1) Georgia GOP Chooses Nathan Deal – Formerly Among “15 Most Corrupt Members of Congress” – in Gubernatorial Primary, 2) Neo-Nazis have Supported Deal for at Least Five Years

Nathan Deal?

The Republican voters of Georgia have chosen Nathan Deal to carry the banner for them in the governor’s race? I confess I didn’t see that coming. They went with the guy whom a good government group once labelled “one of the 15 most corrupt members of Congress?” He’s the reincarnation of Gene Talmadge.

When the contest began in earnest, a total of seven contenders had entered the field to win the GOP nomination for governor. As my colleague Aaron Gould Sheinin wrote in July:

On the Republican side of the gubernatorial campaign, the seven-candidate race has essentially boiled down to a four-person contest with Insurance Commissioner John Oxendine the acknowledged front-runner and former Secretary of State Karen Handel, former U.S. Rep. Nathan Deal and former state Sen. Eric Johnson battling for second.

Once Oxendine’s baggage became too much for the voters, I figured that left Johnson and Handel.

Johnson’s politics are very different from mine, but he is experienced and seemed to have the politics to appeal to Georgia’s conservatives. Handel had turned herself inside out to appease the state’s rightwing, rejecting a host of moderate principles she had endorsed earlier. But at least she had never been accused of corruption. And the endorsement of Sarah Palin gave her campaign added excitement.

But the voters choose Deal.

Let’s review, shall we?

He has signed up with the worst excesses of the nativists; he’s an early sponsor of an ugly proposal to change the 14th Amendment, to strip birthright citizenship. Republicans used to consider the 14 Amendment one of their proudest achievements.

He has cozied up to the birthers by demanding that President Obama prove that he is an American citizen. That was a reversal for Deal, who had earlier been sane enough to say that he was satisfied that Obama was born in the USA.

But that’s not the worst of it. He’s as sleazy as they come. As the AJC has reported, he apparently used his office to line his pockets:

U.S. Rep. Nathan Deal, a Republican candidate for governor in 2010, personally intervened with Georgia leaders to preserve an obscure state program that earns his company nearly $300,000 a year.

Deal on three occasions in the past year and a half met with state Revenue Commissioner Bart Graham to question proposed changes Graham wanted to make in the way Georgia inspects rebuilt salvaged vehicles. Deal coordinated his efforts through the office of a political ally, Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle.

Also, Deal’s chief of staff used his congressional e-mail account to contact Georgia Senate and Revenue Department staff to discuss the plans and to set appointments for Deal to meet with officials, including Cagle.

Deal and Ken Cronan own and operate Recovery Services Inc., also known as Gainesville Salvage & Disposal, which for nearly 20 years has enjoyed a lucrative agreement with the state that earned the company $1.5 million from 2004 through 2008, according to state records. The company provides a location and equipment for state inspectors to examine salvaged vehicles. Deal and Cronan never had to compete for the business, state officials said.

Deal personally earns up to $150,000 a year from the enterprise, according to reports he files with the U.S. House.
Graham has tried for years to expand the system through competitive bidding or privatization.

Ultimately, Deal prevailed; the program, which at least two state leaders call a monopoly, remains unchanged — for the time being.

Deal, a top contender to replace Gov. Sonny Perdue, says he has done nothing wrong and has acted as any business owner and citizen would in speaking to state officials about a program he says saves lives and brings revenue to state coffers. He also said he has often worked with state officials on issues important to constituents.

He fled Congress just ahead of the ethics posse, and a federal grand jury has subpoenaed information related to Deal’s deal with the state of Georgia. (His attorney says he is not the subject of the probe.)

This is the guy supported by voters who claim they’re sick of politics as usual?

http://blogs.ajc.com/cynthia-tucker/2010/08/11/nathan-deal-among-15-most-corrupt-members-of-congress/   

Excerpt - Update: Georgia Libertarian/Republican Facebook Controversy, Neo-Nazi Support for GOP’s Deal Goes Back at Least Five Years 

Independent Political Report | August 24, 2010

...  Members of the white supremacist movement have been supporters of GOP gubernatorial candidate Nathan Deal for years.  From my post on this “controversy” at Poli-Tea:

Nathan Deal is a vocal and active opponent of illegal immigration. As a member of the House of Representatives, the Democrat-turned-Republican introduced a bill to rework the 14th Amendment to the Constitution in order to eliminate birthright citizenship . . . in the present context it is worth noting that white supremacists and Nazis do support Nathan Deal because of his stance on  illegal immigration . . .

A search of the web forum Stormfront demonstrates longtime support for Nathan Deal in the white supremacist and Nazi community. A post from 2005 carries an “Urgent” announcement regarding the bill introduced by Deal mentioned above, urging readers to pressure their representatives to support it . . . Others in the forum voiced support, saying, for instance: “This sounds good to me! This would get rid of the “Anchor baby” that all Illegal aliens try to foist on us as “They are Americans” Baloney!” [sic.]

Deal’s bill has received fairly regular attention, and an almost wholly positive reception, at Stormfront over the years. From 2007: “I like this mans thinking. Anchor babies must go to. I concider them illegal as well.” [sic.] More recently, Deal received an “Amen” for advocating that Georgia adopt an immigration policy modeled on Arizona’s controversial new law. Contributors to Stormfront have also appreciated Nathan Deal’s efforts to obtain a copy of Barack Obama’s birth certificate . . . [See original post for source links.]

In response, Gene Berkman commented on the reasons why extremists would back mainstream candidates:

Extremists back mainstream candidates, and praise actions of mainstream politicians for several reasons.

(a) on any issue, the direction of an action is important, even if it does not go far enough for the extremist. So a Communist will back a Democrat that favors nationalized health care, even if the Dem. does not want to nationalize steel factories. A Nazi will favor conservative candidates who are for restricting immigration, even if they don’t go as far as the Nazi will.

(b) Extremists seek support from the same constituencies that back mainstream parties and mainstream candidates. The Communist Party does not just back Democrats – they attack other left wing third parties that might split the vote. . . .

no mainstream candidate, and no third party candidate, can avoid having crazy people among their supporters, so keep that in mind when discussing political controversies ,..

http://www.independentpoliticalreport.com/2010/08/update-georgia-libertarianrepublican-facebook-controversy-neo-nazi-support-for-gops-deal-goes-back-at-least-five-years/