PG A.M.: Decisive week ahead at Capitol, in courtroom and at the polls

From Georgia to Washington, D.C, to the campaign trail, get ready for a chaotic, emotional political week.

Top Republicans will pursue new legislation to target illegal immigration in Georgia after the death of nursing student Laken Riley on the University of Georgia’s campus. Officials say the homicide suspect entered the country illegally from Venezuela in 2022 and was arrested in New York last year.

The fate of Fulton County’s election interference case hangs in the balance as Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee prepares to hear arguments on Friday about whether District Attorney Fani Willis’ office should be disqualified.

Meanwhile, Republicans are scrambling to find a formidable contender to challenge Willis ahead of a March 8 filing deadline.

At the Capitol, a barrage of votes will take place in the run-up to Thursday’s Crossover Day, a critical internal deadline for legislation to pass at least one chamber.

And after losing her own state primary to former President Donald Trump by double digits on Saturday, former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley’s increasingly quixotic quest to upset Trump faces another test with Michigan’s election on Tuesday. She’s trailing him by double-digits in the polls there, too.

But in Michigan, we’ll be more closely watching President Joe Biden’s primary, since he faces a campaign from activists who want voters to back “uncommitted” in protest of his support for Israel in the ongoing war against Hamas in Gaza.

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Credit: Casey Sykes for the AJC

Credit: Casey Sykes for the AJC

UNDER THE GOLD DOME, Legislative Day 26

8 a.m.: Committee hearings begin.
10 a.m.: The House convenes.
11 a.m.: The Senate gavels in.

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Credit: Natrice Miller/AJC

ON THE MOVE. With Crossover Day set for Thursday, here’s what we’re watching:

As we mentioned, the man charged with the murder of a student on the UGA campus was an undocumented immigrant and the crime is expected to spark legislation and debate at the state and federal levels. At the Georgia Capitol, lawmakers could consider measures focused on local jurisdictions detaining undocumented immigrants or condemning President Joe Biden’s administration for the crisis at the U.S.-Mexico border.
The state Senate Judiciary Committee quietly passed a bill Thursday that revives a long simmering debate over religious freedoms, the AJC’s Mark Niesse reports. State Sen. Ed Setzler’s Senate Bill 180 would limit the government’s ability to pass or enforce laws that conflict with religious beliefs. But gay rights advocates argue it would also open the door to state-protected discrimination. Former Gov. Nathan Deal vetoed a religious liberty bill in 2016. The full Senate could consider the bill this week.
The Georgia House could soon consider House Bill 464, a measure that could make it easier to use revenue surpluses in the future to cut taxes. The AJC’s James Salzer reports the House Ways and Means Committee approved the bill last week.

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COUNTDOWN TO SHUTDOWN. One more item to watch this week: The clock is ticking once again toward a potential partial government shutdown. Congress has until Friday to pass legislation funding agencies covered by four appropriations bills. This includes military construction and the departments of Agriculture, Energy, Housing and Urban Development, Transportation, and Veteran Affairs.

The remaining federal agencies are funded through March 8.

While leaders in both chambers have been working behind the scenes on an agreement, there is little time for floor action. Members of the House don’t even return to Washington until Wednesday.

The Senate is back today, but beyond advancing a judicial appointment the only other thing on the agenda is the annual reading of President George Washington’s Farewell Address.

President Joe Biden will meet with the four congressional leaders — House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-Louisiana; top House Democrat Hakeem Jeffries of New York; Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-New York; and Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky — at the White House on Tuesday.

Government funding is on the agenda, as well as legislation passed in the Senate and pending in the House to provide aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan.

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SURROGATE TO VP? U.S. Sen. Tim Scott went from challenger to Donald Trump in the 2024 GOP primary race to one of the former president’s biggest allies, stumping for Trump on the campaign trail.

Trump showed his appreciation for Scott’s support last week with effusive praise during stops in Scott’s home state of South Carolina. At a rally on the eve of the South Carolina primary, Trump called Scott “a much better representative of me than he is a representative for himself.”

The relationship has fueled speculation that Scott is positioning himself to be Trump’s vice presidential running mate. He is among those the Trump campaign last week revealed is being considered for the job. Others include fellow former GOP primary contenders Vivek Ramaswamy and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis as well as U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds, a Floridian who campaigned in South Carolina for Trump, South Dakota Gov. Kristie Neom and former U.S. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii.

Scott was endorsed for the VP role over the weekend by his Senate colleague, Lindsay Graham, who told Fox News there was “chemistry” between Scott and Trump.

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Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC

LISTEN UP. On Friday’s “Politically Georgia” radio show, Atlanta Journal-Constitution Editor-in-Chief Leroy Chapman and U.S. Rep. Jim Clyburn, a Democrat from South Carolina, discussed Palmetto State politics on the eve of its Republican presidential primary.

Then Chapman stuck around for conversation about AJC reporting on cellphone records that challenged testimony from Fulton District Attorney Fani Willis and special prosecutor Nathan Wade. Plus, the team discussed the impact of a ruling in Alabama that has thrown some in vitro fertilization treatments in jeopardy.

On today’s episode, the AJC’s Shannon McCaffrey dives further into the reporting on Willis and Wade. And one of GOP presidential candidate Nikki Haley’s biggest backers in Georgia, Eric Tanenblatt, discusses the road ahead for her after her loss to former President Donald Trump in last Saturday’s primary.

Listen at Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. Catch Monday’s show live at 10 a.m. on WABE 90.1 FM, at AJC.com and at WABE.org.

Have a question or comment for the show? Call the 24-hour “Politically Georgia” podcast hotline at 404-526-AJCP. (That’s 404-526-2527.) We’ll play back your question and answer it during the listener mailbag segment on Friday’s episode.

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Credit: Natrice Miller/AJC

IVF RULING. The recent Alabama Supreme Court ruling that deemed frozen embryos are “extrauterine children” has forced Georgia families undergoing in vitro fertilization to think about the implications here, the AJC’s Maya T. Prabhu reports.

The Alabama ruling should not immediately affect the fertility process in Georgia, but the decision has thrown the fertility industry — and those seeking help — into a state of confusion. In vitro fertilization, or IVF, is often used to help parents who have struggled to conceive find new pathways to start families.

Frozen embryos in Alabama now have the same rights as any other child in that state, according to the decision, and if they are destroyed, it would be considered the “wrongful death of a minor.” The ruling only applies to three couples who sued their fertility clinic after their embryos were inadvertently destroyed, but multiple providers in Alabama have paused most IVF treatments out of concern for legal consequences.

The 2019 Georgia law that limits when abortions can be given also granted legal rights to embryos — often referred to as “personhood.” However, Georgia’s law specified that the embryo or fetus is an “unborn child” only when it is “carried in the womb.”

The authors of the 2019 legislation said they never considered IVF when crafting the bill.

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Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC

IMMIGRATION STANCE. Georgia Insurance and Safety Fire Commissioner John King is a Hispanic immigrant who came to the U.S. legally as a teenager and worked in law enforcement for decades. Last week’s killing of a University of Georgia student and the arrest of an undocumented Venezuelan for the crime prompted King to critique America’s immigration policies in an opinion essay published over the weekend.

In the piece, King, a Republican who is often talked about as a candidate for governor in 2026, calls on the General Assembly to pass strict laws for illegal immigrants arrested for violent crimes. He also asks U.S. Sens. Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock to take action on Capitol Hill.

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Credit: Nathan Posner for the AJC

TODAY IN WASHINGTON:

President Joe Biden travels to New York City to tape an interview with late-night talk show host Seth Meyers and attend a campaign fundraiser.
The Supreme Court hears arguments on two cases about whether states can restrict content moderation on social media.
The Senate has a procedural vote scheduled on a judicial appointment.
The House returns on Wednesday.
U.S. Rep. Rick Allen, R-Augusta, hosts a Youth Leadership Summit in Evans.

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Credit: Nell Carroll for the AJC

OGLETHORPE’S LEGACY. Most Georgians know the state’s founder, Gen. James Oglethorpe, for his urban design skills in laying out Savannah’s charming historic district. But Oglethorpe’s legacy goes beyond a grid of streets and shady squares and is the topic of a new book written by Michael Thurmond, Dekalb County’s top elected official and statewide Democratic Party leader.

In “James Oglethorpe: Father of Georgia,” Thurmond explores Oglethorpe’s evolving stance on slavery and how it helped shape Georgia. Oglethorpe banned slavery upon his founding of the colony in 1733, a law that held until 1750. The AJC’s Rodney Ho has the full report on Thurmond’s book.

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Credit: Courtesy photo

DOG OF THE DAY. Former UGA great Herschel Walker may not have made it to Washington as a U.S. senator, but a dog named after him is living his best life in the nation’s capital.

Meet Herschel Reynolds, the rescue pup who calls Mallie and Tommy Reynolds his people. After being adopted from a Habersham County shelter, Herschel made his way to Washington where Tommy Reynolds serves as legislative director to U.S. Rep. Buddy Carter, R-St. Simons Island. Along with cheering for his fellow Dawgs, Herschel spends his days playing ball, weighing in on legislation, and enjoying his city views.

You’ve come a long way, Herschel! You’re our Dog of the Day.

Send us your dogs of any political persuasion and location, and cats on a cat-by-cat basis, to patricia.murphy@ajc.com, or DM us at @MurphyAJC.

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AS ALWAYS, Politically Georgia readers are some of our favorite tipsters. Send your best scoop, gossip and insider info to greg.bluestein@ajc.com, tia.mitchell@ajc.com, patricia.murphy@ajc.com and adam.vanbrimmer@ajc.com.

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