Will President-Elect Barack Obama come to Georgia for Jim Martin:

Even as President-elect Barack Obama continues to rapidly fill out his White House staff and Cabinet picks, the buzz around whether he will spend some of his prized political capital on behalf of former state Rep. Jim Martin (D) in Georgia continues to grow.
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For Obama, it may not make sense to head to Georgia as it would be painted by Republicans -- rightly, so -- as a partisan act inconsistent with the president-elect's post-partisan message. And, if Martin winds up losing, which conventional wisdom suggests he will, then some of Obama's luster will have worn off before he even takes the oath of office.
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Obama is already an issue in the runoff campaign as Martin is attacking Chambliss in a television ad for his opposition to the "Obama economic recovery plan." The ad's narrator adds: "Jim Martin will help Barack Obama cut taxes for the middle class and get our economy moving again."

The Martin campaign is also recycling a radio ad that Obama did for them in the general election. (It began airing Tuesday in the state.)

During the campaign, Obama turned down a series of requests for appearances or television ads in support of Democratic candidates -- picking and choosing only a few races in which to engage.

The most prominent was the television ad Obama cut in support of Oregon Sen.-elect Jeff Merkley; he also lent his voice to a radio ad for Rep.-elect Jim Himes in Connecticut.

Whether Obama travels to Georgia may well depend heavily on whether he views the Senate contest as the last race of 2008 or the first race of 2010.

Because Obama did take the time to lend his voice to radio ads for Martin during the campaign, his political operation could well point those ads -- and the burdens of filling out a new government between now and January 20 -- as reasons why he simply can't make the time to come down to the Peach State.

If Georgia is seen as the first race of the 2010 cycle, however, Obama could use it as an opportunity to flex his political muscles for Republicans (and Democrats) in Congress; if Martin won due to an Obama visit, there would be significant trepidation -- among vulnerable Democrats and Republicans -- to cross his legislative priorities.

I'm not hedging my bets that he'll come, but he could. The question is whether or not African-American voters will come back out. If Obama has a presence in the race, I think it'll bring them back out but maybe not at the same level we saw during the presidential election, however in a runoff Martin might not need that.