By Gary Reese
On Saturday night at the National Tea Party Convention in Nashville, Sarah Palin urged the many staunch conservatives, libertarians and other politically discontented activists in attendance to create competition in Republican Party primaries this year by casting their lot with the GOP. She said she plans to actively campaign across the nation herself for conservative candidates for various offices. "America is ready for another revolution and you're a part of it,” she told the adoring crowd, many of whom shouted, “Run, Sarah, Run!" for president. Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue is proposing a constitutional amendment that would take the selection of four constitutional officers – the insurance, labor and agriculture commissioners and the state school superintendent – out of the hands of voters and give the selection power to future governors, instead. See InsiderAdvantageGeorgia. Louisiana Lt. Gov. Mitch Landrieu was electged New Orleans’ new mayor on Saturday with an astonishing 66% of the vote. He beat five major challengers, mainly by winning significant support from both whites and blacks. Landrieu will become the city’s first white mayor since 1978. The head of the National Black Farmers Association is ratcheting up the pressure on federal lawmakers to appropriate $1.15 billion to settle a discrimination lawsuit against the US Agriculture Dept. John Boyd Jr, speaking at a rally in Little Rock, Arkansas on Saturday, urged African-Americans to lobby fiercely for the money, and he singled out Arkansas Democratic US Sen. Blanche Lincoln as a lobbying target. She is the new head of the Senate Agriculture Committee. She’s also likely facing a tough re-election this fall. South Carolina state House members will be taking three paid furloughs during the current session of the legislature, including one this week. The idea is to save taxpayers money – and perhaps to sooth angry constituents before the elections this fall. The Senate apparently won’t follow suit. President Pro Tem Glenn McConnell said experience shows him that furloughs can amount to a parliamentarian tactic to stall important legislation. |
