Political Scene

GEORGIA

Ex-Christian Coalition head won’t seek office

ATLANTA | Former Christian Coalition head Ralph Reed announced Wednesday that he has decided not to run for Congress in Georgia.

Mr. Reed considered seeking the Republican nomination for Georgia’s 7th Congressional District northeast of Atlanta but said Wednesday on the social networking site Twitter and his Web site that he won’t.

The 48-year-old was clobbered in his first bid for elected office in 2006. Facing questions about his ties to disgraced Washington lobbyist Jack Abramoff, he was defeated by a little-known state senator in the race to become Georgia’s lieutenant governor.

He said in a letter to supporters Wednesday that he made the decision not to run for Congress after much thought and prayer.

“I can best advance conservative principles by continuing to serve as CEO of Century Strategies, LLC, and founding chairman of the Faith and Freedom Coalition,” he wrote.

CENSUS

Lawmakers ban misleading mailings

The House has passed legislation that would ban misleading mailings designed to appear as if they’re from the Census Bureau.

The 416-0 vote Wednesday follows criticism that Republican groups were sending fundraising letters using the census name.

Under the bill, mailings marked “census” will be required to state the name and address of the sender, along with an unambiguous disclaimer that the survey is not affiliated with the federal government. It now goes to the Senate.

The Census Bureau has said it was concerned about a recent spate of misleading mailings that appeared to come from the agency. Some of the mailings come from the Republican National Committee and the National Republican Congressional Committee.

NASA

Obama to tackle shift at space conference

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