http://www.davidshafer.org A Diary of the 2007 Legislative Session Thu, 07 May 2009 22:27:24 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en I received an email today from an Emory University doctor expressing support for my Senate Resolution 748 concerning Grady's employee health benefits plan. He writes: I have been based at Grady for 11 years as a trauma surgeon. About 8 years ago, a close friend of mine and who was a ... http://www.davidshafer.org/?p=236 I was surprised learn about the sudden departure of Otis Story as CEO of the Grady Health System.  I have found him to be open, responsive and seemingly an agent for reform.  In fact, he and I have been working closely on a funding and competitiveness initiative that was to be formally proposed next ... http://www.davidshafer.org/?p=235 Grady Health System spends $18 million annually in health care benefits for its 5,000 employees. But unlike virtually every other large hospital employer, Grady makes no effort to encourage its employees to utilize Grady for their primary health care needs. With bipartisan support, I today introduced Senate Resolution 748 which calls ... http://www.davidshafer.org/?p=234 I spoke this afternoon at the 3rd Annual Rally for Darfur, an interfaith rally at the State Capitol organized to draw attention to the atrocities being committed in the Darfur region of the Sudan. Arab militiamen backed by the Government of Sudan have killed nearly 400,000 African inhabitants of Darfur and ... http://www.davidshafer.org/?p=233 My wife gave me an old book on the first day of the Legislative Session. The gold lettering on its worn bound cover was faded, but it turned out to be the Legislative Manual of the Georgia General Assembly for the 1929-1930 Legislative Session. We no longer publish a legislative manual ... http://www.davidshafer.org/?p=231 I attended a meeting at the State Capitol earlier today with Governor Mike Huckabee, who later spoke at the Together for Life rally organized by Georgia Right To Life. Governor Huckabee, as always, was impressive. In the private meeting, he tied his Arkansas highway spending program back to ... http://www.davidshafer.org/?p=232 In this this famous letter written in 1963 from the Birmingham city jail, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. responds to a public statement issued by eight leading Christian and Jewish clergymen urging respect for the "principles of law and order and common sense."  Even if you have read Dr. King's ... http://www.davidshafer.org/?p=230 The Washington Post has identified Sonny Perdue as a potential candidate for Vice President, citing his impressive re-election victory as Governor in a year that went poorly for our party overall. The others mentioned were Governor Mark Sanford of South Carolina, Governor Tim Pawlenty of Minnesota, Senator John Thune ... http://www.davidshafer.org/?p=229 I hesitate to comment on the impeachment resolution drafted by Representative Ron Forster for fear of giving the unfortunate matter more attention than it deserves. As reported today in AJC, Representative Forster is seeking to impeach the Lieutenant Governor. He is unhappy that the Senate referred the veto overrides to ... http://www.davidshafer.org/?p=227 I today introduced two pieces of legislation addressing problems at Grady Memorial Hospital. Senate Resolution 722 creates a Grady Oversight Committee. First proposed in 1999 by then Senator David Scott, legislative oversight has been persistently opposed by those who run Grady. Of course, their resistance to legislative oversight has ... http://www.davidshafer.org/?p=228