ATLANTA - In the trench warfare to secure votes in Georgia's U.S. Senate runoff, the 128,002 Georgians who backed Libertarian Allen Buckley's are up for grabs.

Republican Saxby Chambliss and Democrat Jim Martin are both courting Buckley's supporters, but neither has signed on to his "commitment list," a four-page treatise pledging to address key issues.

Buckley said Thursday since neither has signed, neither will get his endorsement.

"I thought that the statement was pretty reasonable stuff," Buckley said.

"The fact that they won't commit to being financially responsible, that doesn't bode well for the state or the country."

Buckley earned 3.4 percent of the vote in the Nov. 4 general election, keeping Chambliss and Martin from breaking 50 percent of the tally and sending the race into a runoff. The Georgia race has gained national significance because it could help determine whether Democrats win the 60 seats needed to beat back Republican filibusters. Democrats are two votes shy and Georgia is one of two races that's unresolved. The other is in Minnesota where a recount is under way in the tight race between Republican Sen. Norm Coleman and Democrat Al Franken.

During Georgia's Senate campaign, Buckley, a lawyer and certified public accountant from Smyrna, scolded his opponents for supporting excessive spending he argued would worsen the nation's economic woes.

His "commitment list" outlines 10 priorities, most of them centered on the economy. One is a pledge not to vote for a budget that is out of balance. Another is designed to eliminate pork-barrel spending. A third would commit to funding "an actuarially sound" fix for Social Security.

It is unknown how many Buckley supporters will come back out to the polls or who they will vote for. Libertarians tend to be more ideologically in line with Republicans when it comes to issues like smaller government. But some were angry over Chambliss' vote for the $700 billion financial bailout bill and could vote for Martin as a protest.

Buckley said Thursday that Martin might be better than Chambliss on civil liberties and privacy - important issues for Libertarians. But he said it would be a draw when it came to fiscal matters.

"Jim Martin could side with (House Speaker) Nancy Pelosi and other Democrats who want to spend money," he said. "But Chambliss isn't any better. He's been a disaster."

With less than two weeks to go until the runoff, the campaigning continued Thursday at full tilt.

Martin held a news conference outside a Simmons Mattress Factory in Mableton that's slated to shut down even as state officials announced the unemployment rate has climbed to its highest level in 16 years. The Democrat used the backdrop to continue to blame Chambliss for the faltering economy and paint him as out of touch with the middle class.

Chambliss, meanwhile, made stops throughout South Georgia in an effort to get out the vote. The Republican from Moultrie stopped in Valdosta, Waycross, Dublin and Tifton.

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On The Net:

Saxby Chambliss: www.saxby.org

Jim Martin: www.martinforsenate.com

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