The Albany Herald endorsed Mike Keown for congress in Georgia’s second district over Sanford Bishop. I think that newspaper is wrong because Bishop is uniquely qualified and appropriate to represent the urban/rural; liberal/conservative and yes Black/White hodgepodge that is the 2nd District.
Keown is a conservative pastor from a very rural area and speaks with a command similar to a stern father chastising a wayward child. That type sternness has been at the center of the far Right’s reaction to the election of President Barrack Obama. In our system of government, most American adults have the right to elect officials and the actions of those public servants should reflect the will of the people.
That concept sounds clear in theory but we know that a more detailed explanation is that elected officials do the work of those Americans that vote, vote, vote. President Obama and the Democrats did well in southwest Georgia in 2008 and those election results gave direction to Rep. Sanford Bishop. For some reason, the Tea Party division of the conservative movement feels their votes count heavier that other Americans’ vote. It must because they are smarter or something.
If Rep. Sanford Bishop did everything the Tea Party Movement wanted during the last two years, he would have been functioning in an unconstitutional manner because he would have ignored the desires of the majority that put him in office. As a moderate, I could accept a Republican taking this swing seat if the guy was a policy wonk like Austin Scott or a conservative with a personal history of talking with various communities like Rep. Jack Kingston, Senator Johnny Iasakson or former Senator Sam Nunn.
Bishop came to congress 18 years ago after serving in a majority White state legislature seat; he prides himself on relating to and having a comfort level with everyone. As a blogger, I watched the Keown campaign from day one and rarely saw them working to build relationships with my community. The tone in Tea Partiers’ voice when then say “Barrack Obama,” “Sanford Bishop” and “Nancy Pelosi” is something different from regular Republicans. You know the tone and if you have forgotten it shame on you. Those who don’t remember history are doomed to repeat it.
Keown ran a strong race but some other congressional district or statewide position would be better for him and better for us. Bishop won’t win this election if the people who gave him a mandate in 2008 don’t vote on November 2.
An Albany city commissioner, who is also a Darton College professor, told the Capitol Hill newspaper Roll Call that Rep. Sanford Bishop was a $100 million dollar industry in south Georgia based on this position on the House Appropriations Committee. In one of the poorest areas of the nation, the voters shouldn’t drop a congressman who secures funding for economic development, training and job creation.
This hard campaign has served the purpose of making Rep. Bishop aware that he must be in the middle of helping President Obama shape more-moderate policy if he wants a second term. And that’s it; the reason far right conservatives want Bishop gone from the Democrat Caucus is so the remaining Dems are so liberal that the presidency will go their way in 2012. The Tea Party candidate for president will be Sarah Palin and keeping Palin out of the White House starts with voting for Bishop on Tuesday.
Did the Albany Herald ever ask Mike Keown about his opinion of a possible Palin presidency? Keown keeps bring up my old boss Rep. Charles Hatcher, who Bishop defeated in 1992. As one of the last loyal Hatcherheads, I can say Hatcher always said you don’t get rid of committee chairs and appropriators because they deliver for home. Hatcher knew the Farm Bill like the back of his hand and wouldn’t jeopardize the provisions of interest to south Georgia by bouncing Bishop during tough times.
Project Logic Ga 
For what it’s worth, InsiderAdvantageGeorgia believes the 2nd leans Dem.
My last comment didn’t post… Southern Political Report “believes the 2nd Leans Democratic.”
I can assure you that Keown can and will work and represent all people in Southwest Georgia. He is not some crazy hateful candidate. The people of Thomas and Grady counties have been very happy with his representation in the state house over the last 6 years. He may be backed by the tea party but he is not a tea party candidate. He was never a part of the tea party movement. He never had backing from the Republican Party (until just recently). He is a candidate who truly believed we were headed in the right direction and decided on his own (due to a call from God) that he would try to do something about it. He would be comfortable in any environment or situation. The people from his state district know and respect him. Some may be supporting Sanford Bishop but they know Keown and respect the fact that if he wins he could and will represent them as well. You are wrong as well about the campaign not trying to build relationships with your community. The campaign has actively tried to build relationships with every community.
I understand if you want to support Bishop. He was once upon a time a good conservative representative but over the last few years he has changed. At a time when our country is going broke he wants to brag about all the money he has brought back to SWGA. There have been some good earmarks but the majority of them have been very questionable. Take this article for example written a year ago from the AJC: http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/printedition/2009/04/10/currents0410.html Most of these earmarks are simply a total waste of taxpayer money.
The reason Charles Hatcher has been brought up in the campaign is because Bishop won the campaign against Hatcher by attacking him for doing something ethically wrong but not illegal. Now Bishop wants to play off everything he has done as small or blame it on someone else. I agree with the Herald stating that he should be held to the same standards he held Charles Hatcher to when he defeated him in 1992.
You are wrong about Keown. He is a people person. He loves people. He is a conservative but will represent everybody. If he wins he would make a great representative. Give him a chance. If you are a moderate I guarantee that you will like him. He doesn’t play party politics. He doesn’t tow the line. He will represent the 2nd district according to the wishes of the people. If Washington doesn’t like that he won’t care. The republicans in Atlanta didn’t like him but the people he represented in Thomas and Grady counties thought he was a great representative.
The nepotism in the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation scholarship and hiring scandals can’t be helping Bishop. The hiring of Bishop relatives for government jobs was bad enough. However, taking money that should’ve gone to poor-but-smart black students and instead putting it in the pockets of Bishop’s relatives is FOUL. It wouldn’t be great to see one of the few moderates in the Congressional Black Caucus go, but Bishop has set himself up for defeat. If I lived in the district, as a black voter I would not cast a ballot for him this time around (not sure if I’d vote for Keown either, but Bishop would not get my vote of confidence purely based on the CBCF nonsense).
Also, if the District’s voters unseat Bishop, wouldn’t that mean that they thought that he overstepped his mandate? Perhaps if Rep. Bishop had actually been pushing Obama to be more centrist then he (and Obama) wouldn’t be in his current predicament. The fact that this Congressional district is so reliant on government largesse (ahem, taxpayer dollars) ought to be highly problematic…
Sanford Bishop was for several years a very conservative voice and representative for this district. You also never heard of any questionable actions or ethics complaints on him. However, something has changed. Over the last 6 years his record has been very liberal and far from moderate. How can you explain his vote for CapnTrade? That was against everything that his district is for and would have directly hurt some of his constituents. He has also become a congressman that turns in year after year one of the highest earmark totals. Like I said before, I am sure that some of these earmarks are necessary but really what have the majority of them done for our district? Many of them are very questionable as well. Such as the earmarks in the article above. Other earmarks go to a company in which the CEO is the husband of his campaign treasurer or to an organization in which the treasurer/board member recently was arrested for stealing city funds. He has formed a circle of people around him in Columbus that have directly benefited from his position. Many of these people have deep ties to his wife. Therefore you get some controversies like the Junior Marshall program or the scholarships. I don’t know if anyone will ever know what made Bishop change over the last few years but I think whether you are Democrat or Republican you have to admit that his representation has changed. Maybe he felt that he could never be beat? Maybe he felt untouchable? I don’t know but something happened.
In a case like this where the representative has so much swirling around him and appears to have changed his representation, I don’t think he should be re-elected just because he is able to bring money to the district. If that were the case then every incumbent should always be re-elected until they finally decide to retire. That argument makes no sense. Everyone has to start somewhere. Bishop didn’t start out on the appropriations committee. He defeated a veteran incumbent with power in Washington and then worked his way up. Keown would have a chance to do this as well.
I think you should call Keown or sit down and talk with him. I think if you did your opinion of Keown would totally change. I think you are basing your opinion of him with views of the tea party which you can’t do. The tea party people are supporting him but he isn’t interested in just supporting one group of people. I can guarantee you that he would make a much better Representative than Austin Scott. I like Austin and think he will do great but Austin Scott is a politician. Keown isn’t a politician. He is genuinely worried about the direction of our country and wants to help our district. You can’t make up your mind on him by simply looking at the views of one group of people. That goes against everything he is for.
Shay: thanks for including moderate Bishop in your wonderful Black conservative blog over the years. And thanks for post some of Project Logic Ga. The oversight stuff was never as deep as the media made it seem and I wish Bishop would have tossed any one involved from first smell; I selfishly put the best interest of the district and state over anyone and that includes me.
At one time I was a D.C. Bishop staffer and when I thought I was not giving it 100%, left because that was the right thing to do. This politics stuff is all about gauging and reacting and that is no reason that the masses who voted for change in 2008 wouldn’t come back out tomorrow. Some people simply don’t get the process but I remember candidate Obama explaining that it would be easy, the hole was deep and change requires time and patience.
But in this era of instant this and quick that, everyone wants the best life without putting in the work and effort.
Jeff, I know the 2nd district very well and it’s a complicated situation. When Rep. Norwood died in Augusta, GOPer Paul Broun got with some of his father’s old Democrat base in Athens and put together a coalition to win that special elections. Those Democrats haven’t seen Brown since and he has been one of the most “out-there” MOCs since arriving in D.C. Again, the 8th District was there for the taking and Keown pass on it; I would have welcome someone (anyone) moving Jim Marshall out. Albany and Columbus are dramatically different from rural areas like my home town.
If you a GOP was to represent a district that is over 45% Dem, that GOPer should have a proven history of cooperation and coalition building. Remember, I have a dozens of close friends in the Tea Party Movement and as President Obama says, they have valid concerns. My Black conservative friends hit a few Tea Party events but the vibe at times was rough. While the nation is just focusing on the 2nd District race, I remember who was at those healthcare reform protests and how congressional staffers in district offices were actually concerned for their safety.
Slyram, I can assure you that Keown is not like the tea partiers you are speaking of. Keown lives in the 2nd District. Why would he have run in the 8th? He wanted to run in the District he lives in. I think that he was very courageous because many people thought he was crazy to try to run against Bishop. Many thought he was unbeatable. You have to admit that someone who decides to run against an 18 year incumbent is pretty dang courageous. I can also assure you that Keown is not like Broun. He will remember those in the district that helped elect him and he will be there to help the ones who didn’t elect him as well. You really should get to know him. Sit down with him. I promise you that you will change your opinion of him. He is a person that can go across lines and build coalitions and cooperate with others. Give him a chance. I think you will find that he would be a great representative.
Jeff: How is Keown not a Tea Party candidate all of sudden. Was he not there when the Tea Party was born? Was he not the guy on the corner protesting at the healthcare events?
If what you are saying is true get him to publicly say today and before the polls close that he will not join the House Tea Party Caucus if he is elected. They would find his primary opponent before Ground Hog Day.
And what’s with this “he wants to run in his home district.” We know that Barrow, Chambliss, Bishop, Rowland, and David Scott have moved or run in districts outside their original home.
Again, I never said he wasn’t congressional material; I said he wasn’t right for this situation. Austin would have been a great governor but the situation wasn’t right to win the primary but boy it would be a different deal if he was in that race now.
Finally, I am not hating on anyone getting a group of voters out and winning an election. My problem is with Obama supporters whose actions this year aren’t consistent with their actions in 2008.
Slyram, I am pretty sure that Keown was not there when the tea party was born. He may have attended some events but they were after he had started campaigning for his seat. To understand why Keown wouldn’t want to run in another district you would really have to know him. He is not doing this as a political goal or just trying to make a name for himself. He sincerely just wants to represent the people of this district, his neighbors and friends. He has absolutely no interest in be a “politician” and has no interest in moving just to get a congressional seat. That is probably one of the problems with our system right now. People moving to a district just to get a congressional seat. I am not saying you can’t have good representation that way but wouldn’t you want someone from your district to represent your values? I know you aren’t hating on anyone and understand your frustration. We will see tonight how it turns out. Should be very close.
BISHOP MAY HAVE BEAT KEOWN!!!
Earlier tonight, many of the broadcast and cable tv networks declared that Rep Bishop had lost his seat to his opponent. But according to the link below, he may have survived. Note, he must have had a serious turn out the vote ground game in Doughtery and Muscogee counties: his district’s two biggest, vote-rich counties.
See the latest 2nd Congressional District’s county-by-county election results at this link :
http://www.sos.ga.gov/elections/election_results/2010_1102/00302.htm
HOORAY!!! The people of SWGA may well have voted their interest.
Bishop was pushed ahead by absentee ballots in Muscogee and Dougherty counties. If this holds he did a great job of getting the people out to vote. If you take a close look at the number though you will see that Keown won in places that no one has before. Keown won 20 of the 32 counties. A few other counties were very tight. If you take away Muscogee, which wasn’t in the district until 2000 redistricting, then Keown wins by 10k votes. If you take away Muscogee and Dougherty then Keown wins 20k votes. So in a 32 county rural district, the vote will be decided by 2 counties, the only two urban counties in the district. There is a great divide between Columbus and Albany and the rest of the district. Keown was able to win in places like Mitchell, Peach, Brooks, Seminole, Early, Decatur, Sumter, Crisp, Worth, etc….These counties have always voted heavily in favor of Bishop. It was a good race. If Keown can’t beat Bishop, then I don’t see anyone beating him as long as Columbus is still in the district. Keown actually did decent in Albany. If he had performed in Columbus as well as he did in Albany he would have won. If anything maybe this election will help influence Bishop to move more to the center with his voting like the first 12 years he was in office.
Also wanted to say even though the AP was calling the race for Keown, he never would announce victory. He knew there were alot of votes left to count and it was going to be very tight. Thought that was pretty respectful and classy of him.
Jeff: Muscogee County/Columbus or part of it came into the 2nd District in 1992 and has always been in and out a few time. The 2nd race was one for the ages.
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