When national Republicans opened a new Asian American outreach center in the Gwinnett County suburbs in 2021, an enormous crowd of local dignitaries and state officials packed the Berkeley Lake shop to celebrate.
Then Senate candidate Herschel Walker commemorated its first anniversary a year later, and multiple national news outlets focused on the center for stories on GOP efforts to expand the party’s base into new minority populations.
Now the strip mall spot where the Republican National Committee once held pastor roundtables and Lunar New Year celebrations is home to something different and decidedly more spicy: An adult sex toys and novelties retailer catering to an upscale crowd.
The space is part of a wave of RNC outreach centers that have closed in recent years, including at least two others in the Atlanta suburbs that Republicans had opened to great fanfare for minority outreach.
Credit: Miguel Martinez/AJC
Credit: Miguel Martinez/AJC
A Hispanic Community Center in Suwanee that debuted to a packed crowd in 2022 closed last year and is now home to a dental office. And a Black Community Center in College Park that opened three years ago has closed its doors and is now up for sale.
The downsizing is a part of the RNC’s apparent shift away from a yearslong effort to open minority outreach centers in battleground states. And it highlights President Joe Biden’s current ground game advantage as former President Trump treks to Atlanta for a high-dollar event to try and narrow Republicans’ fundraising gap.
The Biden campaign recently announced plans to open seven new offices across the state and hire a contingent of staffers devoted to driving up Democratic turnout. Trump’s campaign has a smaller organizational footprint in Georgia, and is relying on the Georgia GOP and other surrogates.
Credit: Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post
Credit: Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post
The RNC didn’t comment specifically on the closures but pointed to tight polls in Georgia and other competitive states. Chris LaCivita, a Trump adviser who is also the RNC’s chief of staff, said Biden is late to ratcheting up his campaign’s ground game.
“With an operation fueled by hundreds of thousands of small dollar donors and energized supporters,” LaCivita said, “and without sharing our strategy with Democrats through the media, we have the message, the operation, and the money to propel President Trump to victory on November 5.”
Others dismissed the new development. Kandiss Taylor, who chairs the Georgia GOP’s 1st District, had a simple three word explanation.
“Supply and demand.”
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INBOUND. Speaking of former President Donald Trump, he’s expected to land later this morning at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport and then head to Buckhead for a high-dollar fundraiser for his campaign.
The host committee for the luncheon looks a lot like the top of the Georgia GOP ticket in 2020, with both former Sens. Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue welcoming guests.
Other bigwigs throwing their weight, and their cash, behind Trump today include former Buckhead City Committee chairman Bill White, Home Depot co-founder Bernie Marcus, and longtime GOP donor Don Leeburn III.
***
Credit: Miguel Martinez/AJC
Credit: Miguel Martinez/AJC
MCAFEE COMPETITION. Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee, who is overseeing the election interference case against former President Donald Trump and his co-defendants, has one less opponent in next month’s election, the AJC’s Mark Niesse reports.
An administrative law judge issued a final decision Tuesday that defense attorney Tiffani Johnson is ineligible to run because she lives in DeKalb County — outside the Atlanta Judicial Circuit.
McAfee still faces a challenge from Robert Patillo, a civil rights attorney and talk radio host, in the nonpartisan May 21 election. McAfee is running in his first election since Gov. Brian Kemp appointed him to the bench in late 2022.
***
Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
NEW GREENE JABS. U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Rome, welcomed her GOP colleagues back to Capitol Hill on Tuesday with a five-page letter that aired her many grievances against House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La. Her recent crusade against the speaker clearly left fellow Republicans openly frustrated as they returned from an Easter break and not at all interested in ousting another GOP House speaker.
“I totally disagree with it. It’s not good for the country,” said U.S. Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb.
“All it would do is in essence derail the conservatives, the Republicans,” said Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart, R-Fla.
Others used words like “counterproductive” to describe their reaction to Greene’s attacks against Johnson.
Mobbed by reporters on the Capitol steps Tuesday night, Greene was unapologetic.
Credit: Nathan Posner for The AJC
Credit: Nathan Posner for The AJC
“The American people, who elected a GOP majority, deserve a speaker who isn’t serving Democrats,” Greene said, as she accused Johnson of violating “every promise” he made to get elected speaker last October.
Greene gave no timeline for when she might try to move forward with her resolution to oust Johnson. Meanwhile, Democrats again sent the signal that they might stand up to protect the speaker from Greene’s procedural attack.
“I’m looking out for what’s in the best interest of the nation,” said Rep. Hank Johnson, D-Lithonia. “Now would be the worst time to embark upon another one week, two week, or three week search for a new speaker.”
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Credit: Nathan Posner for the AJC
Credit: Nathan Posner for the AJC
WHO’S COUNTING? The White House took time out of its schedule Tuesday to clap back at Georgia’s U.S. Rep. Andrew Clyde, who had criticized President Joe Biden’s latest round of federal student loan forgiveness.
Biden’s plan to forgive accrued interest on notoriously high-interest student loans could wipe out up to $20,000 in debt for as many as 20 million Americans. Clyde, a Republican from the Athens area, called that a “scam” that “is nothing more than a desperate attempt to buy votes with Americans’ hard-earned money.”
That’s when the White House noted that Clyde had $156,697 in Paycheck Protection Program loans forgiven following the COVID-19 pandemic. Clyde received the Trump-era PPP loans through his gun stores, Clyde Armory.
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SCATHING REPORT. U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff’s crusade to address Georgia’s troubled child welfare system moved to a new phase Tuesday with the release of findings from a federal probe. The inquiry determined that systemic failures and mismanagement within the Division of Family & Children Services (DFCS) contributed to the deaths of children.
Credit: Nathan Posner for the AJC
Credit: Nathan Posner for the AJC
The AJC’s Katherine Landergan reports the Department of Human Services, which oversees DFCS, challenged many of the probe’s findings and alleges the inquiry was partisan. Ossoff is a Democrat while the state government is run by Republicans, led by Gov. Brian Kemp.
A spokesperson sent an 11-page response to Ossoff’s report, taking issue with many of the findings. The spokesperson said the subcommittee’s report omits DFCS’s improvements, like addressing the issue of housing children in hotels, and strengthening safeguards for children in its care.
The federal probe was prompted by a 2022 investigation by the AJC into the child welfare system. A months-long review of public documents revealed caseworkers at DFCS were leaving their jobs in droves, fueled by low pay, frustration with leadership, and exhaustion from increased workloads, according to state human resources reports. Last year, the office of the state’s ombudsman for child welfare alleged breakdowns within DFCS, identifying 15 systemic issues.
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Credit: Christina Matacotta for the AJC
Credit: Christina Matacotta for the AJC
LISTEN UP. Tune in to the “Politically Georgia” radio show today when former state Sen. Jen Jordan, WABE reporter Rahul Bali and Emory University professor Andra Gillespie join the show to discuss the political news of the day.
Listen live at 10 a.m. on 90.1 FM, at AJC.com and at WABE.org.
If you missed Tuesday’s show, Georgia GOP chairman Josh McKoon joined to discuss how Republicans are approaching abortion as an issue this election cycle. Also, Stephen Owens, the outgoing education director of the Georgia Budget and Policy Institute, told us why he decided to leave his role after many years.
Listen on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.
***
TODAY IN WASHINGTON:
- President Joe Biden and Fumio Kishida, the prime minister of Japan, hold a bilateral White House news conference. Later, the president and first lady host a formal state dinner for Kishida and his wife, Yuko.
- The House holds committee hearings.
- The Senate considers a judicial nomination.
***
Credit: Courtesy photo
Credit: Courtesy photo
PERSONNEL DEPARTMENT. Happy trails to Joe Brannen, the CEO of the Georgia Bankers Association, who has announced his retirement from the powerhouse bank lobby after 44 years.
Replacing Brannen at the top of the group — and in the halls of the Capitol for the long days and nights of the legislative session — will be Tripp Cofield, a veteran of both financial service and policy roles on the staff of former U.S. Rep. Rob Woodall, for the Georgia Farm Bureau Federation and the Georgia Hospital Association.
Brannen’s last day on the job will be July 15.
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Credit: Stefani Reynolds/The New York Times
Credit: Stefani Reynolds/The New York Times
GODSPEED TO A HERO. A Columbus resident who received a Medal of Honor in 2021 from President Joe Biden died Monday at age 97. Ralph Puckett Jr., a retired U.S. Army colonel and Army Ranger, fought in the Korean War and was honored for his heroism shown during the capturing of a strategically important hill during the conflict.
The AJC’s Jeremy Redmon has more on Puckett and his actions.
***
Credit: Courtesy photo
Credit: Courtesy photo
DOG OF THE DAY. This is a story about Charlie Walker, a cat among Dawgs.
Charlie lives in Athens near the UGA campus with his people, Politically Georgia super fans Burke and Julie Walker. Julie not only listens to lawmakers on the show, she also talks to them every year under the Gold Dome as Georgia’s state librarian.
Charlie invites you to celebrate National Library Week (April 7-12) by curling up with a good book, preferably one about a cat who loves reading, chasing squirrels, and cheering on the Dawgs and the Braves.
Send us your dogs of any political persuasion, and cats on a cat-by-cat basis, to patricia.murphy@ajc.com, or DM us at @MurphyAJC. Horizontal photos are especially welcome.
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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.
