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Bob Bar loses re-election bid(and other politics)
Josey1
Member Posts: 9,598 ✭✭
Hilleary Pledges Attention To Gun-Related Issues
Sun Photo by Jody Snyder
U.S. Rep. Van Hilleary, R-4th, center, speaks to a group of hunters and fishermen gathered Saturday at Hearthstone Guns. Hilleary is the Republican candidate for governor. At left is Jeff Coggins, in khaki shirt and pants, a policy advisor to Hilleary on outdoor issues. At right, also in a khaki shirt, is shop owner Doyle Sweeney. In red and white stripes with her back to camera is Betty Carter Justis, former vice chairman of the Greene County Republican Party.
By: By TOM YANCEY/Staff Writer
Source: The Greeneville Sun
08-19-2002
U.S. Rep. Van Hilleary, R-4th, the Republican candidate for governor, visited a Greene County gun shop Saturday morning and spent an hour talking with about 20 hunters and supporters.
Hilleary, of Spring City and a card-carrying member of the National Rifle Association, told the group he favors allowing concealed carrying of weapons.
He said, "I have always voted to protect Second Amendment rights."
The Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution says, "A well regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed."
Hilleary noted that Charlton Heston, president of the NRA, campaigned for him during a congressional race two years ago. The NRA endorsed Hilleary in the GOP primary, which is unusual.
Saturday's gathering was held at Hearthstone Guns on Snapps Ferry Road. Owner Doyle Sweeney said that outdoor writer Etta Pettijohn had asked if he would host the event, and he was happy to do so. Pettijohn is a member of a coalition of sportsmen and sportswomen who support Hilleary.
Seen As `Pro-Gun Lawmaker'
Sweeney said Hilleary "has always been probably the staunchest pro-gun lawmaker we've had." He said he was pleased to note that Hilleary's position paper is "right down the line with things we're concerned with."
Jeff Coggins, a Parrottsville native who now lives in the Nashville area and is a policy advisor to Hilleary on hunting and fishing issues, distributed copies of the position paper.
Coggins, president of StateHouse Wildlife Management Co., said Saturday's gathering here, and another like it in Loudon County, were held to find out how best to tap into Hilleary's already strong standing with hunters. "This is a test meeting," Coggins said.
Coggins said there are 1.3 million Tennesseans who hold hunting and/or fishing licenses, making them one of the state's "most attractive" demographic groups.
Phil Bredesen, the Democratic candidate for governor, is obviously trying to reach the same group, Coggins said. Bredesen is also a hunter who owns several guns, though he does not belong to the NRA, Coggins said.
Tusculum Mayor Robert K. Bird attended, and said he supports Hilleary. Bird added, "I was just there because I'm also interested in the sporting activities that meeting pertained to."
The meeting notice had stated that the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency and other topics of interest to hunters and fishermen would be discussed.
Hilleary's Position Paper
Hilleary's position paper states that, if elected, he will personally attend at least one meeting of the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Commission, which sets rules on all aspects of hunting and fishing in the state, including seasons, bag limits and wildlife management areas. Hilleary said he will appoint a high-level administration member to attend all of the commission's meetings. The commission governs the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency.
"Reform of the Commission is close to the hearts of every Tennessee sportsman," Hilleary stated in the position paper. "Despite its shortcomings, the Commission is still vastly superior to having the state legislature decide game laws, as some of our neighboring states do."
Sweeney said during the discussion that the activities of the TWRC are highly politicized and that the interests of East Tennessee are not well represented.
Hilleary's position paper also states that, in the past three years, Tennessee hunters and fisherman have lost access to more than 500,000 acres of public lands. "It's time a governor stepped in to reverse this trend," Hilleary said. He said federal grants exist for acquiring public lands, but have not been pursued aggressively enough.
Hilleary also stated in his position paper that he would like to move the state from a "restoration mindset" regarding wildlife areas, and go to a "quality wildlife management mindset."
It added, "We all owe a great debt of gratitude to the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, the National Wild Turkey Federation, Ducks Unlimited and many other organizations for their heroic efforts to bring our wildlife back from the brink of extinction to the levels we now enjoy. The restoration period is over, and it is time for the next governor to champion a quality wildlife management philosophy."
http://greene.xtn.net/index.php?template=news.view.subscriber&table=news&newsid=90948
"If cowardly and dishonorable men sometimes shoot unarmed men with army pistols or guns, the evil must be prevented by the penitentiary and gallows, and not by a general deprivation of a constitutional privilege." - Arkansas Supreme Court, 1878
Edited by - josey1 on 08/21/2002 07:46:57
Sun Photo by Jody Snyder
U.S. Rep. Van Hilleary, R-4th, center, speaks to a group of hunters and fishermen gathered Saturday at Hearthstone Guns. Hilleary is the Republican candidate for governor. At left is Jeff Coggins, in khaki shirt and pants, a policy advisor to Hilleary on outdoor issues. At right, also in a khaki shirt, is shop owner Doyle Sweeney. In red and white stripes with her back to camera is Betty Carter Justis, former vice chairman of the Greene County Republican Party.
By: By TOM YANCEY/Staff Writer
Source: The Greeneville Sun
08-19-2002
U.S. Rep. Van Hilleary, R-4th, the Republican candidate for governor, visited a Greene County gun shop Saturday morning and spent an hour talking with about 20 hunters and supporters.
Hilleary, of Spring City and a card-carrying member of the National Rifle Association, told the group he favors allowing concealed carrying of weapons.
He said, "I have always voted to protect Second Amendment rights."
The Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution says, "A well regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed."
Hilleary noted that Charlton Heston, president of the NRA, campaigned for him during a congressional race two years ago. The NRA endorsed Hilleary in the GOP primary, which is unusual.
Saturday's gathering was held at Hearthstone Guns on Snapps Ferry Road. Owner Doyle Sweeney said that outdoor writer Etta Pettijohn had asked if he would host the event, and he was happy to do so. Pettijohn is a member of a coalition of sportsmen and sportswomen who support Hilleary.
Seen As `Pro-Gun Lawmaker'
Sweeney said Hilleary "has always been probably the staunchest pro-gun lawmaker we've had." He said he was pleased to note that Hilleary's position paper is "right down the line with things we're concerned with."
Jeff Coggins, a Parrottsville native who now lives in the Nashville area and is a policy advisor to Hilleary on hunting and fishing issues, distributed copies of the position paper.
Coggins, president of StateHouse Wildlife Management Co., said Saturday's gathering here, and another like it in Loudon County, were held to find out how best to tap into Hilleary's already strong standing with hunters. "This is a test meeting," Coggins said.
Coggins said there are 1.3 million Tennesseans who hold hunting and/or fishing licenses, making them one of the state's "most attractive" demographic groups.
Phil Bredesen, the Democratic candidate for governor, is obviously trying to reach the same group, Coggins said. Bredesen is also a hunter who owns several guns, though he does not belong to the NRA, Coggins said.
Tusculum Mayor Robert K. Bird attended, and said he supports Hilleary. Bird added, "I was just there because I'm also interested in the sporting activities that meeting pertained to."
The meeting notice had stated that the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency and other topics of interest to hunters and fishermen would be discussed.
Hilleary's Position Paper
Hilleary's position paper states that, if elected, he will personally attend at least one meeting of the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Commission, which sets rules on all aspects of hunting and fishing in the state, including seasons, bag limits and wildlife management areas. Hilleary said he will appoint a high-level administration member to attend all of the commission's meetings. The commission governs the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency.
"Reform of the Commission is close to the hearts of every Tennessee sportsman," Hilleary stated in the position paper. "Despite its shortcomings, the Commission is still vastly superior to having the state legislature decide game laws, as some of our neighboring states do."
Sweeney said during the discussion that the activities of the TWRC are highly politicized and that the interests of East Tennessee are not well represented.
Hilleary's position paper also states that, in the past three years, Tennessee hunters and fisherman have lost access to more than 500,000 acres of public lands. "It's time a governor stepped in to reverse this trend," Hilleary said. He said federal grants exist for acquiring public lands, but have not been pursued aggressively enough.
Hilleary also stated in his position paper that he would like to move the state from a "restoration mindset" regarding wildlife areas, and go to a "quality wildlife management mindset."
It added, "We all owe a great debt of gratitude to the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, the National Wild Turkey Federation, Ducks Unlimited and many other organizations for their heroic efforts to bring our wildlife back from the brink of extinction to the levels we now enjoy. The restoration period is over, and it is time for the next governor to champion a quality wildlife management philosophy."
http://greene.xtn.net/index.php?template=news.view.subscriber&table=news&newsid=90948
"If cowardly and dishonorable men sometimes shoot unarmed men with army pistols or guns, the evil must be prevented by the penitentiary and gallows, and not by a general deprivation of a constitutional privilege." - Arkansas Supreme Court, 1878
Edited by - josey1 on 08/21/2002 07:46:57
Comments
By Robert B. Bluey
CNSNews.com Staff Writer
August 20, 2002
(CNSNews.com) - While the Boston Tea Party is viewed as the most significant tax revolt in the history of Massachusetts, voters this fall will have an opportunity to make a statement of their own.
A ballot measure before voters on Nov. 5 would repeal all state personal income taxes, and in return cut $9 billion out of the commonwealth's $23 billion budget. For a state that critics nickname "Taxachusetts" because of its multitude of taxes and tolls, that would be a dramatic change, according to the Libertarian Party of Massachusetts.
The likelihood of its passage is questionable, but support is growing, state Libertarian Party chairman Elias Israel said. A recent Boston Herald poll showed 37 percent of voters supported the measure.
"The Massachusetts voters are not as uniform in favor of big government as it may seem," Israel said. "There are a lot of voters who realize that private companies have had to downsize, yet the government keeps getting bigger."
The effort started last year when Carla Howell, the Libertarian candidate for governor, and Michael Cloud, the party's candidate for U.S. Senate, collected more than 120,000 signatures to have the measure put on the ballot. Howell and Cloud are co-founders of the Committee for Small Government.
Cloud said voters are fed up with the state's wasteful spending and the Legislature's decision this year to delay a tax cut that voters approved in 1998.
In 1991 then-Gov. Michael Dukakis, a Democrat, proposed a $10 billion budget. Since Dukakis left office, three Republicans - William Weld, Paul Cellucci and Jane Swift - have served as governors and the budget has ballooned to $23 billion, Cloud said.
"We're pruning back the ridiculous growth of the last 10 years," he said. "This is just a commonsense rollback that needed to be done a long time ago. The legislators are not listening to the voters, so we're writing the law ourselves and trying to change it."
If voters repeal the income tax, citizens would no longer have to pay taxes on wages or income from interest, dividends and capital gains. Despite costing the state $9 billion of its budget, the proposal would create new jobs and spur the economy, Cloud said.
The president of the Boston-based Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation said Cloud has no basis for his predictions. Repealing the income tax would create problems for the state without producing any economic boost, Michael J. Widmer said.
"There is no way this would be an economic incentive of any shape or form," Widmer said. "The kind of crisis that would ensue would discourage economic investment and destroy our bond rating. This would wreak havoc on our economy."
In fact, Widmer said, the income tax repeal would probably trigger tax increases. According to his estimates, local property taxes would have to rise by 50 percent to make up the difference for some government-mandated programs.
"This is far and away the most radical tax cut to reach the Massachusetts ballot in the state's history," he said. "It would usher in a major fiscal and political crisis."
But Cloud said the state would still be able to easily produce a $14 billion budget from its 5 percent sales tax, business and corporate taxes, various tolls and other licensing fees. He noted that is still more than Dukakis' spending plan of 1991.
Cloud estimated 14,000 government jobs would be lost if the measure were approved. But those would be easily absorbed by the 300,000 to 500,000 jobs created by abolishing the tax, he said, citing figures from a Beacon Hill Institute econometric study.
Widmer also disputed those numbers. He said even if the repeal created that many jobs, there would not be enough people in the state to fill them.
This year's Republican gubernatorial candidate, Mitt Romney, does not support the ballot measure, but remains committed to trimming government waste, a campaign aide said.
"We are in the middle of a fiscal crisis in Massachusetts and trying to close a budget gap," spokeswoman Shawn Feddeman said. "[Romney] believes our schools would suffer greatly should a measure like this pass."
Democratic candidates Robert Reich, the former U.S. Secretary of Labor in the Clinton administration, and Warren Tolman, a former state senator, also oppose repealing the income tax.
"It would be reckless to gut the state's resources at a time when we need them the most because of the economic downturn we're still recovering from," Reich spokeswoman Dorie Clark said. "People need social services and there are important areas where the state needs to spend money."
The other Democrats in the race, Massachusetts Treasurer Shannon O'Brien and state Senate President Tom Birmingham, did not return calls to CNSNews.com.
http://www.cnsnews.com/ViewPolitics.asp?Page=\Politics\archive\200208\POL20020820a.html
"If cowardly and dishonorable men sometimes shoot unarmed men with army pistols or guns, the evil must be prevented by the penitentiary and gallows, and not by a general deprivation of a constitutional privilege." - Arkansas Supreme Court, 1878
By Mark Preston
Turning up the heat on Members less than three months before the midterm elections, a coalition of conservative and liberal interest groups Wednesday called on the Senate to reject a planned $5,000 pay raise next year.
The group sent a letter to all 100 Senators in an effort to convince them it is inappropriate to pad their own wallets at a time when the economy is sputtering.
"The federal budget deficit has exploded," the letter states. "The Office of Management and Budget predicts that the federal deficit will be $165 billion this year. Still worse, the federal public debt has ballooned to $6.2 trillion. Our country is so deep in debt that we cannot and should not afford a congressional pay raise."
"Frankly, it is an outrage because people are being laid off all over the country and they are finding it difficult to get jobs," Paul Weyrich, president of the conservative Free Congress Foundation, said in an interview following release of the letter. "It strikes one as a two-bit version of Enron. These [Senators] are taking huge sums of money when the ordinary Joe is left out on the street."
Representatives from three minor political parties - the Green, Libertarian and Reform parties - also signed the letter, which bluntly said Members interested in making more money should leave Congress.
"There is no shortage of highly qualified candidates willing to run for Congress at the current salary," the letter states. "If Senators wish to earn more money, they may do so in the private sector."
Members are paid $150,000; if Congress doesn't stop its annual cost-of-living adjustment, the annual salary would be $155,000 in 2003. The annual COLA is written into law, and the only way to block it is through legislation - traditionally by an amendment attached to the Treasury, Postal and general government appropriations bill.
Efforts to do so failed last month in the House, and the anti-pay raise coalition has vowed to launch a grassroots public relations campaign this fall to exert pressure on Senators to refuse the COLA. The Senate will take up the Treasury spending bill next month, when it returns from its August recess.
Weyrich said he plans to lobby Senators individually, while also seeking support from other interest groups to oppose the COLA. Pete Sepp, a spokesman for the National Taxpayers Union, said his group will reach out to its own constituency to drum up opposition to the COLA outside the Beltway.
"It will consist of grassroots pressure not only on Members of Congress who have come out and said they deserve the raise, but those sitting on the fence who are not willing to speak to break the pact of silence," Sepp said. "From our perspective, this is in the league of issues like pork barrel spending, failure to accelerate the tax cuts and all the things conservative constituents will shake their heads at and say, 'This fiscally conservative Congress has lost its way.'"
The coalition is also banking on Sen. Russ Feingold (D-Wis.) to exert internal pressure on his colleagues to reject the pay raise this year. Feingold, an outspoken opponent of the COLA, unsuccessfully tried to block it last year. The Wisconsin Democrat appealed to the Senate leadership last month "to stop" the pay raise, vowing to "offer an amendment on the floor" to block the COLA if his plea falls on deaf ears.
Senior Democratic and Republican aides, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said it's unlikely Feingold will find much support for his proposal.
"It sounds like a perfect issue for Russ Feingold," said a Senate Democratic aide. "At a time of war, there is more important work to be done and the calendar shouldn't be cluttered with unimportant issues such as this."
"We look forward to Senator Feingold offering his amendment, and we look forward to watching the Senate Democratic leadership roll him on it," added a senior Republican staffer.
Still, the coalition is calling on the Senate to hold hearings on the COLA and has requested a roll call vote for any amendment that would block it, so as to put Senators on record.
Other members of the coalition include: Citizens Against Government Waste, consumer advocate Ralph Nader, Taxpayers for Common Sense and U.S. Term Limits.
"It may be the only issue on the planet on which all of these people agree," said Gary Ruskin, director of the Congressional Accountability Project, a long-term opponent of the COLA. "I just think it speaks to the huge opposition to the Congressional pay raise."
http://www.rollcall.com/pages/news/00/2002/08/news0815a.html
"If cowardly and dishonorable men sometimes shoot unarmed men with army pistols or guns, the evil must be prevented by the penitentiary and gallows, and not by a general deprivation of a constitutional privilege." - Arkansas Supreme Court, 1878
AP
Some analysts say Patrick Buchanan did more to divide the Reform Party than unite it.
Tuesday, August 20, 2002
By Kelley Beaucar Vlahos
WASHINGTON - Despite infighting, low visibility and lack of funding, third parties say they plan on running a record number of candidates in the November elections - and while they bear no illusions about winning the more high-profile races, don't be surprised if they act as spoilers in the closer ones.
Take Tuesday's 7th District congressional primary in Georgia. The national Libertarian Party, which is fielding more than 1,500 candidates across the country, is putting a load of money into ads that bash Rep. Bob Barr's record on illegal drugs.
The four-term Republican is running neck and neck with five-term Republican Rep. John Linder for the party nomination, and Libertarians hope to oust the former because he supports the war on drugs.
"We're hoping to have a lot of impact," said Libertarian spokesman George Getz, who added that the party has run at least 1,000 30-second television ads encouraging voters to bar Barr from another year in office. "If we can at least bump out Barr we can send a message."
Aside from being spoilers, the Libertarians are running 24 gubernatorial candidates, 220 candidates for House and 20 for Senate. Like other third party players, they sense there is still a need for options and believe the American electorate is ripe for political alternatives.
"I don't see any waning of interest," said Getz, noting that the party now boasts 225,000 registered members, plus supporters who don't live in the 34 states that allow voters to register with a party. "We have more candidates than ever and most of them wouldn't exist if there wasn't support for them out there."
AP
The Libertarian Party wants to play spoiler in the Barr-Linder primary race in Georgia.
But some observers say third parties have a long way to go toward garnering the fervent interest generated by independent presidential candidate Ross Perot, who many credit for helping to elect Bill Clinton to the presidency in 1992 by taking fiscally conservative and moderate votes away from President George H.W. Bush.
But thanks in part to Perot's crumbling credibility, he did not do as well in 1996 and his Reform Party has since deteriorated due to infighting based on seemingly irreconcilable ideological differences.
"Basically, the Reform Party, since its inception, has been a cauldron of chaos and infighting," said Dan Charles, former treasurer of the national party, who in April led a defection and is now the chair of the America First Party.
The new party, led by the faction that backed Reform Party presidential candidate Pat Buchanan against more moderate party hopefuls in 2000, is fielding eight candidates in November, including Rep. James Traficant, I-Ohio, who is currently jailed on corruption charges but who vows to be re-elected.
Charles said that despite the highly publicized Reform Party fist fights and failures, the new party is more resolved than ever to become a viable third way based on less government, pro-life tenets. And they say they are already seeing success.
"Quite frankly, what we're hearing is, `I'm so sorry I voted for Gore,' or `I'm so sorry I voted for Bush. I wasted my vote because it doesn't matter which one is in charge,'" he said. "More and more people are realizing there is no difference between Republicans and Democrats."
John Samples, a political analyst for the Cato Institute, says the number of voters who are willing to affiliate themselves with a political party has dropped noticeably over the last 30 years and the latest figures show that at least one-third of the electorate considers themselves independent voters.
But like others, he admits that third parties continue to face mountainous challenges in a system skewed in favor of the two major political forces. "The system is so heavy against third parties that it is difficult for them to sustain any real success," he said, noting that these midterm elections will prove to be particularly hard.
"Things have changed quite a bit. I do think that September 11 has changed many things and that one of them is that the sense of anger against the system is much harder to mobilize right now," he added.
Russ Verney, one of Perot's earliest supporters and confidants who has since left the Reform Party, said he has little hope that third parties can overcome these obstacles anytime soon.
"Overall, I see no impact of third parties in the midterm elections and looking forward to 2004, no impact on the presidential elections either," said Verney, noting that despite their efforts, Buchanan, Green Party candidate Ralph Nader and Libertarian candidate Harry Browne failed to earn five percent of the votes collectively in the 2000 presidential race.
Dean Myerson, spokesman of the left-leaning Green Party, which is fielding 440 candidates nationwide this year, blames the huge amount of money required, as well as a disinterested media, and bureaucratic obstacles for keeping third parties off state ballots.
He said his party, which has about 250,000 registered voters and 152 people currently holding office, is not about "spoiling races," but fixing the system so that third parties can have greater access.
"(Republicans and Democrats) have basically turned their elected positions into fiefdoms," he said. "We think the number of independent voters is increasing because of it. But it will take time."
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,60813,00.html
"If cowardly and dishonorable men sometimes shoot unarmed men with army pistols or guns, the evil must be prevented by the penitentiary and gallows, and not by a general deprivation of a constitutional privilege." - Arkansas Supreme Court, 1878
-- More help needed for Garrett for Congress
Gun Owners of America Political Victory Fund
8001 Forbes Place, Suite 102
Springfield, VA 22151
(703)321-8585
Tuesday, August 20, 2002
So far this year, the Gun Owners of America Political Victory Fund has requested the support of GOA's e-mail members in six races. All of the candidates were pro-gun challengers for the seat they were seeking. Not one of them was an incumbent.
Well, there is great news to report: FOUR OF THE SIX RACES THIS YEAR HAVE ENDED VICTORIOUSLY FOR GUN OWNERS!!!
Here's a recap of those four races:
1. Assemblyman Scott Garrett won a hotly contested June GOP primary race for Congress in New Jersey's Fifth Congressional District.
Garrett, a sponsor of concealed carry legislation in the New Jersey legislature, triumphed in a multi-candidate field made more difficult by the open opposition of retiring Rep. Marge Roukema.
Garrett had run against Roukema in the two previous primaries and was only narrowly defeated. The anti-gun Roukema announced her retirement following the second campaign, but she has been doing all in her power to keep Garrett from taking her seat. She endorsed a primary opponent, and has very conspicuously not endorsed him in the general.
Some pundits claim they can hear the Democrats knocking at the door of this seat. This is a competitive race where gun owners need to remain involved.
Gun Owners of America has supported Garrett in all of his congressional races, and we are urging gun owners to contribute again to Garrett's campaign. His opponent is a doctrinaire liberal who is an opponent of self-defense and the Second Amendment. We urge continued support for Garrett.
Those wishing to donate can go to http://www.garrettforcongress.com or please print out the contribution form below and mail it with a donation to Garrett for Congress.
2. South Carolina State Representative Gresham Barrett won his GOP primary and run-off elections in June. Barrett is seeking to fill the Third Congressional District seat being vacated by U.S. Representative Lindsey Graham who is running for the U.S. Senate. The seat is viewed as a Republican seat and Barrett is expected to win in November.
3. Virginia's special election for the State Senate in Fairfax County (a Washington, DC suburb) was held on August 6. Ken Cuccinelli defeated his anti-gun Democrat opponent, Cathy Belter. Earlier, he had defeated his primary opponent, Mike Thompson, who gun owners know to be a RINO (Republican In Name Only). Cuccinelli prevailed over heavy spending by pro-tax business interests. The pro-gun Cuccinelli also faced primary and general opposition from the outgoing RINO incumbent state senator who endorsed each of Cuccinelli's opponents, including the Democrat in the general.
4. Last Tuesday's Colorado primary ended with a victory for pro-gun champion state Senator Marilyn Musgrave who is now the GOP nominee for Congress in the Fourth District. GOA members supplied many tens of thousands of dollars to the Musgrave campaign which triumphed with 65% of the vote in a hotly contested primary. Musgrave now faces a Senate colleague, anti-gun Democrat Stan Matsunaka, who is President of the Senate. Musgrave is favored at the moment, but if this changes, the GOA-PVF will let you know.
On a sad note: Maine State Representative Stavros Mendros narrowly lost a multi-candidate June primary election for the congressional seat being vacated by U.S. Representative John Baldacci. And first-time candidate Chuck Bates lost his bid to defeat a RINO state representative in the suburbs of Memphis, Tennessee. Bates is already working on a rematch in two years.
http://www.gunowners.org/smu1002.htm
"If cowardly and dishonorable men sometimes shoot unarmed men with army pistols or guns, the evil must be prevented by the penitentiary and gallows, and not by a general deprivation of a constitutional privilege." - Arkansas Supreme Court, 1878
'The numbers just weren't there'
August 21, 2002 Posted: 6:30 AM EDT (1030 GMT)
Denise Majette defeated Rep. Cynthia McKinney in the Democratic primary: "This victory is your reward."
ATLANTA, Georgia (CNN) -- Outspoken GOP Rep. Bob Barr, best known for his high-profile role in the impeachment and trial of former President Bill Clinton, was defeated Tuesday in a Republican primary against a fellow House member, Rep. John Linder, for a seat in the Atlanta suburbs.
Also ousted was another controversial member of Georgia's congressional delegation, Democratic Rep. Cynthia McKinney, who lost to former state judge and political newcomer Denise Majette.
"This victory is your reward," a jubilant Majette told supporters. "Together we can accomplish anything."
With 99 percent of the precincts counted, Majette held 58 percent of the vote in the 4th District House race, compared to 42 percent for McKinney.
"I want to congratulate Denise Majette," McKinney said in her concession speech. "I wish her well."
"I won't help the Republicans," she said in a nod to party unity.
With 95 percent of the precincts counted in the 7th District, which sprawls across parts of five counties in Atlanta's northern suburbs, Linder was carrying 66 percent of the vote, compared to just 34 percent for Barr. The Associated Press projected Linder as the winner.
Rep. John Linder exuberantly greeted supporters after winning the 7th District Republican primary against Bob Barr, whom Linder had called a "loose cannon."
Barr and Linder ran against each other in the Republican primary after the Democratic-controlled Georgia legislature dismembered their existing districts during reapportionment.
"The numbers just weren't there this evening," Barr said in his concession speech.
"We've accomplished, as a team, more than many other members -- probably most other members of the Congress and Senate -- accomplish in an entire lifetime, and I appreciate that very much," Barr said in thanking his staff.
Another Georgia congressman, Rep. Saxby Chambliss, easily won the GOP nomination to face Democratic Sen. Max Cleland in the fall. He had White House backing in the primary race against former state House GOP leader Bob Irvin.
Voters in Wyoming also went to the polls Tuesday, where crowded fields in both parties sought the gubernatorial nomination. Eli Bebout, a former state House speaker, defeated four others in the Republican field, while Dave Freudenthal, a former U.S. attorney, opened up a lead on the Democratic side.
McKinney and Majette, both of whom are black, squared off in a district centered in DeKalb County, just to the east of Atlanta. The district is about 50 percent black and heavily Democratic, though it has pockets of Jewish and Republican voters whom McKinney has irritated with her pro-Palestinian positions and outspoken comments about the war on terrorism.
Georgia, which has no party registration, allows Republican voters to cross over into the Democratic primary. McKinney critics organized a campaign to urge GOP voters to take a Democratic ballot so they could vote for Majette.
Large percentages of voters in normally GOP precincts voted Democratic ballots Tuesday, according to local news reports.
McKinney on the outs
McKinney gives her concession speech early Wednesday: "I won't help the Republicans."
"Tonight we saw massive Republican crossover into the Democratic primary, and it looks like the Republicans wanted to beat me more than the Democrats wanted to keep me," McKinney said in her concession speech.
In her loss, McKinney joined Rep. Earl Hilliard, Democrat of Alabama, as the second black lawmaker targeted by Jewish groups to lose a re-election bid in the post-September 11 era. Fueled by contributions from the Jewish community, Majette raised more money than the incumbent.
In March, McKinney, the first black woman ever elected to Congress from Georgia when she won in 1992, implied in a radio interview that members of the Bush administration knew about the September 11 attacks beforehand. She also said that "persons close to this administration are poised to make huge profits off America's new war."
In defeat, McKinney was unapologetic.
"In Congress, doing what is right is not always easy," she said. "Sometimes you have to stand up to seemingly unbeatable odds -- speak truth to the most powerful interests -- to do what is right."
When then-New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani turned down a $10 million contribution from a Saudi prince to assist terrorism victims because of the prince's rebuke of United States Middle East policy, McKinney wrote to the prince, offering to accept the money for other charitable causes.
In their only debate, Majette criticized McKinney for accepting campaign contributions from Arab-Americans with possible ties to terrorist organizations, including several who were named in a lawsuit by families of September 11 victims. In response, McKinney said her campaign would not "racially profile" contributors.
Majette's campaign also accused McKinney supporters of being behind a telephone campaign that inaccurately claimed that crossover voting was illegal in Georgia, a charge McKinney's campaign denied.
Barr in new territory
Rep. Bob Barr was consoled by longtime friend and supporter Carolyn Meadows on the way to his concession speech: "We've accomplished, as a team, more than many members."
After reapportionment, Barr decided to run against Linder, an ally of former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and former head of the National Republican Congressional Committee, instead of running in another Democratic-leaning district that contained much of his old territory.
The new district had more Linder voters than Barr voters. However, many voters were new to both men, and Barr had a fund-raising advantage.
With the two conservative candidates largely agreeing on the major issues, the race became personal. Barr ran ads showing himself as a strapping horse racing across a pasture -- and Linder as a pony. When an antique pistol Barr was handing at the home of a supporter went off accidentally, Linder branded him a "loose cannon." A man dressed as the cartoon character Yosemite Sam then began showing up at Barr's events.
Linder's campaign also put video on its Web site showing Barr supporters pulling down Linder's yard signs.
In the Georgia Republican primary for governor, former state Sen. Sonny Perdue opened up a lead over two opponents. Pre-election polls had showed the race was a tight three-way battle, but, with 91 percent of the precincts counted, Perdue was on the verge of winning an outright majority, avoiding an expected runoff.
The GOP nominee will take on Democratic Gov. Roy Barnes in November.
-- CNN Political Editor John Mercurio contributed to this report.
http://www.cnn.com/2002/ALLPOLITICS/08/20/primary.preview/index.html
"If cowardly and dishonorable men sometimes shoot unarmed men with army pistols or guns, the evil must be prevented by the penitentiary and gallows, and not by a general deprivation of a constitutional privilege." - Arkansas Supreme Court, 1878
Michael L. Betsch, CNSNews.com
Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2002
The bitter Democrat primary tussle in Georgia's 4th Congressional District took a bizarre turn Monday night with Republicans and independents reporting that they received telephone calls threatening them with fines and prison if they crossed over and voted in Tuesday's Democrat primary.
The race between Rep. Cynthia McKinney and Democrat challenger Denise Majette has attracted national attention because of McKinney's controversial comments related to the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks and because of an organized effort by opponents of McKinney to get Republicans to cross over and vote for Majette in the primary.
Republican and independent voters in DeKalb County reported receiving recorded messages Monday night from an unidentified source warning of possible imprisonment or fines if they voted in the Democrat primary.
It's NOT Illegal
Crossover voting is not illegal in Georgia, contrary to the warning contained in the mysterious message. In fact, it is expected that nearly one-third of Republicans in Georgia's 4th District will use their votes to try to oust McKinney rather than casting them in the GOP primary.
Kevin Jones, an independent voter with Republican leanings who resides in McKinney's district, told CNSNews.com that he received the recorded message Monday evening.
'Very Misleading'
"It was very misleading," Jones said of the "authoritarian" and "stern" voice that stated, "Official notice to Republican voters about voting in the Democratic primary."
He said the message warned recipients, "Do not risk violating the law by trying to vote in a Democratic primary without proper documentation."
"Of course, it didn't say what those documents are," Jones said. "I assume they were talking about a driver's license."
Further, Jones said the message "blurted out" an official Georgia state Web site address that would define what qualifies as the so-called proper documents. However, he doubts anyone was quick enough to write down or remember the address given.
Jones said the message's originator should be prosecuted for potentially misleading and scaring voters away from the polls.
"Personally, I think that it's no different than somebody standing outside a voting booth preventing people from voting," Jones said. "This really is kind of ... misleading and putting a fear into a person who may not have the ability to think otherwise or may not have the background to rationalize what was being said."
Jones admitted the telephone message that threatened fines and imprisonment made him think twice about his plans to vote in the Democrat primary.
"I thought, well, I'm not a registered Republican," Jones said. "I started thinking about the implications" of voting in the primary.
Denial
Dana Mott, a spokesperson for McKinney's campaign, denied any knowledge of the phone calls.
"We certainly do not know who had anything to do with that, and we did not have anything to do with it," Mott said.
Chrissy Noonan, a spokeswoman for the Democratic Party of Georgia, offered no comment to CNSNews.com other than to acknowledge reports that the telephone calls did occur Monday night.
Copyright CNSNews.com
http://www.newsmax.com/archives/articles/2002/8/20/153104.shtml
"If cowardly and dishonorable men sometimes shoot unarmed men with army pistols or guns, the evil must be prevented by the penitentiary and gallows, and not by a general deprivation of a constitutional privilege." - Arkansas Supreme Court, 1878