to a 13WMAZ-SurveyUSA poll.

The poll of 550 registered voters says 30 percent would more likely to vote for challenger Jim Martin if Obama came to Georgia to campaign on his behalf, but 29 percent would be less likely.

&

- 45 percent of the voters polled said they had favorable opinions of Chambliss, the Republican incumbent. 29 percent had unfavorable opinion, 19 percent were neutral, 7 percent had no opinion.

– More voters had unfavorable than favorable opinions of Martin: 34 percent liked him, 37 percent didn’t, 18 percent were neutral and 10 percent had no opinion.

– 87 percent of the voters said they’ll vote in the runoff. Eight percent said they wouldn’t, and 5 percent they weren’t sure. Ninety-five percent of Republicans were sure they would vote compared to 85 percent of Democrats.

The poll did not ask people how they intended to vote.

Nate Silver interprets these numbers:

“The tricky thing for pollsters will be in figuring out just which of these people are lying about their intent to participate and which of them aren’t. Pollsters like to root their models in recent precedent, but things like runoffs and special elections happen so rarely that there’s just not very much to key oneself off of. The point is … if the polls going into December 2nd say that Saxby Chambliss is going to win the runoff by 7 points, you shouldn’t be a but surprised if Jim Martin actually wins instead. And you also shouldn’t be surprised if Chambliss wins by 20. This will be a return to the high margins of uncertainty that we saw in the primaries.”

I tend to agree.

But there are two big “X” factors that remain to play out in the race:

1. Whether Obama comes to Georgia to campaign for Martin

2. The outcomes of the Senate races in Alaska & Minnesota. If both Democrats prevail there (which is not looking impossible at the moment), look for higher turnout among GOP voters trying to fend off the magic number 60.

Who do you think will win the runoff? Post a comment!

Post from: The Blog Formerly Known As Vote '08

Saxby Chambliss Ad

Jim Martin Ad

That reminds me: John McCain stumps for Saxby tomorrow.

If you want to go, details about the where & when are here.

& if you go, please check back here & let me know what you experienced!

Politico has much more on the infamous 2002 Chambliss ad mentioned above here.

Post from: The Blog Formerly Known As Vote '08