State lawmaker wants to 'unname' street

ATLANTA, Dec. 20 (UPI) -- A Georgia state lawmaker said he wants to remove a U.S. representative's name from a state road because he says the congresswoman embarrassed Georgia.

State Rep. Len Walker's resolution would switch Cynthia McKinney Parkway to its original name -- Memorial Drive -- in part to honor victims of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution said. But, he added, also because the congressional tenure of McKinney, D-Ga., "has been marked by controversies and rhetoric that has brought embarrassment to the state of Georgia."

Walker, R-Loganville, cited an incident from March when McKinney allegedly struck a Capitol Hill police officer. Walker said McKinney's recent bill to impeach U.S. President George Bush was another example of her "outrageous behavior."

McKinney's office did not comment to the Journal-Constitution. She lost her shot at re-election in a Democratic primary runoff last summer.

The Georgia General Assembly approved the name change in 2000 to honor McKinney for securing $14 million in federal funds to upgrade the highway in DeKalb County, Ga., the newspaper said.

Walker may have a problem with his resolution. Transportation Committee rules in the state House and Senate bar members from seeking to rename roads unless they live in the districts where the roads are located, the Journal-Constitution reported. Walker doesn't.