Understanding Georgia Politics

Man, Dick Yarbrough explains Georgia Politics so much better than I can.

Here is his column (it's worth the read even if you don't live here):

According to my abacus and supplemented with some serious finger-counting, I discern there are 31 days until the general election on Nov. 2.

I don't need an abacus or fingers to tell me that the governor's race is about as inspiring as a yard rake.

On one hand, we have Democrat Roy Barnes, who made it through only one term as governor before alienating just about everybody in the state and assuring the election of Republican George E. Perdue, the noted concrete fishpond maven who has alienated just about everybody in the state too, proving that alienating voters isn't the sole province of either party.

Now, Barnes wants to make a comeback. He doesn't have to be doing this at age 62. He has enough money to live on, a great family to dote on and a house in Marietta so big that moving into the Governor's Mansion on West Paces Ferry Road would be like going into public housing.

I am no psychologist but I suspect Barnes is trying to prove that losing the election in 2002 was a fluke and that he is a better politician that the one we sent to the showers eight years ago. Plus, who wants to be known as the guy who lost to George E. Perdue? That's embarrassing.

Question: Is that reason enough to send Barnes back to the governor's office?

On the other hand, his opponent Republican Nathan Deal, of Gainesville, will never be mistaken for H&R Block. The media reported that Deal had failed to disclose business loans totaling $2.85 million as required by state elections law. He said it was an "oversight." That is completely understandable. Heck, I borrow a million here and a million there and pretty soon it all runs together and I just plain forget about it. It happens to us all.

If you recall, it wasn't too long ago that information emerged of the bankruptcy of a sporting goods store in Habersham County, belonging to his daughter and son-in-law and backed by Deal and his wife, made it appear he did not have sufficient assets to survive the financial blow.

Well, low and behold, now he says he does. He has gone back and revalued his assets - they are up - and reexamined his liabilities - they are down. Voila! He's not broke anymore.

Who said the man isn't good at details?

So, it is either reruns of the Roy Barnes Show or four years of Nathan Deal, who adroitly resigned from Congress just ahead of an ethics investigation and forgot to tell us in a close primary race with Karen Handel and Eric Johnson that he had some challenging financial issues that would no doubt have tanked his chances of winning the Republican nomination.

These are your choices to mull over for the next 31 days. Do we want to take a flyer on a guy who didn't do so well when we gave him a chance the first time but says he will do better this time? Or do we want his opponent, who doesn't seem to know a balance sheet from a bass fiddle and doesn't seem all that upset over that fact?

Where is Bobby Franklin when we need him?