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Today, We Are All Georgians

By W. James Antle, III on 12.3.08 @ 10:53AM

Just one more thought on the Obama turnout machine in the wake of the Georgia runoff results: Whatever organization he had in place on the ground and however strong the black voter turnout, Barack Obama did not win Georgia on Election Day. Jim Martin ran slightly behind Obama. The only reason this went to a runoff in the first place is because Saxby Chamliss ran behind John McCain, due in part to a Libertarian candidate.

Take away the high black turnout and the Libertarian candidate, and it was always going to be difficult for Martin to win. Anybody who thought he could just Facebook and Twitter his way to victory didn't pay attention to the results in November. The only shot Martin had was that a good Obama-organized ground game could shift the runoff turnout in directions more favorable to him. That, combined with lingering conservative discontent with Chambliss's votes on immigration and the bailout, gave Martin a slender reed upon which to hang his hopes. But it didn't happen. Given that Obama himself lost the state, I don't think it's the best test of whether his get-out-the-vote operations are transferrable to other candidates. It does show some states are as impervious to these tactics as they are Obama's charm, however.

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Robert Stacy McCain| 12.3.08 @ 11:22AM

Dang it, Jim, now YOU are repeating the "Saxby for Amnesty" myth that I chided Michelle Malkin about.

Saxby Chambliss has an A rating from NumbersUSA, including a perfect record of voting against amnesty. The contrary perception is based not on his votes, but rather on comments he made in May 2007 at the Georgia GOP convention, attempting to defend the Senate bill then pending -- a bill that he ultimately VOTED AGAINST.

W. James Antle III| 12.3.08 @ 11:45AM

I never used the word "amnesty." Take a look at his votes on H-1B and guest workers, even if they don't do much to his overall ABI/NumbersUSA score. But since you brought it up, Chambliss's amnesty comments WERE a political liability whatever final vote was (Sam Brownback ultimately voted against the bill too). Georgians have brought it up whenever I've written about this race or talked about it on the radio.