Georgia's governor's race has not received a lot of attention on Daily Kos for good reason: it's tough to win any office down here with a big D next to your name.
But the past 24 hours has upended Republican hopes for an easy victory in November. Breaking this afternoon is the second financial scandal for the Republican candidate.
The problem is that former Congressman Nathan Deal admitted yesterday that he is close to insolvency because of a $2.3 million loan he can't repay. Today he admits that he did not disclose to the Congressional Ethics Office that he owes an additional $2.8 million on his auto salvage business. (Will this oversight lead to criminal charges?)
To learn more about the polling, the race and Democrat Gov. Roy Barnes, join me below the fold.
UPDATE: Thanks to everyone for the Recs. I posted this article quickly and went to dinner with clients. I was thrilled to turn on my computer and find this much energy and enthusiasm for Gov. Barnes.
(update cont.) Now, let's all keep digging to find what REALLY caused Nathan Deal to give up his Washington job when he knew he was facing insolvency. (Who gives up their job in this economy?!)
To address some comments below: we won't win this race in Georgia by changing the minds of Republicans. But we will win if we change the minds of independents who assumed, until today, that a Democrat can't win.
UPDATE 2: If you don't have a dollar to spare for Gov. Barnes, you can still help right now, without leaving your keyboard. Go to Google and search for "Nathan Deal ethics." Here's why: AJC.com/NathanDealethics
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Until yesterday morning, former Gov. Barnes was fighting an uphill battle to make November's election close. But the dawn brought with it a report from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that Nathan Deal was in a whole lot of debt.
Here's what Georgians saw Wednesday:
Deal could face financial insolvency after backing family business
Even if Deal liquidates all his assets, however, he still might be unable to repay a nearly $2.3 million business loan, documents reviewed by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution indicate. The loan comes due in full Feb. 1 — less than one month after Deal hopes to take office.
Deal’s troubles center on a failed business venture by his daughter and son-in-law. Deal and his wife, Sandra, invested about $2 million, but lost their entire stake when the business failed. The Deals also guaranteed a series of bank loans to the business as its debt doubled and then quadrupled.
This afternoon, the Associated Press reports more financial trouble for the Republican candidate.
Report: Nathan Deal didn't disclose loans to ethics panel, blames 'oversight'
A review of records by The Associated Press has found that Republican Nathan Deal did not disclose two active loans on which he and his business partner owe a combined $2.85 million.
The loans from two banks were made to Deal and Kenneth Cronan in 2009. They do not appear on the financial disclosure Deal filed with the state Ethics Commission when he announced he was running for governor.
Oops.
So now fiscal conservatives in Georgia are in a bind. Will they really send this guy to the Governor's office simply because he's Republican? Ordinarily, that answer might be a "yes, but I won't like it."
But it turns out that half the Republican Party didn't like Mr. Deal to begin with. Deal won the Primary by less than 3,000 votes.
The wounds were just now beginning to heal as Deal's financial problems began to unravel.
The most recent Georgia poll placed Deal with 49 percent of the support, followed by Barnes at 38 percent and Libertarian John Monds at 9 percent.
I won't call this race for Barnes right now but I'm happy to report that we have a real fight in Georgia now.
Barnes served as Governor in Georgia from 1999 until 2003. Barnes lost a close race to current Gov. Sonny Purdue, whose victory surprised even him.
Barnes was considered by most to be a progressive governor for Georgia and few people argue that he was ineffective. He's a shrewd businessman for sure.
The reason Barnes was ousted is complicated and deserves more attention in another diary but the upshot is that Barnes removed the Confederate flag from Georgia's state flag and paid dearly for it.
If you would like to support Gov. Barnes, please visit his site here: Roy Barnes 2010.