Former Republican Rep. Bob Barr formally jumped into the White House race Monday as a candidate for the Libertarian Party’s presidential nomination.
[…]
“They believe that America has more and better to offer than what the current political situation is serving up to us,” he said Monday at the National Press Club in Washington. “The reason for that is very simple, they believe in America as I believe in America. We believe in an America that is not and should not be and should never be driven by fear as current policies on behalf of both parties are in this country.”

Barr, 59, represented Georgia’s 7th congressional district from 1995-2003, and became an increasingly vocal critic of President Bush, especially over the president’s support of the Patriot Act. He formally left the Republican Party in 2006.

Barr will have to win the party’s nomination next weekend in Denver. I would not say that it is a slam dunk either. There has been some heated criticism of Barr, which was to be expected, though it could be a very vocal minority.

[UPDATE] There is audio of the press conference from Reason. You can listen to it here. There is also more here and here. There is some video of the press conference here.

But columnist George Will proposed this as a possibility:

“You can use your nomination to address one of your perceived weaknesses. And the vulnerability of the Obama campaign is that there could be a national security event during this next nine months, eight nine months.

In which case you can pick Sam Nunn — great national security credentials, and he’s from Georgia where the turnout down there in the primary might at least give you the illusion that you might make that state competitive……”

Nunn has been out of politics for a long time now and voter’s memories are short. Nunn would be a valuable asset for Obama in the White House but I just don’t see how he helps Obama win.

Perdue made the announcement in Macon, where he was signing agricultural legislation into law.

“Our farmers have borne the brunt of this multi-year drought and now face record fuel prices during planting season. Suspending this tax will bring needed relief to our state’s largest industry,” said Perdue, who owns a Houston County agribusiness company.

The Georgia House and Senate, as well as the Georgia Farm Bureau, had asked Perdue to consider suspending the tax, a move that will save farmers and timber industry officials $2 million to $4 million.

The suspension will continue in effect at least until the General Assembly meets again in January.

This is probably a good idea, especially with rising food prices.

Since no tax breaks appear to be coming my way I think I’ll save that “save $.80 per gallon” my spam blocker caught this morning.

-Georgia State Representative Martin Scott (R - Rossville) speaking before the House Judiciary Committee advocating for H.R.536, the proposed constitutional amendment that would define “personhood” as the moment fertilization occurs.

U.S. Represenative Paul Broun (R - GA) and five of his Georgia Republican colleagues in Congress have introduced a similar bill at the federal level that would seek to do the same thing as state Rep. Scott’s legislation. Congressman Broun says House Resolution 4157, the “Sanctity of Human Life Act”, would “define life as beginning with fertilization, and declare that the right to life guaranteed by the Constitution is vested in each human being, and is the paramount and most fundamental right of a person. [It also declares that] the life of each human begins with fertilization, cloning, or its functional equivalent… at which time every human being shall have all the legal and constitutional attributes and privileges of personhood.”

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Heck, my kid and her cronies could have whipped-up much better attack ads using Barbie software. For free.

Takeaway? Nobody gives a rat’s patooty about Nancy Pelosi when gas is about $4 a gallon. Even if gas was $1.25  gallon, as this Mississippi Dem magically turned it into for a day of brilliant street theater/campaigning, Nancy Pelosi just doesn’t light a fire in the belly. Surely not the way Hillary does. A pity Senator Clinton is planning that graceful exit strategy about right now.

And Obama? Even if people didn’t vote for him, doesn’t mean they don’t admire him - albeit from afar. (Yeah Jeff, that Emory wonk couldn’t be more stupidly off-base about white people. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard hard-core Republicans say how much they really do respect Obama. And some of his values. Just not all of ‘em!)

Why do political strategists keep going inside the Beltway to get a pulse on something happening way way outside the Beltway? BTTFOOM.

Democratic U.S. Senate

If the race were held today, the results would be:

Vernon Jones: 21%
Dale Cardwell: 14%
Josh Lanier: 5%
Jim Martin: 3%
Rand Knight: 1%
Undecided : 56%

Matt Towery, Chairman & CEO of Insider Advantage Georgia, says of the poll results, “[Vernon]Jones has most of the African-American vote which equals nearly 50% of the primary. He must concentrate on the 54% of African-Americans who do not know him to put him near a Democratic nomination.”

2008 is a year where identity politics is running rampant with eighty-five to ninety percent of black voters backing Illinois Sen. Barack Obama in his quest for the Democratic presidential nomination. The “Obama effect” may end up benefitting Vernon Jones as he is running in a primary dominated by voters that look like him.

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This is like the magician revealing to the public how they really “saw” the lady in half!

FYI, this video was originally streamed live using Qik.com.

So, I must now assume that the YouTube video was the real deal after all! Given the utter black hole of MSM reporting on this, the whole saga just needed some good ‘ole fashioned fact checking.

H/T to our pals, again, at CL. And for help on the data base from Joe at Joeventures. He was able to find Soulja Gal in the DeKalb County jail data base on a first name alone.

“Voting patterns in Indiana and North Carolina show that resistance to a black candidate among some white Democrats remains a serious threat to his chances in November,” Abramowitz writes. “Obama continues to have particular difficulty with one segment of the Democratic electorate: white working-class voters.”

His explanation of this is long on unsubstantiated, not-rationally-supportable conjecture, and his conclusions lack anything remotely resembling evidence or facts. I suppose that’s the price one pays for (or the benefit of) being a political “scientist”: rather than having an academic specialty that prepares one to conduct research (and draw conclusions from that research) and analysis, all a political “scientist” like Abramowitz seems to feel the need to do is obtain numbers. His analysis and conclusions drawn from those numbers are all assumption, with no explanation added as to how those conclusions were reached, or why they should be accepted as correct.

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I repeatedly, and politely, asked her if she could make someone available to talk about this little media situation going on, like, right now, and whether someone at MARTA knew if the video on YouTube was real or fake. The unidentified MARTA spokesperson told me, repeatedly, “Have a good weekend.” She then hung up on me.

Maybe you can call and get something out of MARTA on a weekend. The number is: 404-848-4900. Tell ‘em you’re Rupert Murdoch.

Funny, this blogger I’ve never heard of up until now, one who typically has mostly rap music celebrity fluff posts, is suddenly News Source Central in this whole deal. Whaz up with that? Heck, for all we know, Sandra Rose could be MARTA Girl! Or the old lady in the video. Or operating the cam. Many possibilities. It’s a crazy, crazy world out there… that’s all we really know for sure at this point. Other than the fact that I can assure you all Pauline Ashley-Wilkes is not, nor has ever been, MARTA’s Soulja Girl.

The 25-year-old woman who was videotaped verbally abusing a senior citizen on a Marta train is in custody in the DeKalb County jail charged with disorderly conduct.

Soulja Girl’s sister and baby daddy called into the Ryan Cameron Showon V-103 today. Soulja Girl’s sister told Ryan that her sister was diagnosed with bi-polar disorder 5 years ago and the incident on the train was the result of her sister not taking her meds.

She said Soulja Girl was turned into police by their mother yesterday and she is being held on $300 bail.

Yes, MARTA Gal was off her meds. Way off. Her behavior in the video was a classic manic depressive meltdown episode. Albeit with a unique, urban-tinged sheen to it. Shame so many wanted to shoot her down like a rabid dog and ask questions later. She needed help. Right then and there.

Lord knows what her condition is now, since it’s over 30 days after that manic display. I just hope she’s getting help. Her family loves her very much and wants her to get well. They make that quite clear in this interview they gave yesterday to V-103’s Ryan Cameron.

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“I felt like Simon Legree,” Scott said.

Really? I mean…really? You felt like the cruel slave master from Uncle Tom’s Cabin? Good Lord, does she feel like this guy when she hires someone? Is this woman stable? At the very least, she needs to get over herself and get a grip.

According to the poll, 61% of Georgians have a favorable view of their senior United States Senator. The telphone survey was conducted May 6th, includes a sampling size of 500 Likely Voters, and has a margin of error of +/- 4%.

Chambliss vs. Cardwell:

51% - Chambliss
37% - Cardwell

Chambliss vs. Jones:

58% - Chambliss
30% - Jones

Chambliss vs. Martin

54% - Chambliss
33% - Martin

Click here for the complete Rasmussen poll and analysis.

The controversy erupted last Thursday when Judge Smith conducted his monthly municipal court in a courtroom virtually devoid of defendants and court personnel. Neither Hazlehurst Police Chief Steve Land, who normally serves as the municipal court prosecutor, nor court clerk Deborah Kornegay, a Police Department dispatcher, were present, apparently under orders from Mayor Stone not to attend the court session. And defendants who arrived for their scheduled appearances in court were turned away outside by Chief Land who distributed flyers announcing that the next court date would be May 29.

Interesting that the Police Chief is ALSO the City Solicitor in that fine city…