Sarah Palin, Giuliani to Campaign for Sen. Chambliss in Ga. Runoff

Former GOP vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin will make four campaign stops in Georgia just one day before the state’s voters head to the polls in a runoff election that could determine whether Democrats win unfettered control of Congress. The campaign of GOP Sen. Saxby Chambliss announced Tuesday morning that Alaska Gov. Palin and Chambliss will hit the campaign trail together on Dec. 1. “I was thrilled when I got the call that Governor Palin would be able to make the trip to Georgia to campaign with me the day before the runoff election,” Sen. Chambliss stated in a news release. “Julianne and I are honored that she would take the time to travel to Georgia to tell everyone how important this election is, and I know that she will receive an enthusiastic welcome everywhere we go.” The campaign tells Newsmax that Palin and Chambliss will embark on a clockwise tour through the heart of central Georgia, beginning at 8:30 a.m. in Augusta, with later campaign stops that in Savannah, Perry (near Macon) and concluding with a rally scheduled for 4 p.m. in north Atlanta. Chambliss is hoping a last-minute boost from Palin will build the momentum he needs to win the runoff. Both parties have been pouring millions into the runoff race. Democrats hope to add to their majority in the Senate, which now stands at 57 seats. A Martin victory would bring Democrats to the brink of overcoming any GOP filibuster, which would fast-track President-elect Barack Obama’s ambitious legislative agenda. The race is important enough to Obama that he has recorded an automated “robo” phone call message that Georgia voters began receiving on Monday this week. Obama says in his message that Martin will “help me change Washington and get America moving again.” Chambliss, the ranking Republican on the Senate Committee on Agriculture and a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, won the Nov. 4 election 49.8 percent to 46.8 percent for Democratic challenger Jim Martin. Libertarian candidate Allen Buckley finished third, with 3.2 percent of the vote. Georgia law requires that a candidate must break the 50 percent level to win election to the U.S. Senate, automatically triggering the Dec. 2 runoff election. Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani will campaign with Chambliss at a 1:30 p.m. joint press conference to honor “first responders” such as police, firefighters, and EMS crews. Also Tuesday, Libertarian Buckley told Newsmax that neither candidate had agreed yet to his “commitment form,” a list of limited-government initiatives that he has asked them to sign onto in return for his endorsement. He tells Newsmax he now considers it “unlikely” that the candidates will agree to the positions he has asked them to accept. By: David A. Patten © 2008 Newsmax