Republicans in the General Assembly on Thursday took on two high-profile Georgia Democrats, approving measures targeting Stacey Abrams and Fani Willis.
The state Senate voted to launch an investigation of groups linked to Abrams, the two-time Democratic nominee for governor. And a House of Representatives panel approved a measure that could allow President Donald Trump to recover attorney fees if Willis, the Fulton County district attorney, is disqualified from prosecuting him.
Republicans cast the Abrams investigation as an attempt to shed light on “dark money” in politics and the Willis bill as a measure of justice for Trump and 14 co-defendants charged for their efforts to overturn Democrat Joe Biden’s 2020 victory in Georgia. Democrats said both measures are ill-conceived and politically motivated. The special committee has already been investigating Willis.
The measures adopted Thursday have stoked tensions as Trump targets political enemies from Washington and as a slew of Georgia politicians — including, potentially, Abrams — consider running for governor next year.
The Republican-controlled Senate, which approved Senate Resolution 292, is led by Lt. Gov. Burt Jones, a likely GOP candidate for governor.
The resolution gives the chamber’s Special Committee on Investigations the power to probe the New Georgia Project, a voting rights group Abrams founded more than a decade ago to register young and minority voters. The group recently agreed to pay a $300,000 fine for illegally aiding Abrams’ 2018 campaign for governor.
Abrams left the New Georgia Project before her first gubernatorial run in 2018.
The resolution approved Thursday would also allow the committee to investigate a $2 billion federal grant to a group of nonprofits, including one for which Abrams served as a senior counsel.
Sen. Bill Cowsert, R-Athens, chairs the investigations committee. He said the investigation is not an attack on Abrams but an exploration of “dark money” in campaigns.
“She just so happened to be connected to these organizations that admittedly spent money to support her campaign and other statewide Democratic candidates,” Cowsert said.
Democrats said the investigation is politically motivated.
“We have already spent precious time investigating people for headlines and clicks, all while providing taxpayers with little benefit,” said Sen. Jason Esteves, D-Atlanta.
The Senate resolution does not require approval in the House or a signature from Gov. Brian Kemp.
Senate Republicans aren’t the only ones investigating the Abrams-linked groups.
Republicans in Congress also are investigating the New Georgia Project. And the Trump administration has blasted Abrams’ involvement in a non-profit group that received part of a $2 billion federal energy efficiency grant. Abrams and others involved in the grant say she had little to do with it and received none of the money.
SR 92 says existing state laws “are inadequate to address various legal and fiscal issues raised by the alleged and admitted conduct of multiple organizations with connections to Stacey Abrams.” It directs the committee to investigate the matters and report its findings.
Abrams has accused Republicans of “unfounded attacks and baseless investigations that waste taxpayer dollars.”
The Senate created the investigations committee last year to delve into the actions of Willis, who charged Trump and 18 other defendants in the election interference case. Four people have pleaded guilty to charges in the case.
Last year defense attorneys accused Willis of having a conflict of interest because of her romantic relationship with Nathan Wade, the top deputy on the case. A superior court judge declined to disqualify Willis, but the Georgia Court of Appeals reversed that decision. Willis has appealed to the Georgia Supreme Court.
Senate Bill 244 would allow criminal defendants to recoup attorney fees and legal costs if a prosecutor is disqualified for misconduct and the case is dismissed. The bill passed the Senate with bipartisan support. But its sponsor, Sen. Brandon Beach, R-Alpharetta, has since made it clear that Trump and his co-defendants are the intended beneficiaries.
Earlier this week a group of Democrats walked out of a committee hearing on the bill, preventing a vote. But on Thursday the bill passed the House Judiciary Non-Civil Committee over Democratic objections.
Beach, who Trump named as the next U.S. treasurer, said the measure could help the Trump case defendants receive a measure of justice.
“Right now, they have no legal recourse to get their reputation or their finances back,” he said.
Democrats said the bill is flawed and could leave Fulton taxpayers holding the bag.
“We are about to pass a bill that, it’s been acknowledged, that it’s to have my constituents pay for the attorney fees for a case that a jury has not determined guilt or innocence,” said Rep. Shea Roberts, D-Atlanta.
The bill now goes to the House Rules Committee, which will determine if it gets a vote by the full House.
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