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Sunday, Oct. 19, 2008

Decisions, decisions: Midstate voters speak out on election

The two signs in Frank and Jil Pinkston's yard show that each one has strong feelings for someone else - feelings their marriage has not forced them to compromise.

He's for Obama. She's for McCain.

"I've known Jil was a Republican since we were dating, and I love her in spite of it," said Frank Pinkston, 55, a retired Mercer University administrator.

"I've been a Republican in Georgia since before it was fashionable," agrees Jil, 50, a part-time science enrichment teacher.

The two may have different political views, but they agree that voting is the most important thing.

"I'm starting the 'It's cool to care' club," Jil said. "All the problems we're having now is because people thought they were too cool to care" and were too apathetic to vote, she said.

Early reports indicate that voter registration is spiking in the run-up to the presidential election pitting Republican John McCain against Democrat Barack Obama. Presidential campaigns frequently bring out many voters who don't pay much attention to politics during other election cycles - perhaps even more so since the close 2000 election, when the presidency swung on just a handful of votes in the Electoral College.

Jil Pinkston worked in Washington, D.C., for the Republican National Convention in 1979 and 1980 as Ronald Reagan rode a wave of euphoria into the White House. She says the experience taught her how hard it is to get anything done unless you understand how Washington works behind the scenes. That's why she thinks McCain, with his decades of experience, is more fit for the job.

Frank, on the other hand, thinks Obama is smart and has better plans. He said he's disappointed in what he sees as McCain's negative campaign tactics, such as trying to link Obama with 1960s radical William Ayers instead of focusing on the economy.

"I don't care about William Ayers from the '60s, but I do care about what's happening to my 401(k) (retirement savings) plan now," he said. "The McCain tax plan is weighted heavily toward people making more money than I do, while Obama's would help people who make less than $250,000."

Frank also said he believes McCain's vice presidential running mate, Sarah Palin, is "nowhere near qualified to be president."

After Frank put up an Obama sign, a neighbor and Republican pal of Jil's called to ask about it - and kindly provided a McCain counterpoint.

- S. Heather Duncan

Don Carswell has his reasons for voting for John McCain, including a very personal one.

Carswell, a 43-year-old managing partner in two Dublin car dealerships, was told as a young boy that he was adopted. He was never ashamed of it, but he also never desired to find his birth parents.

Not so long ago, at the urging of doctors and others, he tracked down his biological mother. She had been a single mom who hid her pregnancy, gave birth, then returned to work the next day.

"That lady carried me around for nine months as a secret," he said. "I thank the grace of God I wasn't born after abortion became this simple, quick thing to do. I have no doubt I would have been aborted."

The McCain/Palin ticket's strong pro-life position only strengthens Carswell's long-standing support for McCain as a presidential candidate. He voted for him in 2000 and in this year's primary.

"It's a clichŽ now, putting the country ahead of yourself, but he's lived that clichŽ."

Carswell likes McCain's record of working beyond "party boundaries." A former Democrat, he says he has his own history of voting across party lines, and he plans to vote for several less-liberal candidates from his former party in other races.

"The Democrats of Sam Nunn and Zell Miller aren't out there now. If they are, they're not leading the party."

He says he believes in giving a "helping hand" but does not want a "socialist state," another point he views in McCain's favor.

"There's no perfect candidate, but we want someone who cares about protecting life, whether it's a child in the womb or someone fighting overseas."

- Rodney Manley

Margaret Dudley remembers a time when she was denied the right to vote.Now 75, Dudley was there for the billy clubs and attack dogs that bloody Sunday on a march to Selma, Ala. She was there in Washington, D.C., for Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have A Dream" speech.

So it frustrates her when people today don't vote, no matter which candidate they support.

"I felt it was not right not being able to vote," said Dudley, who lost her job at what was then the Macon Hospital after attending the Selma march. "It gets to me that people can vote and don't. We paid a price with the billy clubs and getting bit by dogs."

Dudley is a lifelong Democrat who sees the candidacy of Sen. Barack Obama as the culmination of a dream.

"Boy, I just don't know if I can even say," she said. "I'm grateful. To have marched and now have an African-American running for president, I can't put into words."

But Dudley said she would have been equally supportive of Sen. Hillary Clinton had she won the Democratic nomination.

"I have nothing against the other party, but when you vote Republican, you get us into a stew like we're in now," she said.

- Phillip Ramati

Ray Moore of Fort Valley, who works at the Lowe's in Warner Robins, is a strong John McCain supporter. He shows it on his truck with two McCain bumper stickers and one that says "Nobama.""I like the popular line that Sarah Palin has used when campaigning for him: 'John McCain is the only candidate who has fought for his country.' I'm a veteran too, and I can relate to him and his policies," Moore said.

"I may be a little more conservative than McCain is, but I think we'll be better off with him as president."

Moore said he was able to watch only one of the presidential debates and the vice presidential debate.

"Obama is very eloquent, but it seems that only lets him step around the questions. I never hear him answering them," Moore said.

"John McCain is a little rough around the edges and doesn't do as well in debate situations, but I'm a little rough too, so that doesn't bother me. I just think he is the best option we have."

Moore said he's disappointed in both candidates for supporting the financial rescue plan.

"It would have been better to let the financial crisis work itself out or (to) give the money to us instead of the banks. People could use it to pay off their mortgages and buy what they need. That would have stimulated the economy more than handing the banks all that money."

-Chuck Thompson

Standing in front of the Georgia Department of Labor in Macon, 28-year-old Alfonzo Sutton is on his way inside in search of new work.He said his job at an air-conditioning plant is set to be shipped out of the country, where the ability to pay $5 hourly wages is more appealing to his employer than the $16 per hour that Sutton was paid.

"It's a good business move," Sutton concedes, "but damn, it got me."

Sutton said he plans to vote for Barack Obama.

"The reason why is, first, the economy," he said. "Second of all, we just need a change."

Obama's election would ignite the diverse change the country needs, Sutton said. And he hopes the Illinois senator could improve economic policies, health-care access, gas prices and withdraw troops from Iraq if he wins the White House.

Something new is needed, he said, though he doesn't expect that change to happen overnight.

"All the jobs are going overseas," Sutton said. "It's just not steady right now. It's just not steady."

- Matt Barnwell

A couple of months ago, a Westside High School student group, People Ending Need, held a student voter registration drive, and senior Austin Nowlin signed up.Next month will mark the 18-year-old's first time voting, and he's excited to help make history.

"Whether it's the first woman vice president or the first African-American president, I'm very excited to see the turnout," he said. "It's a milestone for the country, and I do feel lucky to be a part of that."

Austin, who plays left tackle for the Seminoles, says that as a young man preparing for college who'll be paying for his own health care soon, he's interested in a president who will create a more affordable health-care plan. He's not in favor of universal health care or any government-run plan, though.

That issue, along with plans to boost the economy and continue off-shore drilling, coupled with a forward-thinking energy plan at home, "help this nation," he said.

These issues led the "moderate" Republican to choose McCain.

"I feel like being 18, this is the start of my adulthood," he said. "This election is the plan for the future."

- Julie Hubbard

As a conservative about to vote in his first presidential election, Mercer University junior Daniel Groce is in a quandary.The presidential vote in Georgia stands a good chance of being close, so he wants to vote for one of the main candidates instead of voting for a third party.

But John McCain, perhaps the expected choice for a Baptist college kid raised Republican, leaves him wondering.

"As a conservative voter, I don't know that John McCain's the best choice," the political science major from Fayetteville said.

Groce said his political views were influenced most by the policies of Barry Goldwater, a touchstone hero among old-school conservatives who may be Libertarians as much as they are Republicans.

Goldwater lost a presidential bid in 1964, more than two decades before Groce was born. But the changes he helped bring to the Republican Party set up the things to come, Groce said. That includes the ascendancy of the late President Ronald Reagan, whom many Republicans consider one of America's greatest presidents.

Perhaps, if McCain were to lose to Barack Obama, that would set the stage for 2012, said Groce, who started a conservative blog with several other Mercer students this year at http://down-right.org/.

"We could have somebody stand up and say, 'Look, the Republican Party has gone completely off the wall,' " the 20-year-old said. " 'Maybe we need to get back to the party's original principles of conservatism.' "

- Travis Fain

Manuel Zavalo, a 20-year-old business management student at Central Georgia Technical College, is voting for the first time this year."It's my first election and I'm voting for Obama," he said, "because he debated better than McCain."

"He's impressed me with what he has to say about the economy, and his stand on immigration and homeland security," said Zavalo, who works at El Azteca on Tom Hill Sr. Boulevard.

"I was kind of waiting until the end, the last debate (Oct. 15) to make my decision. But I feel informed now, and I'm confident Obama will win," he said.

- Ashley Tusan Joyner

Wayne Avery watched all the debates. He's listened to speeches. He's read economic plans authored by both Sen. Barack Obama and Sen. John McCain.

Still, he's not sure who he's going to vote for.

Avery said he's drawn to Obama's charisma and confidence. He respects Sen. Joe Biden's experience.

But the 61-year-old said he finds comfort in McCain's political record, his military experience and his history of working across party lines. He describes Gov. Sarah Palin as "feisty" and views her as a "down-to-earth person."

Avery retired from the Macon Police Department in July after serving 28 years. For him, the candidates' plans for the economy will seal his decision.

"The economy is the crucial point," he said. "If the economy keeps going down, it's going to have a domino effect on everything else - crime, health care, welfare - everything."

In watching the debates, Avery said he was frustrated by what he perceived as both candidates' efforts to "sidestep" questions.

"They will not answer a question directly," he said. "They don't think the American public can handle a truthful answer."

Avery said he's concerned what Obama's plan for a middle-class tax cut will mean for small-business owners and how the tax cut will be funded.

"Where's the money going to come from to run the government?" Avery asked. "He hasn't answered that question yet."

McCain came close to providing a definite answer about his plan Wednesday night by saying he would use a hatchet to curtail spending, he said.

After watching the debate, Avery said he's leaning toward McCain, although he's waiting to see more details about the candidates' economic plans.

He says he'll probably make up his mind within the next week.

"This is probably going to be the most important election we've ever had," he said.

- Amy Leigh Womack

Carol Barber, 29, is undecided about which presidential candidate to back. The expectant mother said Obama is attractive overall but she finds herself conflicting with some of his views.

"I have concerns about some of his positions, like on abortion and gay marriage, that are not in line with mine. But I'm not sure if he gets into office, he'll really act on them anyway," she said. "I like his social policies and economic policies. I'm a little concerned about his military experience."

She said she values McCain's experience in Washington but isn't convinced he's the better choice.

"My husband is leaning toward McCain because he's more in favor of small government," Barber, a Macon resident, said. "I listened to all the debate and the commentary afterward, and have read about their voting records. I think it's going to come down to prayer."

- Ashley Tusan Joyner

Kamal Patel is planning to vote for Barack Obama in the presidential election, but Obama had better do something pretty quickly to help improve the country's financial condition.

"I think he can do a better job on the economy," said Patel, 33, owner of Capello's New York Subs on Riverside Drive in Macon. "If not, he will be out in four years."

Also, Joe Biden's foreign policy experience should help Obama, he said.

But the state of the economy is the main reason Patel picked Obama.

"The current administration just hasn't done it," he said, adding that he felt John McCain would continue the current administration's path.

"(McCain) has some good points," Patel said. "But it's not just myself. I believe the Asian community is going to pick Obama for the same reasons."

The presidential and vice presidential debates didn't influence Patel's decision much.

"I didn't really think much of the debates because they were kind of stale," he said. "I did like Obama's acceptance speech."- Linda S. Morris Laura Adams said when McCain picked Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin as a running mate, he won her over as a supporter.

"I was pretty much undecided until last month. But that's what did it. I think she'll be fighting for change in Washington," said Adams, 50, of Macon.

Across the board, she said, McCain's plans are best for Americans.

"I don't want taxes raised. Who does? I feel like he has more experience and he'll be able to deal with foreign policy," she said. "When it comes to the economy, I think his plan will actually stimulate it."

- Ashley Tusan Joyner

Tierra Hundley, a 27-year-old first-time voter from Warner Robins, said her family, and issues like the war and the economy, helped her decide to vote for Obama.

"My family, we're all Democrats. I've just been listening to what he's been saying about change, and since I've never voted before, he seemed like the best choice," the city worker said.

Hundley's aunt, who serves in the U.S. Air Force, has been deployed to Iraq on multiple tours, she said.

"I'm ready for this war to be over. We want her to be home for good," Hundley said. "I'm optimistic about Obama's priority to end the war."

As a single person with no children, Hundley said the economy is another concern for her.

"I've noticed a change in the economy since I've been an adult. With me being on my own and living on my own, it's gotten harder," she said. "The gas prices, the higher cost of living, those are the things that matter to me."

- Ashley Tusan Joyner