Political retaliation not over yet?

The latest, and preferably the last, shoe has dropped in the Georgia Republican leadership’s vendetta against its out-of-favor colleague, Sen. Josh McKoon, R-Columbus. (Political payback apparently wears an indefinite number of shoes.)

It was made clear in the closing days of the legislative session, when almost $8 million in capital funding for Columbus State University was pulled from the budget, that Gov. Nathan Deal, House Speaker David Ralston and others were putting heat on McKoon for political differences that are by now familiar.

Earlier this week a relatively small, but nonetheless important, appropriation for this area was redirected for what Rep. Richard Smith, R-Columbus, said was the same reason.

A $100,000 Department of Economic Development line item for a Global War on Terror memorial at the National Infantry Museum will be put to “other uses” at Deal’s direction, Smith said.

McKoon rightly noted that his Senate district doesn’t even include the National Infantry Museum. It does include Harris and part of Troup counties where, as readers pointed out online, there seem to have been no similar repercussions.

None of which is hard to figure out: The National Infantry Museum is important to Columbus, and it is Muscogee County, not Harris or Troup, where most of the district’s votes are cast.

The museum’s directors, wisely and unsurprisingly, are taking the route of diplomacy over politics.

“We will continue to work with state tourism officials,” a NIM statement reads in part, “to convince them that the planned Global War on Terrorism memorial and other projects at the National Infantry Museum are worthy of state support.”

One can defend or deplore this kind of political budget weaponry, but it’s been a part of politics since humankind created politics. Message received and acknowledged.

Recruiting mission

Except in the rarest of circumstances, commercial and industrial development isn’t something that comes from just sending out invitations. When the prospects don’t come to us (and most don’t), we have to go to them.

That’s why the report by business writer Tony Adams that two Greater Columbus Chamber of Commerce officials attended a major German job fair is welcome news. As reported Wednesday, Bill Murphy and Brian Sillitto went trolling for business prospects at the Hannover Messe, a decades-old industrial trade fair that attracts thousands of companies and tens of thousands of visitors. The two chamber economic development execs reported that about 20 prospects could consider Columbus for a commercial or manufacturing site.

As noted in the Wednesday story, the local jobless rate is still stubbornly high. But Columbus of 2016 has an advantage the city didn’t have 20 or so years ago: If recruiters can just get prospects to come here for a visit, this community can do a pretty fair job of selling itself.

This story was originally published May 5, 2016 at 4:57 PM with the headline "Political retaliation not over yet?."