The Republican candidates running in Georgia’s federal-election primaries this year nearly all agree to support Donald Trump and say medicine derived from marijuana should be legal.
And the Democrats running to unseat Sen. Johnny Isakson argued among themselves about viability.
Their responses came in a series of debates sponsored by the Atlanta Press Club and telecast statewide Sunday by Georgia Public Broadcasting.
The lone exception among the Republicans on both questions of presidential nominee and medical marijuana was Derrick Grayson. The Marta employee said he goes his own way.
When it comes time to vote for president, Grayson said he might look to the Libertarian Party.
“There are some things that I will have to answer before I can support Donald Trump,” he said, such as Trump’s demands that members of the military follow illegal orders to administer water boarding.
Mary Kay Bacallao, Isakson’s other Republican challenger, said she was eager to be on the ticket with Trump so she can be in the Senate to sponsor the repeal of unnecessary federal laws.
Republican incumbents and challengers in the U.S. House races features in the debates all fell in line behind Trump.
They also were all in accord on the question of allowing medicine derived from marijuana. Several noted that opioids are derived from plants and that recreational use of heroin and opium is illegal but the medicines made from them are legal, although controlled substances.
Grayson, though, said he favors complete decriminalization of marijuana including recreational usage.
Discounting Grayson as the outlier, the responses of the Republican candidates illustrate their sense of where primary voters stand on these two issues. Savvy candidates are meeting voters around the state, hearing their concerns and discussing issues. The fact that so many of them backed Trump and medical uses of marijuana strongly suggests voters are in a libertarian mood this election cycle.
It also suggests that predictions are likely off base that establishment Republicans will either vote for Hillary Clinton or stay home. Opinion polls may not be as clear, but the candidates have a major incentive to reflect popular views if they want to get elected. Otherwise, they could have easily punted on both questions.
Isakson, and Rep. Tom Graves, skipped the debates, citing scheduling conflicts.
When the Democrats sparred, it represented their first forum together with Jim Barksdale, an investment manager and former Republican, who had never participated in any sort of debate in his life.
John Coyne, a veteran of several unsuccessful federal elections as a challenger, criticized the Democratic Party of Georgia for recruiting Barksdale. The party broke the law by not remaining neutral and for breeching “good faith and fair dealing,” Coyne said.
Barksdale said it was actually senior party members, nor actually party officials, who recruited him – and his money. Willingness to partially self-fund the campaign was a key factor.
“I think the party was focused on a viable candidate,” he told Coyne.
Cheryl Copeland, a telecommunications project manager, said neither man is suited to
represent the concerns of middle-class Georgians.
“We cannot afford to send a wealthy businessman to look after our interests,” she said.
