Georgia Republicans were focused on leadership changes last week. While much of the press coverage focused on the Georgia GOP Convention in Athens this past weekend, the slate led by current Chairman John Padgett remained in charge of the state's majority party structure for the next two years.
Meanwhile, back at the Capitol, House Republicans had a leadership election of their own. House Majority Leader Larry O'Neal is leaving for a judicial appointment, and thus there needed to be an election for a replacement. Rep. Jon Burns of Newington was chosen to lead the Republicans in the House after a relatively friendly intra-party campaign against Rep. Allen Peake of Macon.
There are other significant leadership changes coming within the Georgia House, courtesy of appointments, resignations, and shifting committee chairmanships. Headlining these is the appointment of Transportation Chairman Jay Roberts, who has been appointed Planning Director for the Georgia Department of Transportation by Governor Deal.
Rep. Mark Hamilton of Cumming used the caucus meeting for elections to announce that he too would be resigning his seat in the House. Hamilton told his fellow members in detail that he began a journey with his wife of seeking what God had planned for him next over a year ago, and that has culminated with him accepting a position in Nashville. He will be vacating a chairmanship of the Industry and Labor Committee.
The governor has appointed Mike Jacobs of DeKalb County to a judicial position, and thus he too will be vacating the chairmanship of the committee that oversees MARTA. His chairmanship has marked a dramatic change between Republicans in the General Assembly and the transit agency, especially considering the frosty relationship his predecessor had in the position.
North Fulton Republicans will also soon be selecting a representative to fill the unexpired term of Rep. Harry Geisinger, who passed away after a battle with leukemia. Geisinger received a heartfelt set of eulogies at the beginning of the Republicans' caucus meeting, as he has been a fixture in Georgia Republican politics long enough that he was credited with driving a college-age Newt Gingrich back and forth to party meetings.
Meanwhile, on the Democrats' side of the aisle, Rep. Tyrone Brooks of Atlanta has also vacated his seat. Brooks had served in the legislature since 1981.
The mid-cycle departures from the House have become somewhat commonplace, as the allure of being a House member often doesn't compete with the realities of a $17,000 part-time salary for the essentially full-time duties of the role. The loss of experience also highlights the role of the "citizen legislators" and the importance of the committee chairmen.
During Hamilton's retirement announcement, he spoke of an incoming Speaker David Ralston asking him to chair his current committee. Hamilton told Ralston that he didn't know anything about being a committee chairman, as he hadn't been one before. Hamilton said Ralston told him, "That's OK, I've never been a Speaker before, either."
And that, simply and directly, is how our state's legislative body works. People offer themselves for public service. The ones that are elected take whatever experience they may bring with them to Atlanta, where they will then vote on wide-ranging matters of governance for 40 days per year.
40 days are not time for everyone to become an expert on everything, and thus the work is divided and spread over many committees. Committee members are expected to know the topics on which they serve, at least more so than the average member. Chairmen are expected to become experts; though few can be expected to be the day they start the job.
A partisan base that often calls for term limits should not be surprised to see significant turnover after a decade or so of service. Unfortunately for the legislature, it's often when many have become the experts in the field of their committees, as well as how the multiple facets of the legislature work learly, their skills have value in both the private and public sectors, including both the judicial and executive branches.
Behind them will come other citizen legislators, who will either receive a chairmanship for the first time, or will be moved from one chairmanship to another. There will be a lot of on-the-job training in the months ahead, just like there has always been.
We often like to treat our elected officials as if they are supposed to have all the answers. They don't. Despite the sometimes lofty campaign rhetoric, most of them know that. All of the good ones do.
Charlie Harper, author and editor of the Peach Pundit blog, writes on Georgia politics and government; www.peachpundit.com.