Don’t look now but it is almost time to go back to the polls in Georgia. Either Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle or Secretary of State Brian Kemp will be selected by Republican voters in the runoff on Tuesday, July 24, to be their gubernatorial candidate in the November general election.
Cagle, as you know, has had a severe case of blabbermouth and potty mouth.
Among things he told Clay Tippins, a former rival in the Republican primary who
taped a conversation without Cagle’s knowledge, is that the primary is about
who can be the craziest. On that point, I totally agree. Casey Cagle at times
has come across as slightly unhinged. I would prefer my governors to be a bit
more circumspect.
Speaking of crazy, Brian Kemp with a shotgun in his lap keeps reminding a jumpy
young man who evidently wants to date one of his daughters that he just might
use it if the boy doesn’t behave. My daughter would have gone bonker-crazy if I
had done that, shotgun or no shotgun. I get sweaty palms just thinking about
it.
And I don’t know about Stacey Abrams, the Democratic gubernatorial candidate,
either. The last I heard, she was at the Stone Mountain Memorial trying to
scrub off Robert E. Lee’s beard with a Brillo Pad. That’s pretty crazy, I
think.
In the runoff for lieutenant governor, I’m not sure what Republican Geoff
Duncan’s thinking was in a series of last-minute attacks on rival candidate
David Shafer. Shafer almost won the nomination without a runoff. (He got 49
percent of the vote to Duncan’s 27 percent.) I doubt seriously the attack ads
will change the runoff results much and will likely serve as ready-made fodder
for the Democratic candidate, Sarah Riggs Amico, in the general election.
Sometimes, Republicans have a hard time figuring out who the enemy is.
Until he decided he needed to respond to Duncan’s attacks, Shafer had run a
relatively positive campaign. At least The Woman Who Shares My Name thinks so
and you must remember, she doesn’t like anything about politics, except Johnny
Isakson.
The “down ballot” races don’t garner the attention of the governor and
lieutenant governor, but they are equally important to both parties. They
include races for Public Service Commission, secretary of state, state school
superintendent and insurance commissioner, among others — all of which will
have Democratic challengers this fall.
One could argue that these races can impact Georgians as much or more than the
more high-profile ones at the top of the ballot. Insurance commissioners set
the rates for insurance companies doing business in the state. The Public
Service Commission sets utility rates (Does the name Plant Vogtle ring a bell?)
The state school superintendent, pretty much emasculated during Gov. Nathan
Deal’s term in office, still can be influential in public education
matters.
The secretary of state regulates more state boards than a yard dog has fleas.
In addition, it is responsible for voter registration and will play a key role
in the redistricting process set for 2020. While state Rep. Brad Raffensperger
and Alpharetta Mayor David Belle Isle duke it out for the Republican
nomination, awaiting the winner will be Democrat John Barrow
Barrow is perhaps the most fascinating character in the race. He holds the
dubious distinction of being the last white Democrat from the Deep South to
serve in Congress. Barrow had five terms in the U.S. House even while districts
were redrawn around him, requiring him to move from Athens to Savannah to
Augusta before he was finally defeated in 2014. I’m not sure the looney
leftists in his own party appreciate John Barrow but I suspect Republicans have
a healthy respect for him.
Don’t forget that Tuesday, the 24th, isn’t the end. It is just the beginning.
We have a general election ahead of us in November and get to do this all over
again. Despite the robocalls at dinner, the predictable attack ads and general
hyperbole, we should consider it a privilege that we can have a say in who
governs us. Many parts of the world don’t have that opportunity.
Winston Churchill said democracy is the worst form of government except all
others that have been tried. It can be even worse if we choose not to
participate and do not exercise our right to vote. It is not pandering or
grandstanding politicians that are the biggest threat to our democracy. It is
our own apathy. Please vote next Tuesday.