Everhart Names Kevin Harris Acting Executive Director of the GAGOP

Sue Everhart, Chairman of the Georgia Republican Party, today named Kevin Harris acting Executive Director of the Georgia Republican Party. Harris replaces Toby Carr, who joined Governor-elect Nathan Deal’s transition.

“I appreciate Toby’s hard work throughout the Election that led us to historic victories in 2010, including a Republican sweep of all statewide offices,” Everhart said. “I look forward to working with Kevin as we prepare for the upcoming State Convention and the Presidential election in 2012.”

Kevin Harris previously served as Political Director for the Georgia Republican Party. Kevin is a professor of political science and a seasoned member of Georgia’s Republican grassroots organization. He has served as a precinct captain, chairman of the Fannin County Republican Party and chairman of the 9th District Committee Republican Party.

Republican Party Projected To Pick Up 6 State Attorney General Seats on November 2

/PRNewswire/ -- Republicans may pick up as many as six state Attorney General seats on November 2, according to Joseph Kastner, Ballotpedia's state Attorney General elections editor.

Kastner says that Attorney General seats currently held by Democrats in Arizona, California, Georgia, Kansas, Ohio, and Oklahoma are in the "leans Republican" or "likely Republican" column based on factors that include polls and campaign funding.

Heading into November 2, the Democratic Party holds the AG position in 32 states, while the GOP holds it in just 18.

However, only 30 of the 50 state attorney general seats are up for election in 2010. In the 30 states with 2010 attorney general elections, Democrats hold 20 seats and Republicans hold 10.

If the GOP picks up six seats as projected, holding all its "safe, likely and leans" elections, it will win 57% of the 30 November elections. It will also then be in possession of 24 state AG seats altogether, while the Democratic Party, if it holds all its "safe, likely or leans" Democratic seats, will be at 25.

Just one state, Iowa, is in the toss-up column, according to Kastner's analysis. Iowa's AG position, currently occupied by a Democrat, could go either way. The Iowa Attorney General election pits incumbent Tom Miller against Republican challenger Brenna Findley. According to Kastner, Iowa's race is "one of the toughest to predict" because of limited polling information in the down-ballot race. GOP challenger Findley has significantly outperformed Miller in the money sweepstakes since mid-summer which may enable her to be competitive with Miller's incumbency and name-recognition advantage.

If the "leans/likely" elections come in where projected for Democrats and Republicans, then toss-up Iowa is the state to watch to see if the final national tally is 26 D–24 R, or a 25-25 split.

Two attorney general offices are likely to get a new occupant as a result of their 2010 gubernatorial election, because in these states, the AG is appointed by the governor. Hawaii currently has a Republican governor, but is thought to be a gubernatorial pick-up opportunity for the Democratic Party in 2010. The reverse is true in Wyoming.

Ballotpedia.org is sponsored by the non-profit, non-partisan Lucy Burns Institute (LBI) based in Madison, Wisconsin.

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Dale Peterson ad for Nathan Deal, candidate for Georgia Governor

I laughed at the end... the true sign of a good ad in my opinion! - jmd

Roy-onomics: No Way to Pay for Big Spending

Georgia legislators are required to pass a balanced budget but you wouldn’t know it if you saw Roy Barnes’ campaign promises. The Savannah Morning News has quantified Barnes’ campaign pledges at $2.2 billion per year, meaning his governorship would cost voters over $8 billion in campaign promises alone.

How will Roy Barnes pay for his binge-spending plans? He’s only proposed elimination of one tax exemption, the tax exemption on jet fuel, worth $24 million and barely 1% of his new spending. Barnes also proposed a plan to allow local governments to collect sales taxes, but he disagrees with his own campaign manager on the amount of revenue it would bring in. Even the most optimistic estimates fall far short of balancing the budget with his pie-in-the-sky promises of massive new spending.

“Roy’s big spending plans mirror those of Washington Democrats, not the wishes of Georgia voters,” said Georgia Republican Party Chairman Sue Everhart. “Republicans are addressing the concerns of Georgians by cutting spending and living within our means.”

Georgia Republicans Got It Right, But Macon Telegraph Won’t Hear of It

The Macon Telegraph ran a column on Sunday encouraging the Georgia Republican Party to take action to change the ballot in light of misleading information spread in the press. After agreeing to give the GAGOP space to refute their claims, the Telegraph rejected the response.

While it is the paper’s prerogative to refuse op-eds, the Georgia Republican Party believes the column printed by the Macon Telegraph was misleading and warrants response. Below is the op-ed submitted by the GAGOP.

Georgia Republicans Got It Right

Kenny Burgamy made many claims in his recent opinion piece (There’s Time to Get It Right, Macon Telegraph, 9/19/2010) that were untrue and infeasible. Perhaps the most errant assumption was that Georgia Republicans got it wrong when they nominated Nathan Deal as the Republican candidate for Governor. That couldn’t be further from the truth.

Nathan won the nomination in a close primary and runoff. In a state considered to be a Democratic stronghold for generations, Georgia Republicans showed up in record numbers in two successive elections showing their preference for the party of personal freedom and smaller government. While Nathan won the runoff by less than 1 percent, the top two finishers in the primary both bested Roy Barnes with 10 percent more votes.

Mr. Deal’s personal finances have been well documented over the last week, but let’s not ignore the facts. Nathan is a successful small businessman who has created jobs and turned a profit – even in these difficult financial times. Businesses have their ups and downs. The only thing unique here is that Deal’s ups and downs are front-page news.

I can see how that point would get lost in the Democrats’ spin cycle. Most people understand that they simply cannot spend more than they take in. Democrats, however, have overlooked that rule as they have escalated our country into further debt with their binge spending legislation, plunging our nation into $13 trillion in debt.

In Georgia, Roy Barnes has shown he’s not all that different than Washington Democrats. As governor, he turned a $700 million budget surplus into a $620 million shortfall. Now, he’s proposed $2.4 billion in new spending with no way to pay for it, just like a Washington Democrat.

Roy has spent most of his career suing small businesses rather than creating them and destroying jobs for his personal gain. He doesn’t embrace the creative spirit of Georgians who take calculated risks — he demonizes them.

The Georgia Republican Party is the party of small businesses and strong families across Georgia. We believe that Americans can better themselves through hard work, personal responsibility and seizing opportunities. While the road to success is lined with periodic setbacks, we see them as learning opportunities that can move us forward.

Georgia’s successful economic recovery will depend on people willing to take a calculated risk to start a business and employ Georgians. It will also depend on policy-makers’ willingness to create an environment that fosters our American and exceptional entrepreneurism. That’s why we need Nathan Deal.

Nathan’s Real Prosperity plan increases Georgia’s competitiveness by lowering income taxes on Georgia’s families and reducing corporate income taxes by a third. The Tax Foundation estimates that his plan will improve Georgia’s business climate from the bottom half of states to the top one-third.

Nathan’s plan for education, “Real Results,” provides maximum flexibility for local school districts, protects the HOPE scholarship and will bolster math and science education.

He has led the fight against Obamacare. He stands up to Washington liberals whose brand of “change” comes with hefty price tags that Georgians can’t afford.

Georgians are concerned with issues, not petty and personal attacks. Nathan Deal has the philosophy, plan and experience to put Georgia back on track. I ask you to vote for Nathan Deal and not rewind Georgia to the bad old days of Roy Barnes.

Sue Everhart is the chairman of the Georgia Republican Party and lives in Marietta.

Newt Gingrich to Speak at FRC Action's Values Voter Summit

/PRNewswire -- FRC Action has confirmed that former House Speaker Newt Gingrich will speak at FRC Action's fifth annual Values Voter Summit, which will be held September 17-19 at the Omni Shoreham in Washington, D.C.

Mr. Gingrich joins a Saturday morning session that also includes Dr. Bill Bennett, Gov. Bob McDonnell (R-VA), and David Limbaugh, whose new book, Crimes Against Liberty, has rocketed to No. 1 on the New York Times best-seller list.

Gingrich will provide insight into the current political climate and his evaluation of what might be historic GOP gains in November.

The line-up of speakers at the Values Voter Summit also includes: Senator Jim DeMint (R-SC), former Senator Rick Santorum, Representatives Michele Bachmann (R-MN), and Mike Pence (R-IN), current and former governors Mike Huckabee and Mitt Romney, the Duggar family, Phyllis Schlafly, Lila Rose and many more.

FRC Action's Values Voter Summit is cosponsored by American Family Association Action, American Values, The Heritage Foundation, Liberty University, Liberty Counsel and Family Research Council. The Summit will be held September 17-19 at the Omni Shoreham Hotel in Washington, D.C. A presidential and vice presidential straw poll, exhibit hall, book signings, new media row sponsored by Media Research Center and much more will be packed into this three-day conference. On Saturday evening, American Family Association Chairman Emeritus Don Wildmon will be honored at a gala dinner and receive the fourth annual James C. Dobson Vision and Leadership Award.

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Democrats' Ticking Tax Bomb, Part II

How the Democrats’ Year-end Tax Hike Will Affect Typical Taxpayers

As described in Part I of this series, starting January 1, 2011, Washington Democrats will impose a $3.8 trillion tax hike on hard-working Americans. This tax increase will affect every American who pays income taxes through higher tax rates on individuals, families, and small businesses. Married couples and parents will be singled out for even higher taxes, and there will be significant tax hikes on the very investments that grow the economy and create good jobs. Even the death tax – repealed entirely for 2010 – will be resurrected on January 1, 2011. So far, Democrats have done nothing to disarm this ticking tax bomb.

So how will the family budgets of typical taxpayers be affected by these looming Democrat tax hikes?

A family of four earning $50,000 per year could pay more than $2,100 in higher taxes.
A single mom earning $36,000 per year could pay over $1,100 more in taxes.
Married senior citizens earning $40,000 per year could pay more than $1,400 in higher taxes.

Here are the details:

Typical Tax Return #1: Middle-income family of four
Filing Status: Married, filing joint return Children: 2 Adjusted Gross Income: $50,000
	Without Democrats' 2011 Tax Hike	With Democrats' 2011 Tax Hike
Standard deduction	$11,600	$9,750
Personal exemptions	$15,000	$15,000
Taxable income	$23,400	$25,250
Tax liability	$2,652	$3,788
Child credit (non-refundable portion)	$2,000	$1,000
Total tax	$652	$2,788
Democrats' 2011 tax increase: $2,136

Calculations are based on Joint Committee on Taxation (JCT) estimates of various tax parameters reflecting expected inflation adjustments for 2011.

Typical Tax Return #2: Modest-income single parent
Filing Status: Head of Household Children: 1 Adjusted Gross Income: $36,000
	Without Democrats' 2011 Tax Hike	With Democrats' 2011 Tax Hike
Standard deduction	$8,600	$8,600
Personal exemptions	$7,500	$7,500
Taxable income	$19,900	$19,900
Tax liability	$2,373	$2,985
Child credit (non-refundable portion)	$1,000	$500
Total Tax	$1,373	$2,485
Democrats' 2011 tax increase: $1,112

Calculations are based on Joint Committee on Taxation (JCT) estimates of various tax parameters reflecting expected inflation adjustments for 2011.  

Typical Tax Return #3: Married senior citizens
Filing Status: Married, filing joint return Children: 0 Adjusted Gross Income: $40,000, including $5,000 in dividends ($100,000 invested, 5% yield)
	Without Democrats' 2011 Tax Hike	With Democrats' 2011 Tax Hike
Standard deduction	$13,800	$13,800
Personal exemptions	$7,500	$7,500
Taxable income	$18,700	$18,700
Qualified dividends	$5,000 taxed at 0% (special rate for taxpayers in the 10% or 15% brackets)	$5,000 taxed at 15% (ordinary income rate)
Total tax	$1,370	$2,805
Democrats' 2011 tax increase: $1,435

Calculations are based on Joint Committee on Taxation (JCT) estimates of various tax parameters reflecting expected inflation adjustments for 2011.

While the effect of these Democrat tax increases on any particular taxpayer’s family budget will depend on that taxpayer’s specific facts and circumstances, these typical tax returns make clear that this is a massive tax hike that the American people simply can’t afford.

As these examples show, married couples and taxpayers with children will be hit particularly hard by the Democrats’ tax hike. For more detail about the re-imposition of the marriage penalty and the reduction in the child credit scheduled for January 1, 2011, stay tuned for Part III of this series, coming soon.

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