Georgia Rep. Jim Marshall held a town hall meeting yesterday and solidified his place as as a front-runner for governor next year. Oh yeah, Marshall is not running for governor but his ability to please moderates and conservatives was exceptional. The only folks who might not like Marshall’s message are liberals, national Democrats and Obama supporters.
I have been questioning about Marshall in the past year because he never supported Obama or Clinton during the 2008 presidential campaign but after listening to him field questions for hours over the radio, I finally get him. He is either an anachronism of the pre-1990s Democratic Party (Dixiecrats) or a bright star in the non-party American political future. The good thing about Marshall is the fact that he represents non-Atlanta, Georgian views as well as anyone. The bad thing about him is that he rarely works to quail the political vitriol aimed at our party and President Obama.
Rep. Marshall did well in his fair opposition to health care reform and mentioned the bipartisan Healthy American Act that he could support. When questioned about his vote for of the 2008 bailout, Marshall repeated his opinion that those actions were need to rescue the economy and if he could be defeat for doing what he thinks is right, defeat him and send him home. I guess he has the same outlook about supporting Democrat initiatives in 2009 that expand the size of government or balloon the national debt.
The congressman waxed nostalgic about the good old days when most congressional districts could elect either a Democrat or Republican. He then told the crowd that the current congressional maps create districts safe for Ds or Rs without going into details about the Voting Rights Act being the reason for redistricting. Marshall is better suited for statewide office because the liberals’ section in the Democrat Party will want him gone over his major votes this congress; that district really is a conservative seat.
If you read the signs, the GOP lack of opposition to Rep. Marshall could be indication that they don’t want him push into a bid for governor because he is one Democrat who might actually win (he couldn’t beat Isakson for Senate.)
Is Marshall a Dem, cloaked GOP or an undeclared Independent? Old school R&B music fans can think of Marshall like Teena Marie—a hybrid. Lady T didn’t look like us but everyone in the community loved the ways she “put it down” in her music. Rep. Marshall has a D on his jersey but he evidently feels conservatism as much as anyone and too much for some Ds. I hope Jim Marshall has Teena Marie in his Ipod or on his Blackberry because he should listened to “Out on a Limb” and “Square Biz” over and over during the coming months. To be honest, Marshall brought that “square biz” on health care reform yesterday but some Dems wonder why he is not “out on a limb” with Rep. Barrow and Rep. Bishop in support of the White House…a Dem White House.
We true Obama supporters are listening to Chaka Khan’s “Through the Fire.”
Healthy American Act: Summary
http://wyden.senate.gov/issues/Legislation/Healthy_Americans_Act.cfm
Project Logic Ga 
Leave a Reply