Roy Barnes assails Georgia’s trial lawyers for ‘failed’ political strategy

That’s according to an email that Barnes sent to leaders of the Georgia Trial Lawyers Association shortly after the Senate voted on the rewrite in February. It since passed the House and will soon be signed by Gov. Brian Kemp.

In the email, Barnes said the Senate vote proved that GTLA’s strategy of stroking checks to both Democrats and Republicans “failed.” State Sen. Colton Moore of Trenton who fancies himself as “Donald Trump’s floor leader,” was the only Republican in the chamber to oppose Kemp’s measure.

“As I said on the call last week if we had spent all that money to win 10 D house seats we would not be in this situation,” Barnes wrote, adding that GTLA’s members should focus on what’s next.

There’s more:

Georgia Supreme Court Justice John Ellington is the only one of the court’s nine justices who was not appointed by a GOP governor.

We reached out to Barnes by email and phone for further comment and haven’t heard back.

Things to know

Credit: AJC file photo

Credit: AJC file photo

We’re 10 days away from Sine Die, the final day of the legislative session. Here are three things to know for today:

Threats and reprisals

Credit: AJC file photo

Credit: AJC file photo

In the hours after we broke the news that Republican state Rep. Vance Smith was sacked from his job as CEO of the Harris County Chamber for his “no” vote on Gov. Brian Kemp’s legal overhaul, top Republicans were largely silent.

Democrats were furious.

Gov. Brian Kemp and House Speaker Jon Burns both declined comment through aides on the chamber’s abrupt decision to part ways with Smith after he voted against the governor’s top priority. So did several other GOP leaders we contacted.

To be clear, there’s no evidence Kemp played any role in Smith’s ouster. And Smith said in an interview the decision was engineered by the chamber’s board, led by Theresa Garcia Robertson, the wife of Senate Majority Whip Randy Robertson, R-Cataula.

The chamber supported Kemp’s overhaul, just like many other business boosters across the state, and Vance said bluntly he was ousted because he voted against it.

Still, Democrats say Smith’s firing was a symptom of the arm-twisting atmosphere that Kemp instilled under the Gold Dome to adopt the sweeping rewrite of litigation rules.

State Rep. Tanya Miller, the Atlanta Democrat who helped spearhead the party’s opposition to the bill, said Smith fell victim to an “extreme pressure campaign.”

“Politics is hardball — we all understand that — but what the governor and his surrogates engaged in wasn’t negotiation, it was coercion,” she said. “We are now dealing with the aftermath of this shameful behavior.”

And state Rep. Derrick Jackson, D-Tyrone, blamed Kemp’s “bullying tactics.”

“Presidents and governors are not monarchs or kings in this country or state, and every member deserves respect for their vote, either for or against legislation, without facing retribution or retaliation,” Jackson said.

Power watch

The all-Republican Public Service Commission will begin four days of hearings today about Georgia Power’s long-term energy plans that will have big implications for consumer power bills.

Georgia Power’s integrated resource plan (IRP) is the utility’s best guess at how much energy it needs to produce over the next two decades to meet demand. While the IRP doesn’t directly impact power bills, its energy forecast plays a key role in determining how much the state’s largest utility can charge customers.

As the AJC’s Drew Kann has reported, Georgia Power often overstates how much energy it needs. Questions about Georgia Power’s projections loom particularly large right now. A big reason for that is data centers, those power-hungry warehouses that make it possible to store photos, music and videos in the proverbial cloud. Georgia Power is forecasting data centers to make up the vast majority of its power demand growth.

The commission earlier this year passed a rule allowing Georgia Power to charge data centers higher rates. But consumer advocates worry it isn’t enough to protect Georgians from increased rates. They’re likely to be watching the commissioners this week as much if not more than company officials.

“Are they as concerned as we are that this IRP could lead to another massive and overwhelming rate increase for people in Georgia who are already struggling to pay their power bills?” asked Liz Coyle, executive director of the consumer advocacy group Georgia Watch.

Georgia Power has said its IRP “provides a comprehensive plan to support Georgia’s continued economic growth.” The company says its rates have been about 15% below the national average since 1990.

Early adopters

Credit: Jenni Girtman for the AJC

Credit: Jenni Girtman for the AJC

About 2,000 people attended U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff’s rally on Saturday, and more than a quarter of them signed up to volunteer for his 2026 reelection campaign.

That’s an impressive rate for an election that’s still more than a year away. And it highlights the enthusiasm that’s likely to be on both sides of what will be one of the most closely watched Senate races in the country.

The 600 volunteers included Tricia Gephardt, a 53-year-old veteran of multiple campaigns, including Democrat Michael Coles’ unsuccessful bids against then U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich in 1996 and former U.S. Sen. Paul Coverdell in 1998.

Gephardt said the vibes at Saturday’s rally were good, despite many progressive voters feeling frustrated at how Democratic leaders in Congress have responded to the Trump administration so far. She pointed to a moment when Ossoff asked people in the crowd to introduce themselves to someone.

“It is kind of nice to give your neighbor a hug,” she said. “It seemed like a small thing that he did in that speech, but we all kind of need it.”

Promises, promises

Credit: Evan Vucci/AP

Credit: Evan Vucci/AP

One Republican considering a run against U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff in 2026 is U.S. Rep. Buddy Carter. The Republican from St. Simons Island held a phone-in town hall meeting Monday night, when he made multiple promises that he’ll be held to if he jumps into a statewide race — and even if he doesn’t.

Carter was asked what he’s doing to protect support programs as Elon Musk moves to slash federal spending. “We are not cutting Social Security benefits. We are not cutting Medicare benefits. We are not cutting Medicaid benefits,” he said. Keep in mind that House Republicans, including Carter, voted last month to cut $2 trillion in federal spending.

In response to a retired teacher who said she’s worried about Title I funding for Glynn County schools now that President Donald Trump has signed an executive order aimed at eliminating the Department of Education, Carter said there will be no cuts to programs there, either.

“I am ecstatic with what the president is doing with eliminating the Department of Education,” he said. Carter then assured the constituent, “The money is still going to be there, the low-income money is still going to be there.”

Name and shame

Lots of local governments have been rushing to opt out of a voter-approved property tax break this year. Now, state senators are likely to approve some political arm-twisting to change their minds.

The Senate is scheduled to vote on House Bill 92 today. Its main purpose is to give local governments more time to decide whether to adopt the property tax break. But if local governments opt out, the proposal would require them to put a notice on property tax bills — in bold print — that says leaders “chose to opt out of property tax relief for homeowners.” It would also urge homeowners them to call politicians if they have concerns.

Some of the state’s largest school districts in Metro Atlanta have opted out of the tax break this year, arguing it would cost their districts millions of dollars each year. Republicans are betting that pressure from homeowners could cause them to reverse course.

Under the Gold Dome

Credit: Adam Beam/AJC

Credit: Adam Beam/AJC

It’s the 35th day of the legislative session. Some of today’s happenings:

Listen up

Credit: Miguel Martinez/AJC

Credit: Miguel Martinez/AJC

Today on “Politically Georgia,” the hosts discuss where Georgia lawmakers stand after a vote on Gov. Kemp’s main priority this legislative session. Plus, you’ll hear an interview with Ginny Lim, the woman who confronted U.S. Rep. Rich McCormick, R-Suwanee, over Trump administration policies during his recent town hall.

You can listen and subscribe to the show for free at Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.

Today in Washington

Shoutouts

Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC

Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC

Today’s birthday:

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.

One more thing

Credit: Mark Schiefelbein/AP

Credit: Mark Schiefelbein/AP

U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth mistakenly texted the editor in chief of The Atlantic the U.S. war plan to strike Houthi targets across Yemen hours before the attack. Georgia’s Democratic U.S. senators reacted strongly, with Jon Ossoff describing it as “total amateur hour” and Raphael Warnock calling it “reckless.”

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.