Chattanooga Mayor Ron Littlefield's gift was little more than a friendly political prank, complete with a lighthearted resolution questioning the "irrational and outrageous" actions of Georgia lawmakers and declaring Wednesday his city's first "Give our Georgia Friends a Drink Day."
"It's just a friendly gesture, poking fun at the idea," said Matt Lea, a mayoral aide clad in frontier buckskins who ambled into the state Capitol to hand out the 2,000 bottles to curious lawmakers and lobbyists. "But we feel it's a serious issue and there are more serious ways to deal with the problem, like controlling urban sprawl."
Both chambers of the Georgia Legislature passed a resolution last week asserting that a flawed 1818 survey mistakenly placed Georgia's northern line just short of the Tennessee River. Its flow is about 15 times greater than the Chattahoochee, on which Atlanta depends on for water.
Georgia lawmakers say the boundary has been in dispute for almost two centuries. But Georgia's interest in the question was suddenly piqued by the historic drought that grips the region.
Tennessee hasn't taken kindly to Georgia's bid; lawmakers there have reacted with a mix of scorn and humor.
Wednesday's stunt was firmly in the spirit of the latter. Lea and Georgia state Sen. Jeff Mullis, a north Georgia Republican who has pushed for the border change, were both handcuffed on charges of bringing moonshine into the state. The state trooper who slapped the cuffs on them was in on the gag.
"Kind and friendly negotiations will continue with the levity you see today," he said after a state trooper took off the cuffs, adding: "They weren't sure if that substance was water or some high octane liquid."
Lea came dressed as Tennessee frontiersman Davy Crockett, donning a buckskin outfit, a powderhorn and a coonskin cap - with a hint of a modern touch. A Blackberry fit neatly into one of his pockets.
"I didn't want to bring a musket or a knife," he quipped. "I didn't want to offend the Georgia Legislature."
He came with backup from his home state: A bank of Tennessee media and Chattanooga City Councilman Manny Rico, who offered his own explanation for the publicity stunt.
"We're trying to make light of a situation that's become very serious," said Rico, who joined the water wagon on the trip to Atlanta. "We're not trying to rub salt in their wounds."
Some Georgia partisans used the stunt to turn their own rhetoric up a notch.
State Sen. David Shafer, the border measure's proposal, said he accepted the water as "a down payment on the billions of gallons of Georgia water that feed the Tennessee River from the creeks and streams of northwest Georgia.
Another supporter, state Rep. Harry Geisinger, took one of the bottles to the floor of the House, and held it aloft for the 180 members to see.
"Our first installment of water has arrived from Chattanooga."
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Chattanooga mayor delivers water to GA capitol
http://accesswdun.com/article/2008/2/207426