Today’s newsletter highlights:
- Cleaning up after Georgia lawmakers takes a big effort.
- Georgia’s congressional Republicans back Trump’s tariffs.
- Thousands rally across Georgia to protest the Trump administration.
Scorecard
Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
Politicians say they shouldn’t pick winners and losers. But we don’t mind doing it.
Georgia’s legislative session came to a merciful end on Friday. Some people enjoyed the 40 days of mayhem more than others.
Here’s a rundown of the biggest winners and losers:
Winners
- Burt Jones. The lieutenant governor needed this session to be a launching pad for his 2026 campaign for governor, and he took full advantage of it. Jones pushed through a slew of MAGA crowd-pleasing legislation, including bills banning transgender athletes from competing in women’s sports and protecting religious beliefs from government interference. He even included a swipe at his chief GOP rival, Attorney General Chris Carr. He didn’t get everything he wanted, but he got a lot.
- Brian Kemp. The second-term governor gambled that he could convince a Legislature full of lawyers to make it harder for people to win big jury awards in civil lawsuits. Kemp pushed all his chips in on this one, and he cashed in big time. The win solidified his power in Georgia as Kemp mulls whether to run for the U.S. Senate in 2026 or for president in 2028.
- Brandon Beach. Not long ago, the joke under the Gold Dome was that the Alpharetta Republican couldn’t even pass gas. He was among a handful of Senate Republicans stripped of their leadership posts after the 2020 vote and reviled by Kemp’s allies for backing David Perdue’s failed primary challenge. But with Trump back in power, Beach is one of Georgia’s biggest beneficiaries. He muscled through legislation that would allow Trump to recoup legal fees from Fulton County. And he was just named the Trump administration’s treasurer, putting him in charge of the U.S. Mint. Yes, that means his name is about to be on U.S. currency.
- Uber. The ride-hailing company worked out a deal with the trial lawyers to stay on the sidelines of Kemp’s lawsuit litigation battle. In return, they convinced lawmakers to pass a bill aimed at lowering its insurance premiums. Lobbyists for Uber said it would ultimately lower fares for customers.
Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
Losers
- House Democrats. The minority party had a rare chance to make Kemp a loser in this year’s list. But they botched it. Three Democrats joined Republicans to pass Kemp’s lawsuit reform, sparing him an embarrassing defeat. Kemp likely would have found a way to win anyway — he threatened a special session, after all — but it would have weakened him and given Democrats a chance to make deals.
- House Republicans. The Senate had the upper hand during the final days of the session, forcing a slew of proposals through the House ahead of the final day. Then on Friday, senators blindsided House leaders by calling it quits hours before midnight. House Speaker Jon Burns swears there’s no bad blood with the Senate, but some in his caucus are seething.
- Trial lawyers. Long hailed as one of the most powerful political forces in state politics, the Georgia Trial Lawyers’ Association lost the big one this year, going down in defeat in their efforts to stop Kemp’s litigation overhaul. And word of nasty infighting leaked, with former Gov. Roy Barnes questioning the group’s strategy in a fiery email.
- John Albers. The Republican state senator from Roswell lost his place on the powerful Rules Committee late in the session. The demotion came shortly after Albers surprised everyone by canceling a Public Safety Committee hearing that would have passed bills dealing with speed cameras in school zones. “There was some blood on the floor over there from that,” quipped state Rep. Alan Powell.
- FanDuel and Draft Kings. The ubiquitous gambling companies stand to make a lot of money if Georgia ever legalizes sports betting. But so far they haven’t been able to get past the state Legislature. After seven years of trying, sports betting enthusiasts need to find another tactic if they ever hope to be successful in the peach state.
Things to know
Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
Good morning! Another legislative session has come to a close. Here’s a recap of what went down on a wild Sine Die:
- What passed, and what didn’t? Lawmakers fulfilled their constitutional duty by passing a roughly $38 billion operating budget. But other bills about school speed cameras and elections didn’t make it. The casualties included the much-hyped “Georgia DOGE” bill and bills that would have allowed for a statute of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas and removed legal protections from librarians.
- Did lawmakers make it to midnight? Not even close. The Senate, in a surprise move, adjourned early in the evening, leaving the House hanging. But also hanging were Senate-passed measures the House didn’t take up, as their Senate authors hightailed it down various Georgia interstates on their way home.
- Wasn’t that…? Friday night at the Capitol included several cameo appearances from politicos past and present. In addition to Gov. Brian Kemp’s visit to the House and Senate chambers, Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens, Macon-Bibb Mayor Lester Miller, former dean of the Georgia House Calvin Smyre and former state Rep. Doug Stoner we’re just a few we spotted.
- What’s next? Greg Bluestein has this rundown of the bills sitting on Gov. Brian Kemp’s desk. He has 40 days to decide what to do with them.
Cleanup
Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
The legislative session is over. But the work continues for people behind the scenes.
Lawmakers celebrated Sine Die on Friday by shredding weeks of accumulated papers and tossing them into the air after the final gavel fell. It’s a fun tradition that makes for some great photos. But cleaning it up isn’t easy.
It will take janitors and doorkeepers about a week to get the chamber cleaned out, according to House Postal Director Cory Mulkey. Janitors will have gotten most of the paper off the floor over the weekend. Doorkeepers will come in today to start clearing it out.
Picking up the paper is one thing. Cleaning out lawmakers’ desks is another. Common objects found left behind include Bibles, space heaters and even laptops.
“We have to sort through that and get their personal stuff and try to get it returned to them as quick as possible,” Mulkey said.
There’s a little more urgency this time as renovations to the House and Senate chamber are scheduled to begin later this month.
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Trump’s tariffs
Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
If Sunday’s stock futures sell-off is any indication, the U.S. stock market will continue the downward trend that coincided with President Donald Trump’s new tariffs. (Global markets plunged this morning.)
But Georgia Republicans in Congress are standing with the president, saying they buy into his vision that tariffs will pay off long term by boosting U.S. manufacturing and lowering the costs for goods made in America.
Not only are they not among the handful of GOP lawmakers expressing concerns, most heaped praise on Trump.
“President Trump is reforming a decades-old economic model that saw millions of jobs taken overseas and decimated our manufacturing sector, all at the cost of the American worker,” U.S. Rep. Mike Collins, R-Jackson, said in response to our questions.
We received a similar statement from U.S. Rep. Andrew Clyde, R-Athens. And U.S. Rep. Buddy Carter, R-St. Simons Island, emailed a long statement to constituents praising the new tariff policy, saying it will boost U.S. automakers and other industries.
“Welcome to the Golden Age of American production,” he wrote.
U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene also made several X posts in support.
“These tariffs are Liberation Day for steel workers, auto workers, and every forgotten small town,” the Rome Republican wrote. “Empty factories will be FULL again.”
Rocky road
After several hours of votes on a series of amendments — Capitol Hill insiders call it as vote-a-rama — the U.S. Senate on Saturday passed the budget framework that would allow Republicans to begin crafting a bill that carries out President Donald Trump’s agenda.
The Senate vote was largely along party lines with all Democrats, including Georgia’s Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock, opposed.
House Speaker Mike Johnson considers this must-pass legislation and indicated he will bring it up for a vote before lawmakers recess on Thursday. But some conservative members oppose the Senate plan, indicating there are not enough cuts to offset all of the new spending.
Among them is U.S. Rep. Andrew Clyde, the conservative lawmaker from northeast Georgia.
“From budget gimmicks to a pathetic $4B in spending cuts, the Senate’s budget resolution is a non-starter,” Clyde wrote on X. “We need to be serious about delivering on President Trump’s America First agenda in a FISCALLY RESPONSIBLE manner. If this comes to the floor in its current form, I’m a NO.”
If Clyde and the others who agree with him don’t bend, that will make the math difficult for Johnson given his thin majority. If all Democrats oppose the legislation, Johnson can’t afford to lose more than three Republican votes.
Trump is expected to lean hard on conservatives to support the legislation because it would extend tax cuts, raise the debt limit, boost border security and defense spending and slash other government line items by trillions of dollars.
Today in Washington
- President Donald Trump will meet with the Los Angeles Dodgers, the 2024 World Series champions, at the White House. Then, he’ll hold a news conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
- The House has votes scheduled for this evening.
- The Senate will vote on more Trump nominees.
The resistance
Credit: Ben Gray for the AJC
Credit: Ben Gray for the AJC
The “Hands Off” protest drew thousands of people to downtown Atlanta over the weekend to demonstrate against President Donald Trump’s policies.
The AJC’s Ashley Ahn and Caleb Groves wrote that organizers of the event near the state Capitol estimated a turnout of roughly 20,000. It was just one of about 1,200 events across the country Saturday whose collective attendance could be in the millions.
Lawmakers such as U.S. Rep. Hank Johnson, D-Lithonia, and state Rep. Gabriel Sanchez, D-Smyrna, were spotted in the crowd. A laid off Centers for Disease Control and Prevention worker was among the speakers.
There were simultaneous protests in Gainesville, Columbus and Woodstock.
Shoutouts
Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
Belated birthdays:
- Dayle Burns, the wife of House Speaker Jon Burns (was Saturday.) State Rep. Dexter Sharper, D-Valdosta, serenaded her on the House floor Friday night with a rendition of “Happy Birthday.”
- Jerry Gonzalez, CEO of the Georgia Association of Elected Officials (was Saturday).
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.
Before you go
Credit: Natrice Miller/AJC
Credit: Natrice Miller/AJC
House Appropriations Chair Matt Hatchett, R-Dublin, showed off his singing voice on the House floor on Friday when he briefly launched into a cover of the Erykah Badu song “Tyrone” to the delight of his colleagues. The song became an inside joke of sorts among lawmakers during the hectic final days of session.
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.
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