LET'S SEE IF WE CAN'T GET CONGRESSMAN MARSHALL TO COME AROUND AND START VOTING LIKE A DEMOCRAT

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We're still pretty excited around here about Baron Hill declaring that he would vote to override Bush's veto on S-CHIP. I mean what self-respecting Democrat wouldn't vote to override? Glad you asked. Now there are 4-- 4 reactionary Bush Dogs: 2 tobacco industry whores from North Carolina (Bob Etheridge and Mike McIntyre), Gene Taylor from Mississippi and... the dependably execrable Jim Marshall from Macon, Georgia.

DWT readers have come to know ole Rep. Marshall as the absolute worst Democrat in the entire House of Representatives, especially on Iraq, on which he's voted with Democrats exactly 15 times out of the 50 Iraq-related roll calls since he's been in Congress. Some in South Georgia may admire his generally reactionary stands on issues. But when it comes to health care for sick, needy children... probably not-- and certainly not Democrats. Gore won 47% of the vote in this district in 2000 and in 2004 Kerry took 10,000 more votes, although a slightly smaller percentage. The district is pretty Republican, but not prohibitively so. And now Marshall is getting what he's earned: a primary.

I might add, that although the Insider Establishment always rallies round even their worst and most disgraceful members-- just look at Nancy "Off the Table" Pelosi sucking up to corporate whore Al Wynn today-- a couple of staffers from the DCCC called me, surreptitiously of course, and asked me to go after Jim Marshall. They really hate him. And yet... he's still, inexplicably, on their Front Line page.

Georgia blogger FlackAttack at Tondee's Tavern is covering this in great detail. But the short of it is that progressive Robert Nowak and Macon Mayor (which is what Marshall was before becoming a congressman) Jack Ellis are both running for the Democratic nomination in GA-08. They're both stunned by Marshall's anti-S-CHIP stance and his disingenuous arguments about why he supports Bush's veto. But Nowak has pointed out a myriad of reasons why he thinks GA-08 deserves a better Representative in Washington.

I suspect both Nowak and Ellis were cheered by the 40,000 robo calls Blue America launched this week to Democratic voters in the district:



And they probably noticed how the Atlanta Journal Constitution has emphasized that more and more Democrats are thinking of challenging Marshall and that how they covered Marshall's position and the reaction from Blue America and others in the blogosphere.

Democratic-leaning groups are making hundreds of phone calls in the Macon area district of Democratic Rep. Jim Marshall, deriding Marshall for voting against the funding of a children's health program and potentially causing problems for Marshall, one of the most vulnerable congressional incumbents in the country in the 2008 elections.

The groups-- Blue America and BlogPAC-- are targeting Marshall and four other House Democrats who voted against the bill that would have added $35 billion over five years to the State Children's Health Insurance Program, known nationally as SCHIP and in Georgia as PeachCare for Kids.

The campaign against Marshall and other Democrats mirrors an effort by another coalition of progressive groups that have targeted 17 House Republicans who voted against the SCHIP funding. Democrats sent the bill to President Bush knowing he would veto because it gave Democrats an issue against Republicans in the 2008 election.

...Marshall's spokesman, Doug Moore, said Marshall is unlikely to change his position and he played down the chances that the phone campaign would hurt Marshall among his Democratic constituents.

OK, then we'll just have to see how Congressman Marshall and his consultants respond to the newspaper ads. You can take a look here and if you'd like to help us out with the cost, that would be very much appreciated. (Click on the ad's image if you would like to see an enlarged version.)


UPDATE: THANKS FOR HELPING US FINANCE THE MARSHALL PLAN

Last time I looked we already had over 100 donors today! Thanks for coming through! I bet Jim Marshall is wishing he never climbed out on this shaky limb with George Bush and Dick Cheney! Digby did an incredible piece about it today at DailyKos and John did two at Crooks and Liars: here and again here. Jason, the guy who designed the ads writes about what's behind them at his own blog, The Seminal, as did Jane at FDL-- and Mike Lux over at OpenLeft takes a look at today's campaign tactics and how what we're trying to accomplish fits in.


UPDATE: FROM INSIDE MARSHALL-TERRITORY...

Amy Morton is an influential activist in Macon and her blog, Georgia Women Vote has a lot of credibility across the state. Her perspective is always worth checking out-- as is Jon Flack's. His blog, Tondee's Tavern is a first stop for anyone wanting to know what's going on behind the scenes in Georgia politics. And I have a feeling Jim Marshall isn't feeling any more comfy there than he is at Amy's. And another point of view worth looking at, even if it's from the Golden State: Steve Audio thinks members of Congress with a "D" after their names should try to remember what the "D" is all about (hint: not "deception.")