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Cracker Squire

THE MUSINGS OF A TRADITIONAL SOUTHERN DEMOCRAT

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Location: Douglas, Coffee Co., The Other Georgia, United States

Sid in his law office where he sits when meeting with clients. Observant eyes will notice the statuette of one of Sid's favorite Democrats.

Wednesday, June 14, 2006

Cox campaign needs a tune-up

On June 7 Bill Shipp wrote:

A single-engine plane had taxied nose first into the side of a hangar at DeKalb-Peachtree Airport. No one was hurt, but a photo of the crippled aircraft stretched across five columns of an inside page of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. The caption said the minor crash was attributed "to pilot error." The plane was licensed to Mark Dehler of Decatur, husband of and chief political strategist for gubernatorial candidate Cathy Cox.

On the page facing the picture, a banner headline touted a new poll showing Lt. Gov. Mark Taylor running ahead of Secretary of State Cox in the quest for the Democratic nomination for governor. The plane photo and the political headline formed a perfect metaphor for the Cox gubernatorial bid. Her campaign may have crashed into a wall before ever getting off the ground.

Whether Cox and her team can repair the damage and resume their journey before the July 18 primary is uncertain.

Cox ought to be the best candidate in the field, Democrat or Republican. She has fresh ideas, a good record of government service and a public presence that easily eclipses Taylor's and Gov. Sonny Perdue's.

Yet her campaign has gone awry. At times, she seems more intent on reacting to her rivals than striking out on her own course.
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On June 6 Larry Peterson of The Savannah Morning News wrote:

A couple months back, Cathy Cox seemed a good bet to win the Democratic nomination for governor.

Earlier in the year, the secretary of state had a healthy lead in the polls over Lt. Gov. Mark Taylor. And, in previous months, she'd done a better job of campaign fund-raising.

Much was made - as it should be - of the fact that 60 percent of the July 18 primary election voters likely will be women.

There was also talk of Cox's ability to transcend party labels and reach out to moderate Republicans, especially women.

All that may be true.

Cox still may go on to thrash Taylor and send Republican incumbent Sonny Perdue packing.

But the more recent impression is that the wheels have been coming off her campaign. At the very least, it's hit some nasty speed bumps.

It's widely agreed that there is plenty of time to turn things around, especially since the Insider Advantage poll indicated that 39 percent of Democrats remain undecided.

But at the moment, her organization doesn't seem to be firing on all cylinders.

It needs a major tune-up.

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