Deal, Handel's GOP runoff opponent, hasn't enjoyed such luck. This week the Atlanta Journal-Constitution disclosed a subpoena from a federal grand jury. It was issued to Georgia's revenue commissioner and asked for all documents and information related to a meeting -- a quite contentious meeting -- Deal once had with the commissioner. The topic of discussion was a business relationship Deal and a partner had with the state for many years.
Deal has not been named as a target of the investigation. Nor has he been informed that he is in any way involved with the grand jury's inquiry.
Politically, that may not matter. One can imagine what campaign TV ads the Handel team will produce in the last weeks leading up to the runoff that will utter the chilling words "grand jury investigation."
Twelve years ago, I wrote a book called "PowerChick: How Women Will Dominate America." Unluckily for me, I may have been a bit ahead of the times. But now, with women political nominees popping up everywhere, and with Sarah Palin wielding so much clout, the age of the PowerChick finally may have arrived.
Should Karen Handel become the first woman nominated for governor in this, one of the states that has never elected one, she will face one daunting task. She will have to contend with the Democratic gubernatorial nominee, former Gov. Roy Barnes. He is a brilliant campaign strategist and a gifted orator. He may appeal to many independent voters who otherwise would vote for a Republican nominee.
Barnes' biggest woe is timing. In running for governor in 2010, he is saddled with affiliation with the national Democratic Party and President Barack Obama. In combination, those two are woefully unpopular with most Georgia voters.
Even so, Barnes is a force the likes of which few political opponents ever face. If Handel emerges as the GOP's latest "Powerchick," she will have to be up to the task of fighting a political master. It could be quite a show.