Southern discomfort

Georgia: Ralph Reed sees his lead dwindle in his run for lieutenant governor | Jamie Dean

Maurice Atkinson learned everything he knows about politics from Ralph Reed. The vice chairman of the Bibb County Republican Party in central Georgia cut his teeth on political activism in Indiana, where he was an active member of the Christian Coalition when Mr. Reed was executive director of the organization. When Mr. Atkinson moved to Georgia six years ago, he delved into local politics and supported Mr. Reed in his successful bid for state party chairman. "I liked his ideas," Mr. Atkinson told WORLD. "He was extremely effective."

Supporting Mr. Reed for lieutenant governor of Georgia was initially a "no-brainer" for Mr. Atkinson. But a year later, he's changed his mind and now supports Georgia senator Casey Cagle, Mr. Reed's Republican opponent. Switching camps, Mr. Atkinson says, was a "no-brainer" as well: After reading multiple reports that Mr. Reed made millions from anti-gambling work backed by disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff and his casino-rich tribal clients, "I realized that he's just flat-out wrong."