The AJC reports today on a lawsuit by the Securities and Exchange Commission against Michael Rothenberg, who ran unsuccessfully for DeKalb Superior Court in 2010.

The SEC complaint appears to originate with the same transaction that birthed a federal lawsuit against Rothenberg just before the December 2011 runoff election.

The SEC alleges that Rothenberg transferred $169,o00 of money from defrauded investors to his campaign account. In November, the Fulton Daily Report noted Rothenberg denying having transferred the funds in questions to his campaign.

But long before the November general election, there were other warning signs.

In 2008, Michael Rothenberg announced his candidacy for another seat on the DeKalb Superior Court. Erick Erickson, writing on Peach Pundit challenged Rothenberg’s eligibility. Rothenberg and his Campaign Manager/attorney responded in the comments with their version of his qualifications.

Two days later, Erick published a lengthy analysis and concluded that Rothenberg did not meet the statutory requirements to hold the office of Superior Court Judge at that time. This would not be the last time Rothenberg had no comment.

Rothenberg ultimately withdrew from that race over his qualifications. Erick wished him the best and said “[we] hope to see him run in two years.” Erick’s wish was fulfilled.

On November 18, 2010 the Daily Report ran a story that Rothenberg implied that his campaign was supported by Congressmen Hank Johnson and John Lewis and State Senator Jason Carter. All three of those elected officials denied having endorsed Rothenberg.

On November 29th, the AJC reported that State Representative Mike Jacobs withdrew his personal endorsement of Rothenberg based on concerns over the private lawsuit. That article also reported that DeKalb County Commissioner Elaine Boyer (R-Smokerise) denied having endorsed Rothenberg, despite her picture appearing on Rothenberg’s mailings under the heading “Endorsed By”.

Liz Carter, the Republican Candidate for the Fourth Congressional District, had the day earlier emailed  a number of DeKalb Republicans stating that she had not approved the printed endorsement that Rothenberg attributed to her and was asking people not to vote for Rothenberg in the runoff.

Both DeKalb Libertarians stood by their endorsement of Rothenberg.

After Courtney Johnson won the runoff election with 61% it wasn’t clear how much of her victory could be attributed to the last news cycles of the election.

But precinct-level returns shed some light.

Mike Jacobs’s district comprises eleven precincts in North DeKalb. During early runoff voting, Rothenberg ran the table here, carrying 66% of the vote and all but two of the eleven precincts. On election day, voters gave Courtney Johnson 56% of the vote, a twenty-three point gain over the weekend, and she carried nine of eleven precincts.

Courtney Johnson won the rest of the county handily, approaching 90% in a number of precincts. But it is instructive to view the sea-change in voter sentiment in reaction to a news story about candidate ethics.

Disclaimers: I was a consultant to Mike Jacobs during this drama. On November 1, 2010, I recevied a payment for robocalls from Michael Rothenberg’s campaign. That expenditure appears never to have been disclosed.

DuBose Porter, Georgia House Minority Leader and candidate for the Democratic nomination for Governor, has responded to my post from earlier today, explaining the decision not to run someone against Glenn Richardson for Speaker.

As the Minority Leader, it was my role to second the acclamation, as we, the Democratic Caucus, had voted to do so. Previously, and at every other opportunity, we had put up a protest candidate, which had resulted in nothing. We felt it would show Georgia that we were the party ready to do the real work for the people during the financial crisis. And, with Glenn in that position, we felt there was a better chance the corruption would come to light sooner rather than later, as it has. This was a direct benefit to Georgia’s citizens.

I can see how, without knowledge of the caucus meeting prior to the acclamation, one would not have known that this decision was enacted by me at the request of the Democratic Caucus. Without that knowledge I agree it would have seemed in contrast to my very long fight against corruption and the Hawk system. I hope this resolves your questions. If you looked further down the transcript from that day you will see where I voted against the rules and voiced, once again, opposition to the Hawks.

To further make sure the public realized we in no way approved of the Speaker or the Speaker Pro-Tem, we, the Democratic House Caucus, issued this press release the same day as the above acclamation. Please be sure and read the section in bold print:

The first regular session of the 150th General Assembly began with the usual pomp and circumstance today at 10:00 am. First up was the swearing in of all 180 members of the Georgia House of Representatives. With hands on their bibles, members were administered the oath of office by Chief Justice of the Georgia Supreme Court Leah Ward Sears. Next, the house elected by acclimation Glenn Richardson (R-Hiram) for Speaker of the House and Mark Burkhalter (R-Alpharetta) for Speaker Pro Tem. These are the one and two positions in the House and this year the Democrats broke with traditional legislative procedure by not nominating a candidate. By no means was this an endorsement of Mr. Richardson and Mr. Burkhalter by the Democrats but rather recognition of the seriousness of this year’s session. With a faltering economy, more Georgia businesses closing their doors, record job loss, and a $2 billion shortfall in the state budget, the hope is that we can move quickly and address the serious problems the state faces.

The House then voted to approve the house rules but it was not without controversy. In 2005 the majority party instituted the “Hawks” system and it remains in place. These are designated members by the Speaker of the House that can vote on any committee at any time at the discretion of the Speaker, even without having served on the committee or any prior knowledge of the subject matter before the committee. Many believe this represents a dictatorship and goes against everything that a democracy represents. Members will also have to take their cell phone conversations out of the house chamber after today. However texting will still be allowed.

Rounding out the morning was the election of Phil Tucker as House Door Keeper and Roger Hines as House Messenger. Governor Perdue will be giving his State of the State and Budget address on Wednesday before a joint House and Senate session of the General Assembly. The legislature will be in recess the week of January 19th, which is the Martin Luther King Holiday, and begin budget hearings on Wednesday, January 21st.

The following was sent to the House Republican Caucus and Peach Pundit by Rep. John Lunsford (R-McDonough).

Since being elected to the House in 2000, I have had two goals. The first was to establish and maintain a majority to better represent my constituents and the other people of Georgia. The second was to create unity within our caucus to be able to ratify legislatively the Conservative values that motivated me to run in the first place. To a large extent, we have accomplished this goal as a caucus by providing tax cuts, passing tort reform, reducing the size of state government, enhancing public safety and crafting many other important measures that have improved the lives of all Georgians.

Now, however, our Caucus faces an unprecedented challenge. When confronted by this situation, I determined that the best way for us to move forward as a caucus was to reaffirm our leadership whoever that might be, while at the same time maintaining the solidarity necessary to continue to accomplish our goals.

After much thought, prayer and discussion with my colleagues, I decided that offering a petition in last week’s meeting was not only the best course of action, but also the only way to ensure that we enter the 2010 session strong, unified and energized. Many advised me against taking this course, arguing that it would hurt my chances at becoming Majority Whip. I told them, as I explain to you now, that my desire to serve as Whip pales in comparison to maintaining our majority.

For this reason, I willingly assumed the risk of a lost race and of whatever punishment leadership would mete out against me for my actions. To leave no doubt about my dedication to and belief in this higher purpose, I resigned all of my leadership positions. I wanted us to walk out of that meeting united behind our leadership and to begin preparing for the difficult session that awaits us in January.

This was not, as the media falsely reported, an effort at grandstanding. Quite the contrary, it was instead an attempt to put this unpleasantness behind us, to close ranks behind our leadership, and to face head-on the issues that are important to Georgia. Contrary to media expectations, it was not then nor is it now my intention to turn in the petition on the morning of the elections for Speaker and Speaker Pro Tem. The elections that we hold tomorrow take precedence over everything, and further distraction is counterproductive. The petition will be available thru myself or Rep Mike Jacobs, until the close of the caucus meeting so that all members, especially those who were absent from the previous meeting, will have an opportunity to sign if they wish.

As predicted by my friends, the petition has taken on a life of its own. I have been bombarded by media calls about it, and I apologize to those of you who have taken calls from your local media asking if you have signed. I did not feel a need or have a desire to share my plans with the media, as this was for the members of this Caucus and not for press.

Although I remain steadfastly committed to both the petition and the principle for which it stands, I have kept private the names of the signers to protect them unnecessary exposure to retribution in the event that leadership voluntarily placed their names up for reaffirmation.

As I have said from the start, I want to serve as your Whip because I believe the office should be about our agenda (including a pledge not to vote for a tax increase of any kind), our message, our communication strategy, and our elections. All of these are vital to the survival of our majority and to the betterment of Georgia.

I promise to each of you that I will continue to help develop the agenda necessary for us to win, both during session and at the polls next November. I will keep working vigorously to make certain that we succeed in passing our agenda and that the people of Georgia know what we have done on their behalf. Both before and after session, I will, as I have for nine-plus years as a member of this Caucus, lead the charge to raise money and to implement election strategies to make sure that we continue in the majority. I ask for your support and vow that I will do all that I can to help both our Caucus and our state.

State Rep. Rob Teilhet offers his thoughts on SB 31:

Senator David Shafer gives us some good news…sort of:

The AJC today reported the good news that Lake Lanier holds more water than originally believed. But before you relax with a long shower, read beyond the headline. The operations manager for the Army Corps of Engineers has clarified that instead of running out of water in 81 days,

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Governor Perdue wants the Army Corps of Engineers to alter the amount of water they release. Travis Fain posts the press release as well as some comments from the Lt. Governor and the Speaker. The Governor says:

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