Democrats bemoan missed opportunity to block Brian Kemp’s litigation bill

Democratic state Rep. Stacey Evans said it was like a punch to the gut.

She and other Democrats went into Thursday’s House vote on Gov. Brian Kemp’s overhaul of the legal system confident there were enough votes to kill the bill. Instead, it passed with 91 votes — the bare minimum — with help from three Democratic defectors.

We reached out to all three — Michelle Au of Johns Creek, Carl Gilliard of Savannah and Mack Jackson of Sandersville — and none offered immediate comment. Evans filled in the void.

“I’m disappointed in my colleagues, and I’m just going to say it, and I may regret it later, but I’m going to say it because we were sent here to represent the people, and we were sent here to make hard decisions,” the Atlanta Democrat said, mentioning the lobbyists crowding the Capitol.

“I think too many of my colleagues were worried about walking down the hall and looking them in the eye and not worried about the people back home.”

The Democratic renegades weren’t the only reason the measure was so close. Republican state Reps. Buddy DeLoach of Townsend, Noelle Kahaian of Locust Grove, Trey Kelley of Cedartown, Tyler Paul Smith of Bremen, Vance Smith of Pine Mountain, Jordan Ridley of Woodstock and Dale Washburn of Macon each broke party lines to vote against it.

“I support tort reform, but I believe there were amendments that needed to be made and I voted no to give it that chance,” Washburn told the AJC’s Michelle Baruchman.

What happens now? The Senate is expected to vote Friday to approve the House’s version of the bill, sending it to Kemp’s desk. But there could be a push by a handful of Senate Republicans who reluctantly backed the measure to make changes.

Kemp and his allies strongly oppose that notion, since it would trigger new rounds of votes in both chambers. Lt. Gov. Burt Jones will also insist on pushing the bill through without any amendments, officials say.

Things to know

Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC

Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC

We’re two weeks away from Sine Die, which is the final day of the Georgia legislative session. Here are three things to know for today:

Ossoff preview

Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC

Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC

U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff will rally in Atlanta tomorrow for what his campaign is billing as a time “for Georgians to make their voices heard in opposition to Trump.”

A person familiar with his planned speech tells us it’s not a formal campaign kickoff. Instead, it’s a time for Ossoff to speak to the moment of intense anxiety among Democrats and others about Trump’s rapid-fire overhaul of the federal government and the presidency itself.

“He’s planning to denounce Trump’s unprecedented power grab and attack on the rule of law while also addressing corruption in the political system he believes has given rise to Trump and destroyed confidence in government and politics,” the person said.

Democratic U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock will also be there. Meanwhile, we still don’t know which Republicans will challenge Ossoff. The size of the GOP field will depend on whether Gov. Brian Kemp decides to run.

Education Department

Credit: AP

Credit: AP

Gov. Brian Kemp joined other Republicans who endorsed President Donald Trump’s executive order that lays the groundwork to eliminate the federal Department of Education.

“In Georgia, we’ve empowered parents, supported our teachers, and put students first,” he said. “Trump’s executive order puts education back where it belongs: with the states.”

But it will take congressional approval to fully dismantle the agency, created in 1979 during President Jimmy Carter’s administration. And Democrats have vowed to block any effort to abolish it in the Senate.

Culture wars

Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC

Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC

The bipartisan vote that blocked a “religious liberty” bill in a House committee this week may just be a temporary setback.

House Judiciary Committee Chair Stan Gunter of Blairsville told us he’s planning on bringing it back for a vote on Wednesday with an amendment backed by Republican Sen. Ed Setzler of Acworth, the measure’s sponsor.

Gunter and Republican state Rep. Deborah Silcox of Sandy Springs joined five Democrats in opposing the bill after a push to add an anti-discrimination clause to the measure failed.

Critics say those protections are needed to prevent it from being used as a weapon against LGBTQ Georgians and other minorities, while Setzler and his allies say the bill is designed to protect them from government intrusion.

Wait ’til next year

Credit: Natrice Miller/AJC

Credit: Natrice Miller/AJC

After failing to convince his colleagues to let people sue big banks for discrimination based on political beliefs, state Sen. Blake Tillery is plotting to revive the legislation next year — and that includes getting a head start.

The Vidalia Republican has already refiled the bill that died on Crossover Day. If it were to clear committee in the final days of this session, that could tee it up as the first bill the Senate votes on when it reconvenes next year.

It’s mostly the same proposal, but this time it includes a not-so-subtle signal to Tillery’s fellow Republicans. The bill points to a lawsuit filed by a company owned by President Donald Trump accusing Capital One of shuttering its accounts shortly after the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol.

Tillery’s original bill failed to pass on March 6. The Trump lawsuit was filed March 7. Could the result have been different if the dates were reversed? Possibly. But it was always a longshot to pass a bill like this in a year dominated by Gov. Brian Kemp trying to reduce the number of civil lawsuits filed in the state.

But next year, the dynamics will be different because it’s an election year and several Senate Republicans will be chasing Trump’s endorsement.

Opponents, meanwhile, argue the bill is less about free speech and more about forcing banks to lend money to financially risky industries.

Impeachment buzz

Credit: AP

Credit: AP

President Donald Trump’s call to impeach a federal judge who ruled against him earned an extraordinary rebuke from the chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. It also earned the praise of three Republican congressmen from Georgia.

U.S. Reps. Buddy Carter of St. Simons Island, Andrew Clyde of Athens and Mike Collins of Jackson all signed on as co-sponsors for a resolution seeking to impeach U.S. District Judge James E. Boasberg for blocking Trump’s executive order to halt the deportation of immigrants from Venezuela. The White House had accused the immigrants of being gang members.

The resolution says Boasberg “abused the powers of his judicial authority, having engaged in actions that prioritize political gain over the duty of impartiality owed to the public.”

Carter, a potential Republican candidate for the U.S. Senate in 2026, earlier this week posted on X: “We must stop these unconstitutional and traitorous judges from imposing their will on people who never voted for them.”

U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts issued a rare public statement rebuking talk of impeachment.

“For more than two centuries, it has been established that impeachment is not an appropriate response to disagreement concerning a judicial decision,” Roberts said. “The normal appellate review process exists for that purpose.”

Musk’s bucks

Credit: Nathan Posner for the AJC

Credit: Nathan Posner for the AJC

The New York Times reports that U.S. Rep. Andrew Clyde, R-Athens, was among a handful of conservative Republicans who received campaign donations from Elon Musk after supporting efforts to impeach judges who ruled against President Donald Trump.

Clyde and six others received the maximum allowable donation, $6,600. He told the Times he wasn’t given advance notice that Musk would be donating to him but, “I am very thankful that he did.”

The northeast Georgia lawmaker has posted multiple times on social media supporting efforts to oust what he calls “activist judges” who have reversed or challenged Trump’s efforts to eliminate federal programs and fire employees.

Last month, Clyde said he was drafting articles of impeachment for U.S. District Judge John McConnell Jr., who blocked Trump from freezing payments for federal grants and other programs that Congress had approved.

Under the Gold Dome

Credit: Adam Beam/AJC

Credit: Adam Beam/AJC

It’s the 34th day of the legislative session. Some of today’s happenings:

Listen up

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Balancing act

Credit: AJC file photos

Credit: AJC file photos

Doug Collins and Kelly Loeffler are a couple of months into their new jobs leading federal agencies and as members of President Donald Trump’s Cabinet. And the roles require them to navigate not just the daily demands of leading and managing but also to facilitate the cost-cutting mandates coming from the White House, the AJC’s Tia Mitchell reports.

The two former Georgia lawmakers have publicly backed proposals by the Department of Government Efficiency imitative, including layoffs, despite questions about the impact these cuts could have on the programs and services they oversee.

Both Loeffler, who oversees the Small Business Administration, and Collins, the secretary of Veterans Affairs, have had to deal with the fallout from the firing of thousands of federal employees under the direction of Elon Musk’s DOGE initiative. Workers at both agencies have also received early retirement offers intended to further trim the ranks.

Many of these employees were reinstated after courts ruled against the Trump administration, but there could be further reductions ahead.

Today in Washington

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One more thing

Credit: Courtesy photo

Credit: Courtesy photo

State Rep. Martin Momtahan went on a Chattanooga TV station to talk about his bill that aims to help Georgia recover a disputed section of Tennessee land. His backdrop for the interview? A poster highlighting Georgia’s recent dominance over Tennessee in college football. Our advice: don’t go too far back, Rep. Momtahan.

That’ll do it for us today. As always, send your best scoops, gossip and insider info to greg.bluestein@ajc.com, tia.mitchell@ajc.com, patricia.murphy@ajc.com and adam.beam@ajc.com.