Today’s newsletter highlights:
- Georgia judge hears challenge to a lawmaker’s election.
- State lawmakers file first bills of the legislative session.
- Former U.S. Rep. Doug Collins’ confirmation hearing postponed.
Five years ago, Gov. Brian Kemp was locked in a bitter feud with Atlanta’s leaders that seemed to worsen by the day. Now, the Republican is showering Democratic Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens and his administration with praise. That realignment is coming into clearer focus this week.
The 180 was the result of painstaking efforts by Dickens to “reset” city-state relations after he was elected in 2021 to succeed Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, who scrapped with Kemp over coronavirus policy, crime-fighting tactics and firearms stances during her term.
With the threat of a Buckhead breakaway on his mind and the ever-present specter of a legislative push to give the state control of the airport, Dickens entered office aiming to be on steadier footing with Kemp.
Kemp has offered Dickens crucial support for the Atlanta Public Safety Training Center, which was completed last month after intense pushback from an array of opponents.
Two events this week show how drastically the city-state ties have improved.
At the Georgia Chamber’s Eggs & Issues breakfast this morning, Kemp and Dickens will take center stage as they each lay out priorities for 2025. A day earlier, Kemp used a speech to the Rotary Club of Atlanta to single out the mayor and Police Chief Darin Schierbaum for seeing the police training center through.
“They have not backed down from the unfair fights and insults they’ve faced on this issue, and they have not given one inch to radical, out-of-state forces who tried to stop this project every step of the way,” said Kemp, adding: “I want to congratulate them on this accomplishment and the people of Atlanta, whose community will be safer as a result.”
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Credit: Jason Getz/AJC
Credit: Jason Getz/AJC
GOOD MORNING! There are 39 days left in the Georgia legislative session. The first day was capped by a show of force from Republicans, who gathered behind Gov. Brian Kemp as he pledged to spend another $50 million on school security grants four months after a shooting at Apalachee High School in Winder that left four people dead.
The AJC’s Maya T. Prabhu and Michelle Baruchman wrote about the somewhat tense first day. Tomorrow, we’ll publish the first story from our latest AJC poll, which will give insight into issues facing the legislature this year.
Here are three things to know for today:
- Outgoing FBI Director Christopher Wray told the AJC’s Bill Rankin in an interview that he decided to resign his post early because he wanted to shield the bureau and it’s 38,000 employees from political chaos.
- Four of Georgia’s 10 historically Black colleges and universities are looking for new presidents, the AJC’s Jason Armesto reports.
- Two Republican members of the State Election Board use private Gmail accounts for official business and have refused to allow searches of their accounts, the AJC’s Mark Niesse reports.
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Credit: Adam Beam/AJC
Credit: Adam Beam/AJC
REDO? Georgia lawmakers smiled and hugged their loved ones on Monday as they took their seats in the state capitol, the culmination of many hard-fought campaigns.
But state Rep. Mack Jackson celebration’s could be short-lived. The Democrat from Sandersville will be in court today as his Republican challenger, Tracy Wheeler, asks a judge to throw out the results and order a new election.
This isn’t a far-right conspiracy. A review by the AJC’s Mark Niesse found about 60 people likely voted in the incorrect district, the result of mapping errors following a confusing redistricting process.
Jackson defeated Wheeler by just 48 votes, so that could be enough to change the outcome. If a judge does toss the results, it would force Jackson and Wheeler to run against each other again in a special election.
Republicans didn’t make a fuss when Jackson took his seat in the state House of Representatives on Monday. Jackson appeared unfazed by the lawsuit when we asked him about it.
“That’s why you hire attorneys. Let them handle it,” he said. “I’m confident that our justice system works and that we’ll be vindicated.”
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Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
FIRST DAY FIGHTS. The start of a legislative session is a little like the beginning of the college football season: everyone is happy because no one has lost yet.
That happiness lasted about an hour on Monday. In the Senate, state Sen. Harold Jones spent his first day as the Democratic leader denouncing Republicans for reviving a committee to investigate Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis.
“To come here this morning and get this nonsense, get this foolishness, is really shameful,” Jones said.
In the House, Democrats complained they were being shut out of the committee appointment process. New House Minority Leader Carolyn Hugley also objected to rules that she said would limit lawmakers’ excused absences.
“If a member has to be away for business, their voting record will be compromised,” she said.
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Credit: Adam Beam/AJC
Credit: Adam Beam/AJC
TODAY UNDER THE GOLD DOME:
- 11 a.m.: The House gavels in.
- 11 a.m.: The Senate convenes.
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Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
EARLY BIRDS. The House and Senate hoppers filled quickly with new bills from the go-getters in the chamber looking to get a fast start to their proposals.
In the Senate, Greg Dolezal nabbed the first four bill numbers for his legislation. The Cumming Republicans’ proposals touch on top conservative issues, from a ban on transgender girls playing women’s sports to a Donald Trump-inspired measure to eliminate a tax on tips.
In the House, it was Democrat Michelle Au who secured the first four House bills, and all of them are related to guns. Her proposals would make a new crime of “making a firearm accessible to a child,” establish tax credits for gun storage devices, require universal background checks and impose a three-day waiting period for most gun sales.
Dolezal’s priorities likely have a much better chance at becoming law. Lt. Gov. Burt Jones, who wields immense power in the Senate, endorsed the transgender sports legislation as a priority this session.
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Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
MARK YOUR CALENDARS. Georgia lawmakers made just about everybody happy on Monday by approving a calendar for the legislative session. The two more important days to know:
- Thursday, March 6 – Crossover Day.
- Friday, April 4 –Sine Die (last day of session).
After that, it’s easier to tell you when lawmakers will not meet. They won’t meet next week, instead holding marathon public hearings on Gov. Brian Kemp’s budget proposal. They also won’t meet on select Fridays and Mondays:
- Jan. 31
- Feb. 7
- Feb. 14 (obviously)
- Feb. 17 (Presidents Day)
- March 7
- March 17 (St. Patrick’s Day)
- March 14
- March 24
Plus, lawmakers will have seven workdays during the session where the legislature won’t meet as a whole, but committees will meet to take action on bills. They are:
- Tuesday, Feb. 25
- Wednesday, March 5
- Wednesday, March 12
- Wednesday, March 19
- Wednesday, March 26
- Tuesday, April 1
- Thursday, April 3
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Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
LISTEN UP. Today on “Politically Georgia,” the hosts report from the Georgia Chamber’s Eggs & Issues breakfast and recap the first day of the legislative session.
Be sure to download the show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. Have a question for the show? Give us a call at 770-810-5297. Episodes are uploaded by noon each day, just in time to have lunch with us. You can also listen live at 10 a.m. EDT on 90.1 FM WABE.
On Monday’s show, new Senate Minority Leader Harold Jones, D-Augusta, discussed the first day of the legislative session and Democratic priorities.
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Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
TRANSGENDER SPORTS. The debate over whether transgender girls should compete against women in high school and collegiate athletics extends beyond the Georgia General Assembly.
The U.S. House of Representatives is scheduled to vote today on legislation that would withhold federal funding from schools that allow transgender women and girls to compete against females in school athletic competitions.
It is yet another proposal that Republicans hope to make into law now that they control Congress and, starting next week, the White House.
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LAKEN RILEY. The U.S. Senate took another procedural vote on Monday to advance legislation that would allow for the deportation of people living in the country illegally who are accused of theft or burglary.
Both Georgia U.S. Sens. Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock voted once again to advance the Laken Riley Act. The vote was 82-10 in favor of proceeding to debate on the bill.
It is unclear when the measure, which has already been approved in the House, will be ready for a final vote on the Senate floor. Democrats are asking for a chance to amend the bill, but no deal has been announced.
Ossoff has said he is ready to pass the bill as it is. Warnock has said he is reserving judgment until he sees the final proposal.
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Credit: Alyssa Pointer/AJC
Credit: Alyssa Pointer/AJC
HEARING POSTPONED. Former Georgia U.S. Rep. Doug Collins will have to wait a little longer for his confirmation hearing with the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee.
Collins, President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for Veterans Affairs secretary, was scheduled to appear before the committee this morning. But the hearing was postponed until Jan. 21 because his FBI background check is not yet ready for senators to review.
Sen. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, who serves as the top-ranking Democrat on Veterans Affairs, said he has had good private meetings with Collins but wants to hear what he has to say in public when asked about his vision for the agency.
“He’s probably less controversial than some of the other nominees, but I want to see the background report and talk to him,” Blumenthal said. “You know, the Veterans Affairs Committee and the VA are typically very bipartisan, and should be. And one of my questions is whether he’ll maintain that tradition, which can only be ascertained when he’s asked those tough questions.”
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Credit: Susan Walsh/AP
Credit: Susan Walsh/AP
TODAY IN WASHINGTON:
- President Joe Biden will speak from the White House celebrating conservation efforts during his administration and the creation of two national monuments on native land in California.
- The House will vote on legislation preventing transgender women and girls from competing against female athletes in school competitions.
- The Senate is in session and could continue consideration of the Laken Riley Act.
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Credit: Courtesy photo
Credit: Courtesy photo
SHOUTOUTS. Belated birthday:
- Oconee County Republican Party Vice Chair Jeff Hood (was Saturday), who celebrated by running the Walt Disney World Marathon on Sunday.
Kudos to:
- The Lowndes High School Georgia Bridgemen marching band and the Diamond D Cowgirls mounted drill team from Monroe, who will participate in the parade next week for President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration. The news is especially welcome for the Bridgemen, who will head to Washington after persevering through Hurricane Helene last year.
Transition:
- Wendy White Tiegreen has joined Lexicon Strategies as a Partner. She was most recently deputy chief of staff and director of the Office of Medicaid Coordination & Health System Innovation at the Georgia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities.
Want a birthday shoutout in the Politically Georgia newsletter? There’s a form for that! Click here to submit the shoutouts. It’s not just birthdays. We’re also interested in new jobs, engagements, birth announcements, etc.
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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.
