Runoff Day

Today is, of course, runoff day in Georgia.  The Senate race is a test of Barack Obama's influence when he's not on the ballot.

Sarah Palin was in Perry yesterday campaigning for Saxby Chambliss.  Meanwhile, Jim Martin had 75 people (including 2 dozen former Obama staffers) at a rally in Macon and then in Atlanta with Ludacris.  Winner:  Saxby (My prediction for the election is 54-46 Chambliss).

 

One of the reasons this race is so important is because Al Franken is willing to pull out all the stops to make sure he wins, including getting the Senate involved.  Right now, however, it looks like Coleman might be safe.

 

Barack Obama ended up raising $750 million in his bid for the Presidency, including a lot of it from big businesses and the rich.  With that kind of haul, he could afford to spread some of his own wealth.

 

The Capitol Visitors Center opened this morning, at almost 9 times the original budget and three years behind schedule (it is a government operation).  The best benefit for lawmakers?  Now they won't smell the tourists.

 

The economic downturn is hurting governments, as states and cities face huge budget shortfalls, mostly due to big-government entitlement programs.  States are even going to the federal government asking for a bailout, but not Texas or South Carolina.  Governors Rick Perry and Mark Sanford have a column in today's Wall Street Journal opposing state bailouts, while Barack Obama is all but promising the states a bailout under the guise of a "stimulus."

 

The person tapped to head the congressional panel to oversee the bailout says that there is still not a coherent plan for actually helping to ease the crisis.  Meanwhile, NASCAR is worried about what might happen if the Big Three don't get their bailout, and the Wall Street Journal points out that it is possible to make a profit in the auto industry in the United States, just not in Detroit.  To try to get the bailout, the Big Three are mainly just playing PR; the Ford CEO says that he will work for $1 next year, and the GM CEO plans to drive to Washington to beg for his company's bailout.  Ford also says that they need both GM and Chrysler to survive.  What happened to beating your competition?

 

Florida Republican Senator Mel Martinez is going to retire at the end of this term.  Good riddance.

 

Nancy Pelosi and the Democrats are working on a $500 billion stimulus package.  I still like the Gohmert plan better.

 

The Colorado State Troopers who worked overtime for the DNC still haven't been paid their overtime.

 

A 21-year-old in Warner Robins was killed in a motorcycle crash yesterday after doing a high-speed wheelie.  Can anybody say Darwin Award Candidate?

 

The Warner Robins City Council met last night.  Here's the wrap, and we'll also have David Cranshaw joining us to discuss it.