Video of Bacon Co Republican Darwin Carter's endorsement of Richmond Co Democrat J.B. Powell at the Ga National Fairgrounds

JB Powell Receives Republican Endorsement from GOP Ag Commissioner candidate Darwin Carter

In a press conference this afternoon at the Georgia National Fairgrounds, JB Powell, the Democratic Candidate for Commissioner of Agriculture, received an endorsement from Darwin Carter, a 2010 Republican candidate for Commissioner of Agriculture and former Reagan administration official. This is the only cross-party endorsement from a statewide candidate in over a decade in Georgia politics.

“I am honored to receive Darwin Carter’s endorsement today. We need to move past partisan politics and come together as Georgians, and I look forward to working with Darwin Carter to earn the support of Democratic, Republican and Independent voters this November.”

“As a conservative Republican who was appointed by Ronald Reagan to work in the U.S. Department of Agriculture, I know real leadership when I see it, and I believe JB Powell will do a great job of representing conservative principals as Agriculture Commissioner for Georgia” said Darwin Carter. “I felt that in good moral conscience, I could not support the Republican nominee for Agriculture Commissioner because his ties to special interests as a lobbyist will hurt Georgia farmers and Georgia families. I support JB Powell because he has bold ideas that will help grow Georgia’s agricultural economy and help protect our food safety and I encourage all Reagan conservatives like me to vote for JB Powell this November.”

Darwin Carter was appointed to the U.S. Department of Agriculture by President Reagan from 1981 to 1989. From 1981 to 1982 he served as the Georgia State Executive Director for Agricultural Stabilization and Conservation Service. From 1982 to 1989, Darwin Carter served as the Assistant to the Undersecretary for International Affairs, Commodities and Programs and the Assistant to the Deputy Secretary of Agriculture. In these roles, he oversaw the exportation of 454 million pounds of beef and 120,000 live dairy animals. Darwin Carter ran in the Republican primary for Agriculture Commissioner of Georgia in 2010 and is a lifelong resident of Bacon County.

Now supporters of Gary Black is going to look at this as nothing, but you consider the face that this is rare for a candidate from the opposite party endorsing another candidate from another party in a long, long time. Carter gives Powell instant credibility for the Ag job & proves that Powell is the true conservative candidate in this race.

The Beat Goes On!

Press Release from Republican Darwin Carter, who was unsuccessful in his bid for the GOP nod against Gary Black:


Our efforts to derail Big Chemical Companies from taking over the Georgia Department of Agriculture using their hired puppet, Gary Black, did not succeed. This was due, primarily, to the press refusing to expose this politically insidious relationship between these Chemical Giants and their Lobbyist of 21 years.

These multi-national companies spend vast sums of money advertising in the newspapers and electronic media each year: Therefore, using this advertising clout, they stymied, any and all, news exposure of Black's activities and their involvement. They were so effective in this effort, the Atlanta Press Club which sponsors a debate between every candidate for state wide office in Georgia refused to include the Commissioner of Agriculture race. (I would have asked the embarrassing questions and they knew it.)

Fortunately, our efforts did not fall on deaf ears. In the attached press release you will find candidate J.B. Powell is making every effort to expose this takeover of the agency which safeguards your food supply.

Make no mistakes, my friends, this is all about CONTROL of what you and your family eat and the profits of these multi-national corporations.

Black's primary backer holds in excess of 300 seed patents (G.M.O.s ). (The long term effect of these genetically modified seeds is not yet known.)

They are the petroleum based fertilizer companies....

They provide the Insecticides, Herbicides and Pesticides sprayed on your food supply.

As Commissioner of Agriculture, Black would be in a position to increase the amount of chemicals used and allow G.M.O.s without limitation.

This is not about politics. This is about a compromised regulator sitting behind the desk of the Commissioner of Agriculture dictating what you and your family consume and increasing the profits of his employers of 21 years.

Pay attention to these Press Releases....They are important !!

Darwin Carter


JB Powell Decisively Wins Commissioner of Agriculture Debate

September 2, 2010

Atlanta, GA – JB Powell, the Democratic Candidate for Commissioner of Agriculture, scored a decisive victory tonight in the debate hosted by Georgia Organics.

Will Harris, President of the Board for Georgia Organics said “We are astounded and encouraged by the attendance and support for organic farming.”

JB Powell drew repeated applause from the several hundred people in the audience as he championed the cause of sustainably and locally produced food as a way of promoting food safety, healthy eating and local farming. Powell demonstrated he was the candidate who stood up for the issues that the large crowd in attendance cared about

Specifically, Powell talked about:
Reducing childhood obesity by increasing the amount of locally grown fruits and vegetables served in public schools

Eliminating government regulations that prevent small, local farmers from selling farm products such as raw milk directly to consumers

Creating local markets making it possible for local farmers to sell their food locally

Increasing the percent of food served by the University System of Georgia that is produced sustainably and locally following Emory University’s 75% sustainable and locally grown food initiative

Creating tax credits and loan guarantees for grocery stores that open in low income communities

Growing the amount of acreage in organic production in Georgia from 1700 acres to 5000 acres by 2015

Making it easier for young farmers to get into farming and make a living
Protecting food safety oversight capacity as the Department of Agriculture is required to cut $3.5M in 2011

Conducting a cost benefit analysis for the Department of Agriculture operations in order to determine what can be done more efficiently

During the debate, Gary Black, the Republican candidate, found himself defending his constant ducking on questions as he offered to solve many of the issues by forming a committee. Mr. Black was also questioned by, Kevin Cherry, the Libertarian candidate, about Mr. Black’s ethical challenges that have plagued him during the campaign and then by JB Powell regarding how Mr. Black could be a lobbyist for big agribusiness companies for two decades and expect us to believe he would side with the public instead of the interests of big agribusiness companies.

“I want to commend Georgia Organics for organizing this debate” said JB Powell. “I think the high level of interest in this debate is a strong indicator of the support for organic farming in Georgia and I am proud to support getting locally grown food to local markets. We can grow Georgia’s economy and make our food healthier by increasing the amount of food eaten by Georgians that is sustainably and locally produced.”

JB Powell is a lifelong resident of Richmond County residing in the small agricultural community of Blythe, Georgia. He was elected to the State Senate, District 23 in 2004 and has been the primary sponsor of over 45 bills and co-sponsor of many others. These have included bills promoting Georgia’s agri-tourism business, soil erosion projects and river basin protection. He is an active member of the Agriculture and Consumer Affairs Committee. He serves as an ex-officio member of the Natural Resources and Environment Committee and is a member of the Interstate Cooperation and State Institutions and Property Committees. He is also secretary of the State’s Science and


September 7, 2010

Atlanta, GA – In the ongoing scandal about Gary Black’s campaign largely being supported by the lobbying firm that employed Black as a lobbyist for over 20 years, today it was discovered that the lobbying firm treasurer, Wayne Christian, is also the treasurer for Gary Black’s campaign.

“A lobbying firm has not just paid Black’s salary during his political campaign, but is also supplying staff for Gary Black’s campaign. This just goes to prove that Black’s election would be putting the fox in charge of the hen house and special interests would be staffing the Department of Agriculture if Black is elected. Georgia farmers and families do not need a lobbyist, they need an advocate for food safety and farmers” said JB Powell, Democratic candidate for Commissioner of Agriculture.

Records from the Georgia Ethics Commission and Georgia Agribusiness Council’s tax filings reveal that Wayne Christian is the treasurer for both Gary Black’s campaign and a lobbying firm sheltered from paying taxes by non-profit status despite a majority of expenses incurred for “promoting agribusiness.”


JB Powell is a lifelong resident of Richmond County residing in the small agricultural community of Blythe, Georgia. He was elected to the State Senate, District 23 in 2004 and has been the primary sponsor of over 45 bills and co-sponsor of many others. These have included bills promoting Georgia’s agri-tourism business, soil erosion projects and river basin protection. He is an active member of the Agriculture and Consumer Affairs Committee. He serves as an ex-officio member of the Natural Resources and Environment Committee and is a member of the Interstate Cooperation and State Institutions and Property Committees. He is also secretary of the State’s Science and Technology Committee.

Darwin Carter: Stop the Lobbyist!

Presser sent out by the Carter Campaign on July 17

Dear Friends,

Today a friend shared with me some interesting reading. I just saw
copies of the latest campaign contributions given to my opponent, the
lobbyist, Gary Black. Frankly, it is frightening. He shows big steady
flows of cash coming in from exactly the same people he will be in
charge of regulating, if he is elected. Hundreds of thousands of
dollars from big corporate donors are flowing in to Lobbyist Black.
Big money wants him to run the Department for them.

Do we want his lobbyist crony's to run our Department of Agriculture?
Do we trust our food safety to lobbyists? To political hacks? To
Monsanto? That is where we are headed if we don't decide now to stop
Black. Stop the lobbyists, NOW!

We've got just 3 days and it will be over. We've got 3 days to
allow a life-long conservative farmer to do the people's work at our
Department of Agriculture. Or, if we aren't careful, in 3 days the
inmates will be running the asylum! Black's slick corporate buddies
will have what they have been working toward for years!

This is our last best chance to tell the Lobbyist Gary Black NO! The
Department of Agriculture is not for sale!

Stop The Lobbyist! Stop Black! Support Darwin Carter!Sorry Mr. Black, the Department of Agriculture belongs to
the people of Georgia, it is not for sale

Regards,

Darwin Carter


Darwin Carter was asked by President Ronald Reagan to open international trade routes for U.S. beef and for 8 years he did just that. Darwin was raised on a farm and has worked in agriculture most of his life. In the lat 70s, he was not afraid of confronting President Jimmy Carter (no relation!) for the farmers of Georgia and helped organize and lead a 20,000 rolling tractor motorcade to then-President Carter's home in Plains, Georgia. He was fearless in the defense of farmers then and he'll be a staunch defender of the citizens and farmers of this state. Let's give him our vote.

Open Letter to Secretary of State Brian Kemp & Voters of Georgia from Darwin Carter, candidate for Agriculture Commissioner

Honorable Brian P. Kemp
Secretary of State
Georgia

Dear Mr. Secretary,

By way of this correspondence, I am writing you, and the voters of
Georgia, seeking your opinion as to whether or not by his words and
his actions my opponent, Gary Black, has disqualified himself as a
candidate for office pursuant to the Official Code of Georgia, Title 21,
Chapter 2, Section 5.

Let me be specific. It is my understanding based on the Official Code
of Georgia, that a candidate for Commissioner of Agriculture may be
disqualified if: (1) He is guilty of Moral Turpitude, (2) If he
commits fraud, and (3) If he steals or misappropriates public funds.

During the course of my state wide race for the post of Commissioner
of Agriculture, I have carefully reviewed much of the work and actions
of my opponent, Gary Black. By doing so, I believe that he may, in
fact, be guilty of all three of the above disqualifying factors.

As the long time president of the Georgia Agribusiness Council, (GAC)
a non-profit 501c6 corporation, he has had a responsibility to pay
taxes on political expenditures. He has paid none. This is not a
slight oversight. He has carried on this reckless behavior for
years. A one time error may be considered a mistake. An ongoing
pattern of deceit is usually considered "evasion" by the IRS.

And, I might add, tax evasion is often prosecuted by the Bureau on
charges of fraud, possibly a felony. Black's many months, actually
years, of political campaigning for public office was subsidized by his
non-compliant lobbying firm (Georgia Agribusiness Council). He
and his fellow Board of Directors have deliberately failed to pay
federal taxes on his political dalliance. I consider that a misuse
of public money (#3 of above). Not to pay taxes may well be fraud
(#2 of above), and one guilty of fraud is considered to be guilty of
Moral Turpitude (#1 of above).

Gary Black, as you well know, ran unsuccessfully for this same post in
2006. During this current race he was actively campaigning throughout
most of last year. His twitter posts, accessible to the public, make
it very clear that he was meeting and greeting voters and supporters all
the while he was on full salary with his lobbying firm, GAC. He did not
resign his position as President of GAC until sometime around May 1, of
this year. That leaves the previous 12 months in which he was a full
time candidate and a full time GAC employee drawing his
big 501c6 salary, an ethical violation and an IRS act of fraud.

501c6 corporations are required by the IRS to pay taxes on partisan
political expenditures. As previously noted, Black and his lobbying
firm have never done so. Interestingly, Black's Chairman of the
Board, of GAC, is David Skinner, who is also a full time state
employee. He serves as Executive Director of the Georgia Development
Authority. As president and Chairman, Black and Skinner apparently have
worked well together.

Mr. Secretary, it is my understanding that charges of disqualification
are to be brought to your direct attention. By this letter, I am doing
so. As previously noted, I am also making these charges available to
the voters of Georgia, so that they too, can weigh in on this serious
matter.

It is my further understanding that once these charges reach your
attention by authority of the Georgia Constitution you are obligated to
review and reach a decision on all I have presented here. You must
decide if the above charges are disqualifying for Mr. Black. Once
you have reached your decision, I can accept your findings and/or
if I disagree, I may then notify you of my desire to take the matter
to the Fulton County Superior Court for further review.

Sincerely,

Darwin Carter

Georgia Farmers can't afford to have this man as its next Ag Commissioner. Stop Gary Black...the Lobbyist!!!!!

On the GOP side its Darwin Carter, a farmer & USDA Official against 2006 candidate Gary Black, a lobbyist & ex-president of Georgia Agribusiness.

On the Democratic side its J.B. Powell, a farmer, project manager & State Senator from rural Richmond County.

As many of you know Black badly wants to become the next agriculture commissioner, that he's been campaigning since his loss to Tommy Irvin for the job. But voters need to take notice of Black's real intentions if he does become Agriculture Commissioner.

Well someone has caught on to Black & wants to keep him from winning the GOP nomination & becoming the next Agriculture Commissioner.

Read this below:

I grew up in SW GA, and have roots that run deep in agriculture. I am concerned what may happen if Gary Black is elected as the next GA Ag Commissioner. Everyone says Gary Black is the best qualified and most experienced candidate. The only thing he is qualified to do is a be a lobbyist since that what his entire career has entailed. He is supported by the same companies the GA Ag Commissioner is charged with regulating (i.e. Monsanto).

How closely do you think he would be watching over these large agribusiness companies that back him and finance his campaign. He is strictly for large Agribusiness and food processing type companies instead of the GA farmer. At a political meeting in Union County, he was wearing a tie with peanuts on it. When someone from the audience quipped about his tie, his comment was while pointing to his tie "these are the only safe peanuts in GA". What a slap in the face to the peanut farmers who help contribute to our economy. Agriculture is 16% of GA's economy. While all portions of the state are important, the row crops (cotton, peanuts, corn, soybeans, etc) are the mainstays of the GA Ag market are mainly produced in South GA.

How can Gary Black be in touch with the farmers in South or even North GA while spending time in the state capital trying to push his lobbying organization's agenda's? Gary Black is politician plain and simple. He is a former Democrat who switched parties to run against Tommy Irvin...some say he is a very liberal democrat at heart, but I cant prove that. He knew he couldn't get the democratic vote against Irvin. He ended up losing anyway.

In my opinion, Darwin Carter by far the superior candidate. He is a Reagan conservative who worked with Reagan and Bush Sr in the Department of Agriculture. He is Bacon County farmer that knows the challenges our farmers face today. He is largely unknown, because he doesn't have the deep pockets afforded by the backing of the large companies the office is supposed to be regulating.
The statements above are simply based on my opinions formed from my own research. If you agree then please help get Darwin Carter's name out and keep Gary Black out. If you don't agree then thanks for reading anyway.

Don't take my word for it. Research

If you would like more info on Darwin Carter, you can go to www.darwincarter.com. You can also call me if you would like. I have been researching this for a couple of weeks since I heard both candidates speak at a local GOP rally.

This piece was written by Richard of Jesup, Ga & he hit rhe nail right on the head.




Darwin Carter of Bacon County has already filed a ethics complaint against Gary Black for failure to disclose the use of his office as CEO/Lobbyist for the Georgia Agribusiness Council (Not-for-Profit) to run for Commissioner of Agriculture.Additionally, Carter charges that Black's Lobbying firm, Georgia Agribusiness Council (GAC) is a non profit 501c6 corporation and according to the IRS should pay taxes on their extensive partisan political work.

Carter has spent the last six months filing letters of complaint to the Governor, Secretary of State, Attorney General, State Inspector General to no avail. Carter spoke with the Governor’s Attorney just to learn that ethics is not one of their top issues.

A similar complaint was filed against Black by then Republican candidate Deanne Strickland in 2006 which was never resolved by the State Ethics Commission.

This my favorite quote, from Carter himself: Electing Gary Black would be like putting the fox in charge of the hen house or as a local farmer told me, allowing British Petroleum to be in charge of water purification in the Gulf.”,

If Republicans want to win the Agriculture Commissioner's office for the first time ever, they better avoid electing Gary Black & elect Darwin Carter as its nominee. If its Black in the General Election, despite years of campaigning for the office of Ag Commissioner, he will lose once again in the fall. Reason why I say that, one word:


ETHICS!!!!

That will be a major issue in this year's elections, especially if either Oxendine or Deal becomes the nominee for the GOP, plus you throw in the ethics issues that plagued the GOP in the state legislature & the unknown issues of Casey Cagle. This will dog Black on the trail during the General Election against folksy State Senator J.B. Powell (D-Blythe) who'll wrap that issue around Black's neck. I know I am a conservative democrat, but the GOP better be beware of Gary Black as its nominee.


The majority, if all of the GOP Caucus have gotten behind Gary Black's candidacy, even the leaders of both houses hosted a fundraiser at the 755 club at Turner Field for Mr. Black. Gary Black is fool's gold. Voters need to be aware of what his true motives. For the sake of Ga Farmers, keep Gary Black off the General Election Ballot & send Darwin Carter to the General Election against J.B Powell.

I would rather have either of those two men as Ga's Ag Commissioner than to have a backslider like Gary Black at the helm.

Ethics Violations by Gary Black, candidate for Agriculture Commissioner? Sure looks like it!

Take Notice potential & likely voters. When there's smoke, there's fire!



Bacon County Republican Darwin Carter (R-Alma) filed a ethics complaint back on June 15 against Gary Black (R-Commerce) for violations, such as failure to disclose the use of his office as CEO/Lobbyist for the Georgia Agribusiness Council (Not-for-Profit) to run for Commissioner of Agriculture & in addition carter charges that Black's lobbying firm, Ga Agribusiness Council (GAC) is a non-profit 501c6 corporation & according to the IRS should pay taxes on their extensive partisan political work.

Here's one of two letters sent to Sonny Perdue:

Honorable Sonny Perdue
Governor of Georgia

Dear Governor Perdue,

Where does one turn to involving conflicts of interest here in Georgia?
I ask that question of you out of frustration. Let me explain. I am
a current candidate for Commissioner of Agriculture in the Republican
Primary race. In the course of my campaign I learned a great deal about my opponent, Gary Black.

I found out that he is a full time candidate for state office, at the same time he is working full time as President of the Georgia Agribusiness Council (GAC), a U. S. Tax exempt, 501c6 corporation.

My reading of regulations concerning these tax exempt groups suggests
that they are strictly forbidden from involvement in partisan politics.
Violation of IRS rules can cause loss of the tax exempt status.

As President of GAC besides his six figure salary, his meals are paid for while on the road. His gasoline and car expenses are paid. His lodging is covered. In short, everything he encounters is paid or reimbursed by GAC, all of this while he maintains his 24 hour schedule of non-stop partisan campaigning.

I think that this is wrong. I believe that he is conflicted. Acting on my belief I wrote to the Georgia Inspector General, asking that they review my findings. At the same time, I also wrote the office of Secretary of State, knowing that their office handles matters of corporations here in Georgia (see attached). In both cases, I have now heard back that they have no jurisdiction in such matters.

That is the reason for this message to you. Where does one go to properly raise these questions? By the way, in writing to you, I was given 60 choices of subject matter by your efficient email server, no where did I see Conflict of Interest as a possible selection to define the purpose in my correspondence. Knowing that I had to select a category I chose agriculture. However, that was an arbitrary choice since this is really a request for review that centers around blatant conflict of interest.

In summary, who in our state has jurisdiction if in fact Gary Black
is conflicted, as I suspect? Do you see any problem here with his
wearing of two hats, being paid by his lobbying group to seek the
office that handles the matters most impacting on his corporation?
Do you see any problem that he does all of this using a tax exempt
corporation while he campaigns?

Governor, I sincerely seek your advice and thoughts on this matter.

Sincerely,

Darwin Carter
Darwin Carter for Georgia Agriculture Commissioner
1720 West 4th St Extention
Alma Ga 31510


PS. Since writing you the above message, I made a joint public
appearance with Gary Black at the 6th District GOP Campaign Forum,
Dunwoody. As I ended my remarks to the crowd, I turned to Gary Black
and asked him in front of everyone how he could possibly justify his
high profile conflict of interest. He didn't like the question. He
suggested that I was delivering to him a "sucker-punch". However, he
went on to say that he had "resigned two days ago", from his GAC
position.

I've looked at his ongoing Twiiter board and see no mention of his
resignation. I've heard nothing about the resignation in the press.
His Georgia Agribusiness Council (GAC) web site still lists him as
President. If he has resigned it has been in a rather incognito
fashion.

More inportant, if he has resigned from GAC it elevates the question
of propiety. Why did he think he could get away with his conflict
in the first place? Why did the Board of Directos of GAC permit
and, indeed, encourage the conflict? I urge that someone of
authority demand a full audit of the financial records of the
organization. After all, Black's group is a tax exempt 501c6.
If he has resigned it is because he is feeling some heat. I've
come to believe that where there is heat there is often fire.





Here's a letter Carter sent to the Inspector General's Office:





Elizabeth P. Archer
State Inspector General

Office of the State Inspector General
2 Martin Luther King, Jr., Drive, S.W.
1102 West Tower
Atlanta, Georgia 30334

Email: inspector.general@oig.Ga.gov

Dear General Archer,

Recently we wrote to your office concerned over a serious conflict of
interest involving my opposition in the Republican primary race for
Commissioner of Agriculture, Gary Black, and his non-profit
corporation, Georgia Agribusiness Council (GAC). We told you in our
correspondence that notwithstanding IRS regulations, his lobbying firm
did not pay taxes...never has...on their wide spread many years ongoing
partisan political expenditures.

Your office quickly got back to us, for which we are grateful, and let
us know that your agency really didn't have jurisdiction in such
matters. In addition you explained that your focus is on fraud, abuse
and corruption, within the Executive Branch of government.

After better understanding the charge of your agency and upon more due
diligence on our part, we once more come to you over the misdeeds of
GAC, and would like for you to consider this letter a formal complaint.
This is a situation involving the Executive Branch. The person we
single out to you is the newly installed Chairman of the Board, of the
Georgia Agribusiness Council (GAC), David Skinner. His concurrent state
role is with the Georgia Development Authority, he serves as Executive
Director. Obviously, he is a very high level government
official.

We wish to elaborate. We've previously told you that the GAC is an
IRS regulated 501c6 non profit corporation. It can only engage in
partisan politics legally by paying taxes on it's partisan expenditures.
I have personally reviewed most of their recent tax filings, Form 990.
I've carefully studied them, so have others who I trust on such matters.
We see no evidence that any taxes have been paid on GAC's extensive
political work. None.

Further, we have rather current video of Gary Black, President, of
GAC campaigning throughout the state of Georgia. Live and in his own
words he says he is President of GAC and is campaigning for the post
of Georgia Commissioner of Agriculture. He can only do these
shenanigans with the advice and consent of his Board of Directors.
Before David Skinner was elected Chairman, he also served on the Board.

Months ago I urged that Black resign as President of GAC. He and his
GAC friends scoffed at my suggestion. However, as word got around that
I was not going away, he finally resigned in late April. While I am
pleased he finally stepped aside it does not mitigate the fact that for
months earlier he did something that was wrong and perhaps fraudulent.
An audit of all of GAC's books and records will speak to his and
Skinner's questionable administration of their non-profit
lobbying firm.

By promoting Black's candidacy, which violates the spirit of their
501c6 charter, Skinner also promotes a lobbying firm's agenda. There
is no more important post in state government for GAC than Georgia's
Department of Agriculture. Skinner and Black have known one another and
worked together at GAC for years. Now as Chairman, Skinner is
calling the shots. Ask anyone what GAC does and they will say that they
are "lobbyists". Look at their Facebook web site presence or
the Twitter sites of their officers and you will see that lobbying is
all that they are about. In view of this, how can a senior state
employee justify occupying the post of Chairman? How can a senior state
official justify simultaneously running a high powered IRS
non-compliant lobbying firm? Can you imagine any attorney or law
professor offering an opinion letter that this is not a conflict?

In view of the research I have conducted these past months over the activities of GAC, I've concluded what they are doing is wrong. As you
rightly
informed me a few weeks ago, my immediate recourse, because of
jurisdiction may be with the IRS, and the courts. I am pursuing those
avenues now, as well as the press. However, if I am correct in my
assumptions, and the charges I am making with you today, then truly
there is a reason for your office to thoroughly review this matter as
well. Indeed, without wanting to sound presumptuous, I feel that you
have a duty to do so.

David Skinner's involvement is not a casual thing. As Executive
Director of the Georgia Development Authority he is entrusted with
millions of dollars of our tax money. Indeed, he represents our state
every day he sits at his desk. However, he is also duplicitous. As
he wears two hats it is impossible to say who he represents on so many
important matters. By wearing two hats at the same time this betrays
his fiduciary responsibilities to our state. He is conflicted. He is
compromised. Something needs to be done.

At first as I uncovered their incredible relationships that I've come
across in
getting to know Gary Black and GAC, I did so as a candidate for office.
I now know that I have gone beyond that point. However this race comes
out, win or lose, I am not going to let up until I have helped bring
some sunlight to this dark place. Georgian's deserve to know that
their government is being run honestly. They need to know that someone
is looking out for them. As I read about your office, I believe that
you are that "someone". Skinner is in the Executive Branch. You
have jurisdiction. You now have my complaint.

Please feel free to call on me anytime for any questions you may have.
I wish you well with this investigation. I wish you well as you conduct
your good and important work.

Sincerely

Darwin Carter
Darwin Carter for Georgia Agriculture Commissioner
1720 West 4th St Extension
Alma Ga 31510
(912)632-8888


Carter has spent the last six months filing letters of complaint to the Governor, Secretary of State, Attorney General, State Inspector General to no avail. Carter spoke with the Governor’s Attorney just to learn that ethics is not one of their top issues. Out of frustration Carter filed an official complaint with the State Ethics Commission.

Gary Black has violated the State Ethics Laws and no one is listening. I have tried to work within the family to resolve this matter, but now I feel I must take it public to expose what could happen to the Citizens of Georgia



A similar complaint was filed against Black by then Republican
candidate Deanne Strickland in 2006 which was never resolved by the
State Ethics Commission.

David Skinner is the chairman of Black's lobbying firm. Skinner is conflicted because he is a paid executive director of the Georgia Develpoment Authority.

Says Carter: Gary Black is just a "Yes" man to the big agribusiness industries that want to run this regulatory office & in the words of Tommy Irvin back in 2006: electing Black would be like putting the fox in charge of the hen house.

Now Black is seen as the guy to become the next agriculture commissioner, but these complaints filed by GOP challenger Darwin Carter has some teeth to it. Ga Farmers, family farmers, independent farmers had better take notice of who Gary Black really is, because in the general election against Conservative Democratic State Senator & Farmer J.B. Powell (D-Blythe), he will be raked over the coals with charges if ethics violations & it'll feed into the narrative the democrats will run in this years election which will involve Ethics.

If you ask me, Carter is more qualified to become the next Agriculture Commissioner than republican favorite Gary Black & democratic nominee J.B. Powell.

Look at the qualifications of Carter:



Carter served in various positions in the administration of President Ronald Reagan from 1981 to 1989.

His positions included:
-Georgia State Executive Director of the Agricultural Stabilization and Conservation Service
-Confidential Assistant to the Administrator of ASCS
-Assistant to the Undersecretary for International Affairs and Commodity
-Programs Assistant to the Deputy Secretary of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Darwin managed some of the largest and most successful export projects in the world.

The GOP better think long & hard before they cast a vote for Black. If he (Black) ends up as the nominee, he'll lose in the general election against J.B. Powell. This will hang over his head all the way to November. When there's smoke, there's fire!

Carter as the nominee, republicans will win that seat hands down, but it seems the entire State GOP has put all their eggs in the basket for this guy & if they send him on to the general election, HE WILL NOT WIN! MARK MY WORDS!!