Like all lieutenant governor races (though on a somewhat grander scale), this hypothetical contest wasn't about serving as the governor's second in command. Instead, it was about serving political ambitions. The likely Republican nominee is none other than Christian Coalition founder Ralph Reed, one of the nation's leading conservatives. As the Atlanta Journal-Constitution noted, Reed, like every lieutenant governor candidate since the Earth was a mass of molten rock, wants to be governor. His supporters are also setting their sights higher, however. They want him to be president. With Republican Governor Sonny Perdue seeking reelection next year, Reed has chosen to bide (or waste) his time by seeking the number two spot.
Georgia Democrats, of course, cringe at that idea. So they had pushed former U.S. Senator Max Cleland to run for the post. Cleland, for those who don't remember, became the foremost martyr for progressive Democrats in 2002 (in spite of the fact that he voted for the Iraq War and the Bush tax cuts) when his Republican opponent juxtaposed his image with those of Osama Bin Laden and Saddam Hussein in a T.V. ad. That struck many people as a crass scare tactic, especially because Cleland, who lost the election, is a triple amputee and Vietnam Vet. Cleland hasn't ever expressed any interest in being lieutenant governor, but Democratic leaders don't care. They just want to stop Reed before he runs for higher office.
Alas, Cleland has apparently decided not to run. We can only hope he and Jimmy Carter face off in a Democratic primary for dogcatcher sometime down the road.
