Big Names Called Down for Georgia Senate Runoff

Since Republican Sen. Saxby Chambliss (left) failed to get the 50% needed to claim victory against Democrat Jim Martin, his campaign is calling in all the big Republican guns to help. John McCain, Sarah Palin, Mitt Romney, Rudy Giuliani, and Newt Gingrich are expected to go down to the Peach State and stump for Chambliss in a desperate attempt to keep as many Senate seats out of Democratic hands as humanly possible.

High-profile Democrats have not been enthusiastic about getting down to Georgia and campaigning for their guy. Martin has been in contact with Barack Obama, trying to get him to come down and stump for him, but he is in a bit of a bind.

He would love an extra seat in the Senate, but the last thing he wants right now is to fail one of his first tests and appear like he has no sway as president-elect.

There is an eerie similarity between this situation and the situation that Bill Clinton was in when he was first elected president. The Democrats had taken control of the the White House and Congress and there was a run-off election happening in Georgia. The Republican candidate framed his candidacy as a last stand against Democratic filibuster-proof majority in the Senate. Clinton and Gore ended up campaigning on behalf of the Democratic candidate, but he lost and Republicans said it was a signal of Clinton's already weakening political standing.

So, I think it's best that Obama plays it safe and sits this one out. It is far too risky for and he has more to lose than to gain. And it is unlikely that the Democrats will reach that 60-seat majority anyway. Of course it would be nice to have another Democrat in the Senate, but at what cost? And it's not like he doesn't have enough to do--he's got his hands full and then some. And I just think for those reasons, he will not campaign for Martin.

However, Martin might be able to get one of the Clintons to help him out. Bill Clinton won the state in 1992 and might still have some sway in the state as a fellow southerner.

Still, by all measures, it looks like Chambliss is still the favorite to hold his seat.