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Gov. Nathan Deal brought his pitch for a conservative version of criminal justice overhaul to the Republican National Convention on Tuesday, casting the changes as a consensus-building legislation that could save billions and soften the party’s image.
“From a Republican point of view, this shows that we’re not what many paint us to be: The lock-’em-up, throw-away-the-key type,” Deal told a U.S. Justice Action Network panel. “We know the old methods weren’t keeping people safe. And when you convince them that the old ways weren’t doing that, most people weren’t coming on board.”
The governor has built his political legacy on criminal justice issues at the state level, diverting more drug offenders to alternative programs in lieu of lengthy prison systems. He’s helped steer millions in recent years toward programs aimed at combating criminal relapse and urging judges to move away from stiff mandatory minimum sentences. He ties that work to his goals for the remainder of his second term to improve the state’s education system.
“To me, education reform is the ultimate criminal justice reform,” Deal said.
At the same time, though, Congress has gridlocked over federal legislation that would reduce mandatory prison sentences for low-level nonviolent cases and give judges more discretion in certain crimes. Republican U.S. Sen. David Perdue of Georgia, who called one version of the measure a “criminal leniency bill,” is among the conservatives worried it could lead to the early release of violent offenders.
The Republican Party’s 2016 platform, approved on Monday, applauds many of the state-level criminal justice changes embraced by Georgia and some other conservative states, but it also endorses the death penalty and calls mandatory minimum sentences “an important tool.”
— Greg Bluestein
GOP chief says Georgia could be in play
Fresh off the news that Georgia Democrats have reached parity with their GOP counterparts this year when it comes to money, it turns out the Peach State is on the mind of Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus.
Priebus told Bloomberg Politics in a story posted Tuesday that he’s worried “a little bit” that Georgia could be in play.
The party chairman listed two states that have been traditionally safe for Republicans in presidential elections as ones he’s watching closely.
“I always worry a little bit about Arizona and Georgia,” he said. “I worry about growth, and that’s what why I’m just so focused on Hispanics and Asians.”
— Kristina Torres
Pushback on Melania Trump plagiarism claim
As delegates streamed out of Quicken Loans Arena late Monday, many gushing over Melania Trump’s speech, they looked down to their phones to discover the reports that she lifted entire sections from a Michelle Obama address in 2008.
Soon, there were groans throughout the bus ferrying delegates back to the hotel. “Don’t be telling me that. I was really trying,” said one. “Really, really trying.”
By the time Georgia’s delegation gathered for their morning breakfast, many were dismissing the reporting as an attempt by the media to divide the GOP.
“Let’s have fun. Because to the outside, they don’t want us to,” said U.S. Rep. Doug Collins, R-Gainesville. “All they want to talk about is what divides us. Did you see two paragraphs that were lifted? Look, most Americans don’t care. All they want is to make sure they have jobs.”
— Greg Bluestein
Perdue worried about China
Georgia U.S. Sen. David Perdue, speaking Tuesday as part of a four-person panel discussion put on by the International Republican Institute, expressed concerns about Asia.
China’s military is approaching parity with U.S. military forces in Asia, Perdue said.
Perdue called the Trans-Pacific Partnership, the trade agreement with Asia negotiated by the Obama administration, a national security matter:
“What (China is) doing in the South China Sea has unnerved a lot of those people, all the way down to Australia. So I think TPP is a huge step for us. It shows China that what we’re going to do is engage with our partners. It actually encourages China to develop on some things like pollution and labor issues and social issues, in order to become a part of that in the long term, and not pursue their own trading bloc.”
But a spokeswoman for Perdue said there was a distinction in the senator’s support for a trade agreement. Perdue wasn’t endorsing “the” TPP that the Obama administration negotiated, she said, so much as “a” TPP. The right trade deal, she said. Not any trade deal.
— Jim Galloway
Kasich warns against ‘extreme’ nationalism
Ohio Gov. John Kasich, the last candidate to drop out of the race with Donald Trump for the Republican presidential nomination, has mostly operated this week independently from the GOP convention and the Quicken Loans Arena.
On Tuesday, Kasich was the star of a bash at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. But before that, he was in front of the International Republican Institute, a group of foreign policy-minded party stalwarts.
Kasich spoke for 15 minutes and never mentioned Trump. He simply declared himself in opposition to everything that Trump stands for in the realm of international relations, warning against “extreme” nationalism, “an increasing tide of isolationism” and “a growing pattern … of anti-immigration.”
The Ohio governor also addressed Great Britain’s exit from the European Union, commonly known as Brexit, by pointing out that “the happiest man in the world with Brexit” was Russian leader Vladimir Putin. Trump, of course, has also supported Brexit.
“I kind of like the idea that the Brits were the strong voice in terms of the kinds of things we care about on global security,” Kasich said. “Now, their voices are going to be muted.”
— Jim Galloway
Georgians told to be ready for their close-ups
Georgia’s 76 delegates and 73 alternates to the convention got marching orders Tuesday morning: Keep an eye out for the cameras.
“Don’t direct your attention to people acting up,” Georgia GOP Chairman John Padgett said. “And when you see a camera going by, it’s not a good time to doze off.”
Ryan Caudelle, a Trump field operative in Atlanta, reminded the crowd to mug for the cameras. With the delegation’s prime seating, Georgia has had a constant presence on all the broadcasts.
“If you’re on the floor, be alive, be awake,” Caudelle said. “Because nine times out of 10 a camera is on you.”
— Greg Bluestein
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