Jon Ossoff says Marjorie Taylor Greene doesn’t have the guts for Senate run

Last week, Ossoff made national headlines when he sparred with CIA Director John Ratcliffe about the leaked group chat that showed Trump administration officials discussing details of an imminent strike in Yemen. Days before, he rallied Democratic activists in Atlanta to stand up against President Donald Trump with the challenge, “Are you ready to fight?”

Ossoff continued his combative streak over the weekend in an interview with CNN’s Manu Raju, where he predicted “a landslide victory for Democrats across the country” in 2026. And he had a forecast for his own race. While he doesn’t know whether Gov. Brian Kemp will run, he said he doesn’t think he’ll face U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene.

”I don’t think that she’s got the guts to do it,” he said of the Rome Republican. “But she would be a disaster in the United States Senate.”

Credit: Jenni Girtman for the AJC

Credit: Jenni Girtman for the AJC

Greene told the AJC’s Politically Georgia earlier this year she is considering a run for either Senate or the governor’s office in 2026.

Ossoff may just be goading Greene, a firebrand Trump loyalist who is popular among the president’s MAGA base but could struggle to gain statewide appeal in the battleground state.

Here are a few more highlights from the interview:

Things to know

Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC

Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC

We’re four days away from Sine Die, the final day of the legislative session. Here are four things to know for today:

Raffensperger’s warning

Credit: Miguel Martinez/AJC

Credit: Miguel Martinez/AJC

Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger fired off a sharp warning about a fast-moving Republican election overhaul quickly advancing through the General Assembly.

It has to do with House Bill 397, which calls for Georgia to quit a national voter data-sharing partnership, restricts new State Election Board rules from taking effect shortly before elections and bans counties from accepting in-person delivery of absentee ballots the weekend before a vote.

But the strongest warning centers on a provision that would give the election board custody over all investigative files and communications between the secretary of state’s office and county election officials.

In a letter sent Friday that we obtained through the Open Records Act, Raffensperger attorney Charlene McGowan called it a “massive intrusion” on the secretary’s office.

“To give unrestricted access of the Secretary’s secure electronic files to outside individuals who are not Secretary of State employees — or even employees of the State of Georgia — would violate every basic cybersecurity and general IT security protocol and compromise the security of Georgia’s elections,” McGowan wrote.

The measure, and a similar Senate bill, both advanced in committees along party lines last week and could reach a final vote before Friday’s Sine Die deadline.

Budget differences

Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC

Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC

We’ve made it to the final week of the legislative session. Time is short — and tempers are shorter — meaning you can expect plenty of fights this week. But the biggest battle could be over the budget.

Funding fights are nothing new under the Gold Dome. Recent spats have mostly been smoothed over by big increases in revenues. But as the budget tightens, those conversations become more difficult.

Here’s a look at some of the biggest disagreements heading into Sine Die:

Roller-coaster ride

Credit: Ben Hendren for the AJC

Credit: Ben Hendren for the AJC

The saga of school speed cameras in the Georgia Legislature has had more twists and turns than a soap opera.

As a reminder, the House couldn’t decide whether to ban these cameras or to put more rules on them. Instead, they passed both bills and sent them to the Senate to let them decide.

Here’s what happened next, per the AJC’s Michelle Baruchman:

“It’s just such a roller-coaster ride,” said state Rep. Dale Washburn, a Republican from Macon, who wants to ban the cameras.

One intriguing option: the Legislature could pass both bills and let Gov. Brian Kemp decide.

Photo of the day

Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC

Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC

State Sen. Donzella James, D-Atlanta, caused a stir on the Senate floor on Friday with her fabulous gold hat. Turns out, it was partly for a tea party she hosted for lawmakers and employees in the Capitol.

Under the Gold Dome

Credit: Adam Beam/AJC

Credit: Adam Beam/AJC

It’s the 38th day of the legislative session. State senators will wear jeans today in honor of former state Sen. John Bulloch, who stepped down in 2012. Some of today’s happenings:

Listen up

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Water infrastructure

Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC

Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC

U.S. Rep. Mike Collins, R-Jackson, spent time this weekend visiting two locks along the Tennessee River as he seeks to prioritize access to inland waterways.

“Time to Make Water Infrastructure Great Again,” he posted on X alongside photos of his visits.

Collins, the chair of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee on Water Resources and Environment, spent time at the Wilson Lock and Dam outside of Huntsville, Alabama, and Chickamauga Lock near Chattanooga, Tennessee.

Collins explained more in an commentary for the Washington Times, saying the Wilson Lock was “one of the most vital locks to our nation’s national security.” He noted that many of the 3,700 cargo ships and boats that pass through annually carry goods related to the defense and space industries.

“Some dams are approaching or have surpassed 100 years in age, and 80% of locks are past their 50-year design life,” Collins wrote. “But federal bureaucracy, red tape, environmental regulations, and nonsensical budgeting methods so often the obstacles to American innovation are preventing us from moving water infrastructure into the 21st century.”

Today in Washington

Shoutouts

Credit: Courtesy photo

Credit: Courtesy photo

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Before you go

Don’t miss Alia Pharr’s story about DeKalb County, which includes a fascinating history of how the county’s water and sewer system has both helped and hindered its economic growth.

That’ll do it for us today. As always, you can 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.