Over Coffee

April 21, 2006

   Political campaigns are gearing up, my friends. The Georgia Primary Election is coming up on July 18, 2006, a scant three months away. Voter registration deadline for this election is June 19, 2006, in case you are not already a registered voter. I am paying special attention to the Republican Primary because that is the contest between State Senator Casey Cagle and Lobbyist Ralph Reed. To my mind, there is NO contest between these two men for the Republican nomination for Lt. Governor. Senator Casey Cagle is the face I want to see for Georgia, not that lobbyist for hire, former executive director of the Christian Coalition, Ralph Reed. There are some fine Democrats in this Lt. Governor race as well, but Cagle needs to be the Republican candidate on the ballot for the General Election on November 7, 2006.

   Below I have listed some talking points to think about when you consider your choice. In Georgia, the Lieutenant Governor leads the State Senate. In recent decades the Lt. Governor has been elected from among the members of the Senate. In fact, a large number of his fellow senators asked Casey Cagle to run for this office. Cagle’s opponent, Ralph Reed, has never held elective office before. The newspapers have counted and recounted Reed’s connections to Jack Abramoff, the convicted Washington lobbyist. This smoke and mirrors disreputable mess has been too much for me! Former Georgia legislator Bob Irvin , among others, has publicly called for Reed to step down from this election in order to avoid damage to the Republican Party, but Reed is selfishly still in the race for Georgia’s Lt. Governor, with the White House in his far sight. So, look over these talking points, which were sent to me by the Cagle Campaign. They are worthy of your review.

• Did you know that over his 12 years of service in the State Senate that Casey Cagle has authored and passed legislation critical to your family?

• Did you know that Casey authored and passed legislation that replaced Georgia's antiquated business tax system? The old system punished companies for building facilities and hiring workers. Casey's new "single factor" system has significantly boosted economic growth and job creation.  

• Did you know Casey authored and passed the legislation creating the ESPLOST that allows local parents to vote to enact a one-cent sales tax to build more classrooms and move our children out of trailers?

• Did you know that Casey has helped support the sanctity of human life by supporting the "Woman's Right to Know" Act (SB 77), the creation of a "Choose Life" license plate (SB 69), and that he and his wife helped start and strongly support their local crisis pregnancy center? 

• Did you know that Casey helped spearhead legislation that ends "social promotion", a practice where children are promoted to the next grade regardless of whether or not they have learned the material, in our public schools? 

• Did you know that Casey is a gun-owner and avid sportsman who has received an A rating from the NRA for his perfect voting record on protecting our 2nd Amendment rights?

• Did you know that Casey led the effort to pass "Heidi's Law" which creates a range of tough new penalties cracking down on repeat DUI offenders. This legislation is widely credited with preventing the worst DUI offenders from continuing to endanger lives on Georgia roads (SB 164) 

• And on the issue of taxes, did you know that Senator Casey Cagle passed legislation significantly increasing the state personal property tax exemption, reducing the level of tax on middle class families (SB 150)? 

• Did you know that Casey won Senate passage of a Constitutional Amendment to significantly lower taxes on senior citizens in Georgia (SR 1085)? 

• Did you know that on behalf of Governor Perdue, Casey successfully pushed through the Senate new tax credits for child care and land conservation?

• Did you know that in 12 years of legislative service, Casey Cagle has never voted for a single tax increase? Not a single one. 

• While others talk about what they will do, Casey Cagle has been a legislative leader fighting for the issues that matter to our families.

   Again, I want to point out that Senator Casey Cagle has kept his contract with the voters of the 49th District who first elected him to be their state senator in 1994. He did not resign from those duties in order to concentrate on his political campaign for Lt. Governor. He followed the law and refrained from raising money during the 2006 session of the Georgia General Assembly. He did not cause the expense of a special election so the voters of his district would have representation in the 2006 General Assembly. I give Senator Cagle full marks for his ethical behavior all around. I want you to give him your full marks as well. We have had plenty of legislators in the past who have cut and run half way through their elected terms of office in order to run for another office they wanted more. Don’t get me started on that subject, which I call “Herding Cats!” Senator Cagle kept his contract with the voters who first elected him 12 years ago and have returned him to office ever since. You can visit his Web site at www.caseycagle.com for more information.

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  Hope all is well and thanks for reading.

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