20. Peanut Politics Comments on EdinGA

From Keith McCants blog Peanut Politics at http://peanutpolitics-keith.blogspot.com/

Porter has run a terrific campaign thus far & getting lots of traction from voters all over the state. He is a very engaging individual, very likable, has a strong grasp of the issues, especially education, which he is very passionate about. I received an email a couple of weeks ago asking why he (Porter) isn't running for State School Superintendent. I responded that if he becomes governor, he would be able to make a much bigger impact in regards to education. State Sch. Superintendent has it fair share of influence, but not like the governor has. Porter, being from middle georgia has a distinct advantage when it comes to rural voters. That's in my opinion lies his greatest strength. If he can tap that middle Georgia base, he has a good chance of becoming the nominee. Stay Tuned.

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     Keith's comments where posted in response to the following article found on the Daily Kos.  We met the man who wrote the entry for the first time at my good friend Celia Larson Murray and her husband Walter's home where I gave a speech. Someone forwarded me his article written the next day:

GA’s Next Governor: Dubose Porter (D)

by EdinGA

Share this on Twitter - GA’s Next Governor: Dubose Porter (D)

Fri Nov 20, 2009 at 11:25:29 AM PST

Until last evening, I was unaware of some of the causes of our state’s troubles and how much could be rectified by competent, spirited leadership.
My wife and I were fortunate enough to be invited to a "Meet and Greet" with Georgia House Minority Leader Dubose Porter. He believes he’d make a good governor and I agree.
Here’s what I learned.

Being able to spend an hour or two with someone can give you at least a general feel for a person. After a polite mingling amongst the local dignitaries and possible donors, the hostess then formally introduced Mr. Porter. He spoke for perhaps fifteen minutes, generally stating his positions as reflected on his websites. But sometimes it’s not so much what a man says, but how he says it.
His website doesn’t begin to describe the breadth of this man’s knowledge or his overwhelming passion, especially when discussing education.  It has to be experienced in person. Dubose knows the minutiae, of how things work. I think any truly dedicated person that devotes over a quarter of a century of his life to the betterment of Georgians is going to have a very thorough grasp of discerning need from pork, fairness from greed. He knows all the players, what their positions are and how to move legislation. He just needs a bully pulpit to do it and the governorship will certainly give him the mandate to achieve much needed reforms and relief for our citizenry.
In speaking with his wife and trusted advisor, Carol, I found a person intimately acquainted with legislative history and cause and effect in the state. She understands the motivations of the opposing party extraordinarily well but succeeds in conveying her opinions without sounding partisan.
Mr. and Mrs. Porter are Democrats; however they more emphasize a spirit of commonality of purpose, dedicated to the betterment of all the state’s citizenry.  My impression is that they are VERY genuine people motivated by a true sense of service- something that has been lacking in the top echelons of our state for some time now.
I don’t mean to come across as a shill, far from it. I will point out however that sincerity and integrity are in short supply, especially given the temptations of high office and the powerful demands associated with such service. I also feel that few are qualified for the offices they seek and often their dismal performance bears out this conviction. So pardon me if I get a bit lavish when I do discover the genuine article shaking my hand, listening intently to my questions and giving solid comprehendible answers that make sense.
Dubose Porter is electable. He’s not from Atlanta, and he’s well known and respected by his constituents, 76% of which returned him to office recently. He is popular with his colleagues in the House and having been Zell Miller’s floor leader, (back when Zell was still himself!) knows how to motivate them.  I believe anyone meeting him would have a hard time turning down a vote for Dubose simply because he really does have some hard won answers to the tough and divisive issues plaguing our state.
 
I’m excited about finding someone with the experience this man brings to the table, the passion of his convictions and the steadfast altruism of his motivation. Sam Nunn obviously thought highly of Dubose Porter. I’ve always thought highly of Mr. Nunn, the protégé of Richard B. Russell, a friend of FDR, so it’s not real hard for me to ask my fellow Georgians to pay attention when Mr. Porter speaks, contribute what you can to keep him going and let’s get him through the primaries.
Here’s Dubose Porter’s website. http://www.porterforgeorgia.com/

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Needless to say we appreciate his comments.

19. The most corrupt state in America? Georgia.

     Have you ever wondered why Georgia, one of the most beautiful states in the world,  is at the bottom of the good lists and at the top of the bad ones?  It is corruption, plain and simple. Corruption blocks jobs, keeps gridlock, designs water plans to fail. Georgia's corrupt government keeps education down and prison populations up.
     As a State Representative I have fought corruption on either side of the aisle, but the number one corruption facing Georgia today, is a corruption that allows other corruption to thrive-  the Hawks in the Georgia House of Representatives.
     The Hawks in the Georgia House of Representatives have taken away representative government in Georgia. Only in Georgia does this threat to the American way of life exist.  
     It is hard for people to believe that the Elected Leadership of the Republican party in the Georgia House of Representatives, a party which has branded itself as lovers of democracy and freedom, has done more to destroy your rights than any other group in America.

      Only in Georgia can a small number, of legislators, called Hawks, appointed by the speaker or a committee he appoints, go into any committee, regardless of having read the bill or heard one word of testimony, and vote to change the outcome of a bill.

     You read that right. Hawks can vote in any committee, at any time, even if they are not members of that committee, even if they have never read the bill being voted on or even if they have never even heard of the bill on which they are voting. These appointees have the power to override the will of the committee and therefore the will of the people.
     In our representative government how can the Hawks be allowed to overthrow the people's will? They made their own rule. Rule 11.8 in  the Rules, Ethics and Decorum of the House of Representatives gives the Hawks the power to usurp the will of the people.
     You may think the Hawks are a secret group. However, the level of corruption in government in Georgia is so accepted by the Elected Republican Leadership that the Hawks proudly have the title “Hawk” emblazoned on their  legislative name badges. They  have publicly announced themselves as Hawks because they say 'they can swoop into any committee at any time and take prey.’ The prey they take is you.
     I have been fighting the Hawk system of corrupt government run amok for 6 years as the minority leader. I have spoken out on national radio shows and have written letters to many newspapers. As a candidate for governor, I will continue to fight the Hawks and corruption in Government. I will continue to alert our citizens to what the rest of the country already is discussing about Georgia:  'the Speaker can now stack the deck of any committee vote with as many voters as he wants in order to kill any bill.' *(The Yale Law Journal)*
     It will take the power of the Governor’s office to stop the Hawks. As your next governor I will stop the Hawks and return representative government to Georgia.  I will continue to fight corruption and speak out against the forces that block jobs from Georgia and keep our citizens poor and under-educated. Join me as I continue be your voice against corruption in Government.


Verify the HAWKS

1. Go to this web site address:
http://w.legis.state.ga.us/legis/2009_10/house/mediaIndex.html


2. Go to the bottom left hand side of the page and click on House Rules:

Publications

  2008 Picture Book
  2008 Lost & Found
  House Rules
  Labels, Databases, Etc.
  The Constitution of Georgia


3. Download the document, “Rules, Ethics and Decorum of the House of Representatives”, open and scroll down to rule 11.8 and there you will find proof that Hawks do exist in the Georgia House:


        11.8     The Speaker, or the Committee on Assignments, may appoint one or more members to the position of Hawk.  The Speaker may designate one of the Hawks as the Senior Hawk.  The Hawks shall serve as ex officio members of all standing committees and subcommittees of the House and shall have a vote on all committees and subcommittees.



*To read on the Hawks from the Yale Law Journal by someone whom I have never met nor contacted, go to :
From:  A Procedural Rule and a Substantive Problem: Legislative Hawks and the Concentration of Power in Georgia’s Speaker of the House. Written by Kamal Ghali,  Tuesday, 01 April 2008  
   

Hawks.

One more Reason for
Georgians to get Engaged in the Political Process.

Vote for and elect DuBose Porter, Governor
Primary July 2010.

DuBose Porter Works for You.

Help stop corruption in Georgia

Donate

18. More on "Steal my bill, please"

     Someone just read the blog below (which you really need to read to get why they sent this) and said the stealing of my bill had already been noted in a Dick Pettys article as well. Read this excerpt from that article, "Hang On, It's Going To Get Worse "(Insider Advantage), By Dick Pettys, InsiderAdvantage Georgia on (11/16/09):

   'Local officials also would like to see a new system for collecting local sales taxes, a function now performed by the State Revenue Department. Many argue that the agency, which like others has been hit with budget cuts, is missing money that was collected from consumers but pocketed by some of the retailers.
    A similar proposal has been championed by Democrats in the House, but in a Republican-controlled Legislature, that’s unlikely to pass. However, alternatives are being suggested that would be less likely to be identified as Democrat proposals in the 2010 elections.'

In other words Dick could have said, "they knew it was a good thing for Georgia last session, but no one really knew about it and they let it die in committee. This coming session, now that DuBose is all over the state pushing it in his campaign for governor,  and the people are finding out about it, this elected Republican leadership knows the people are going to force them to do something about having turned down over $1 billion  in sales tax Georgians paid, but the state failed to collect."

Thank you to the astute reader who is keeping up with HB356 and sent me this clip. The internet is a great thing for good government.- DuBose Porter

17. HB 356 “Steal my bill, please.”

     Key Republican leadership allowed the bill I co-sponsored in last year’s session, HB356, the “point of sale bill,” (Read “The Billion Dollar Crack” below for more details) die in committee. Today they are acting as if it is something they just thought up and are backing it. I say welcome aboard, and ‘steal my bill, please.’ It will be good for Georgia.

    I have been campaigning around Georgia promoting my common sense approach to government. For the first time, you, the people this government is set up to represent, are actually getting to hear about many of the detrimental decisions being made regarding policy in Georgia. Through my campaign for governor, Georgians are learning about HB356,  the "point of sale bill", and they like it. The key Republican leadership can no longer continue to hold it down and have started to try and make it their own. Welcome aboard.
     Read the excerpt from the article below, and see if it leads you to believe they just discovered this great idea- an idea they let die in committee last year.

From 11-17-09, Macon Telegraph, by Travis Fain
:
  ‘State Rep. Larry O’Neal, a Warner Robins Republican who is chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, said he sees more cuts and “a far more aggressive tax collection methodology.” O’Neal said he wants the Georgia Department of Revenue to hire more auditors. He also said the department is implementing new technology to better zero in on tax scofflaws.
  That includes a pilot system implemented in Hall, Chatham, Lowndes and Cherokee counties to compare local business license records with state sales tax records. Already a lot of inconsistencies — businesses that pay taxes but don’t have a license or vice versa — have been found, O’Neal said.
  He said he’s looking for the Department of Revenue to make some high-profile busts of retail owners who don’t turn over all the sales taxes they collect to “change the subculture” of fraud and abuse. O’Neal said he thinks there are “hundreds of millions” going uncollected either because of fraud or accidental underpayment.
  The biggest change may have to do with sales tax collection methods. The Department of Revenue collects those now, then sends local governments their share a couple of months later. There’s a push to let local governments hire private companies to handle those collections or at least to routinely audit collections.
  Alabama moved to such a system and drastically increased its collections, supporters of the system in Georgia have said.
 That includes state Rep. DuBose Porter, D-Dublin, who is the minority leader in the House of Representatives and a candidate for governor.
  Porter has been pushing this change hard, and there appears to be bipartisan support for it, though the measure stalled during the last legislative session.’

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Thank you Travis for adding the last two sentences.

    The sections in bold have been in my speeches since last session. The Elected Republican leadership has realized that they can no longer refuse to allow Georgia this added revenue. As a candidate for governor, my common sense approach to government is catching on, and they are having to jump on board and I say come on. It will be good for Georgia if they do.
     Would you like to see good government happen, not because it is forced by a candidate running for governor, but because that candidate is governor and has the chance to put the needs of Georgia before the wants of special interest groups? Then join us and help me bring common sense government to Georgia. Sign up for updates, get involved and donate. Government should work for you, not against you.  - DuBose Porter

16. The Transparent Fee Bill

     Thank you to the many local governmental agencies who contributed to the article (which can be read in our web news feeds) in the AJC, “State uses funds anyplace it wants,” illustrating the deceptive practices in Georgia’s fee disbursement.      Telling Georgians that fees will go one place then using them in another is wrong. It is one of the reasons I voted against last year’s budget. It is the reason why I sponsored HR293, the “transparent fee” bill, which would stop this deceptive practice. Once again, Georgia’s elected Republican leadership let this bill die in committee so they could continue to use the money where they wanted it, not where the people wanted it.       I believe in a simple political philosophy – tell the people the truth. It works everytime.      The fees should be used where the people were told they would be used – end of story. If, and in this economy when, you have a budget shortfall elsewhere, use priority budgeting, copy other states’ successful programs, or even eliminate a fishpond, but never lie to the public about what you are doing with their money. When there is a problem in the budget, tell the people the truth, and the people will tell you what they want.  It is called representative government. People elect you; you represent them.  It has worked for me for 27 years and it is how I will work for you as your next governor.

15. The $1 Billion Dollar Crack

House Bill 356, the “point of sale” bill I co-sponsored in last year’s session, gives local governments the right to collect sales taxes locally at the point of sale.  Alabama made the change and found $1 billion of lost sales tax. Georgia’s elected Republican leadership, on the other hand, chose to let HB356 die in committee. They chose instead to increase property taxes, furlough teachers and state employees, and keep law enforcement at record lows when those are the very things that enhance economic development and attract industry and jobs. Why? Because HB356 actually creates local control, something state politicians love to run on when campaigning but run from when elected. Politicians fear local control, because sharing control also means sharing power. Instead of giving up a little power and reaching out to partner with local governments, Georgia officials decided to keep an outdated system of collecting sales tax and let $1 billion of your money — money you have already paid — just “fall through the crack.”As your governor I will not run from local control or sharing power. I will foster a partnership between state and local governments and end the adversarial relationship that costs Georgians money and jobs. Georgia cannot afford a $1 billion crack. – DuBose Porter

14. Great Days for the Campaign

“ …DuBose will be the best governor Georgia has ever had.”- State Representative Nikki Randall
    We have had two great days for the campaign.  DuBose was in Atlanta to speak at the Cobb County Chamber of Commerce Breakfast at a Gubernatorial Candidates’ Forum. Cobb County has had cuts of over $100 million to their school systems. DuBose is by far the most pro-education candidate in the race and knows that for industry to come to Georgia we must show companies that we have a well-educated, trainable workforce. Reducing education will only reduce Georgia’s attractiveness to industry. The Cobb Chamber of Commerce members all nodded in agreement as DuBose explained the “point of sale” bill, which would add revenue to Georgia’s budget without raising taxes or fees. (Alabama has already implemented this bill and found $1 billion in uncollected taxes.)     Yesterday morning, DuBose had breakfast with the Association of County Commissioners of Georgia, which knows that DuBose will work to foster a partnership between state and local governments. DuBose then visited the new “Green Trailer” produced by The United Association of Plumbers, Pipefitters, Sprinklerfitters, and Service Techs that demonstrated how we can train Georgians to be first in line for new jobs created for new green technology.     After that, DuBose headed to Macon and dropped in on a group of teachers for an education summit. DuBose left there to attend a fundraiser at the home of Boone and Amanda Smith. So many people attended that they had to park one street over. Boone’s parents, Boone V and Claire, helped, and together they put out a beautiful spread of food. Thank you to the Smith family and to State Representative Nikki Randall, who announced to the crowd that she had worked side-by-side with DuBose for years and knew that if he were elected Governor he would be the best governor Georgia had ever seen. Thank you to Rep. Randall, the Smiths, and all the many supporters who agree, “DuBose Porter works for you."

13. Welcome to porterforgeorgia.com

Welcome! Thank you for visiting my campaign blog. Throughout the campaign, we’ll be using this space to keep you updated on the work I’m doing to bring Georgia together and move our economy forward. You’ll also learn more about my stance on the issues facing our state. Working together, we can rebuild our economy by putting Georgia’s divisions behind us and the needs of our people before us. We can put Georgians back to work without raising taxes on working families and the middle class. I’ll need your help to get out the message about my campaign for governor. Through the website, you can sign up for e-mail updates, get involved, and donate to the campaign. I appreciate your support, and I look forward to working with you to build a strong economy for Georgia’s future.